tatlyn Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 Dad had his first chemo treatment yesterday...we were all very relieved that we are now doing something to fight this thing. The treatment was a big one, five hours, but all went well and Dad felt good last night, slept really well through the night and was still feeling good when he got up this morning. The nausea hit about mid morning. He has prescriptions for anti-nausea drugs including Zofran which I understand is very good. Other than the feeling of being sick, there has been no actually throwing up as of yet. I'm just wondering if there are some things that can be done, quick fixes, to help him feel better sooner? Have you found that some things work better than others? I'm up for any and all suggestions. Thank you so much everyone for being here. God Bless, Lynda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Wood Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 One thing we have found is to eat a snack every two or three hours. Keeping food in the tummy helps to dampen the nausea. Definitely take the meds for nausea. Don Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kamataca Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 Sorry that I don't have any great suggestions for you. I'm glad you guys are on the road to beat back this booger. Good luck with it! Kelly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tatlyn Posted February 2, 2006 Author Share Posted February 2, 2006 Thank you so much Kelly and thanks Don. Eating every few hours shouldn't be a problem for my Dad..he loves to snack Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nancy B Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 Hi Lynda, I kept ginger cookies in the car to eat while I was driving home from chemo. Zofran worked really well for me, and make sure he does not get dehyrated, that adds to the nausea. Hope this helps. Prayers and hugs, Nancy B Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kimblanchard Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 Take the nausea medicine ahead of time DO NOT wait to feel it. Take it the night of the Chemo and the next morning. It may be required for several days....it is your friend jim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geri Posted February 2, 2006 Share Posted February 2, 2006 I too lived on ginger cookies, also ginger ale. Keep food in the stomach (never get to the hungry stage as I found that was too late) and plenty of liquids. Most important of all though was to take the meds.........it's much easier to keep nausea under control than it is to get it under control, so even if I felt I didn't need it I found it best to take it anyway. I took Anzemet (which controlled the vomiting) with Ativan for any breakthrough nausea. Good luck Geri Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tatlyn Posted February 2, 2006 Author Share Posted February 2, 2006 O.k., the ginger cookies are on the grocery list. I got the ginger ale today and lots of bottled water. Dad takes the Zofran twice a day, as per instructions and he also has apo prochlorazine which he can take as required every 6 hours. The Oncologist also gave him a prescription for dexamethasone...twice a day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MurielK Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 I was given cisplatin and gemzar on the same schedule as your dad. I found the cisplatin made me feel really, really awful, but the gemzar wasn't bad at all. By the time you figure out just what works best for him (and everyone is different) he will be almost through with chemo. My doctors gave me ativan (up to 1 mg, 3 or 4 times a day when I needed it.) It helped, too. Good luck. The misery is worth it. Muriel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jorja Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Hi, One thing my dad always drank and still does is Ensure. Especially when his appetite lowered my mom made sure he drank this everyday. love, jorja Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
karen335 Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Hope these tips work. I took Kytril for nausea. never did loose my appetite. Why did they give him the dexamethasone or decadron. How many milligrams did they tell him to take, if I may ask. I take 1mg per day , but it is for inflammation and swelling. If he starts taking it, don't just quit taking it, it must be a slow wean off. It increases appetite a lot, make sure he drinks a lot of water.... Karen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hollyanne Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Hi - Make sure the ginger ale has real ginger in it -- you can also try crystallized ginger and raw ginger in boiled water -- make sure he takes the Zofran regularly -- and ask that he is given ant-nausea stuff in his IV when he gets chemo. Hopefully the nausea lasts less than 48 hours (?) after treatment. The dex should help as well...other things that are minor which may hekp include keeping fluids and solid food separate for at least 30 minutes, eating nothing that is hot, sticking with bland foods --- basically anything that is done for morning sickness may help a bit -- although the drugs are your best bet! You guys will get through this! Holly Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trish2418 Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 Sorry your dad is having to go through this. I developed acid reflux while doing chemo which leads to feelings of nausea. I found that quitting coffee helped tremendously with that (I was about a 5 cup per day person so it wasn't easy) and I switched to green tea with honey which is really soothing to my esophagus after radiation. Good luck and you and your dad are in my prayers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carleen Posted February 3, 2006 Share Posted February 3, 2006 wow, it looks like you've gotten a lot of great advice here. I agree with all above me. For my husband the important things were to take the anti-nausea meds on schedule whether he felt like he needed them then or not. They work great at suppressing nausea but not was well at releaving it once it is there. Also, chemo drugs generally cause your body to flush fluids, so they are pretty dehydrating. Make sure to drink lots of fluids, more than he would on average. My husband also experienced skin dryness so having lotion and lip balm available for comfort was nice. Another thing was to not eat things that are hard to digest during the first couple of days following chemo. Our doctor told us that foods high in sugars and spicy food both make the stomach produce more acids which can add to nausea. Finally, get lots of rest. If his body is telling him to nap, or sit or whatever, listen to it. We found that when my husband pushed himself too far physically, it took twice as long to feel better than if he had just been more moderate. I am glad he is feeling only minor side effects, and hope your dad is feeling better soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marym Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 Hi, I found taking the antinausea meds, needed or not was a good idea. I'm on prochlorperazine and it works fine. I usually take it day 3, 4, and 5 after the first chemo in my cycle. The second chemo is only one drug (gemcitibine) and that doesn't have the same effect. I do get sleepy from the meds, but it's a good trade off. I also get pre chemo pills and intravenous meds to help. That lets me have the first couple of days without the antinausea meds. Good luck. Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tatlyn Posted February 4, 2006 Author Share Posted February 4, 2006 Thank you everyone for all the good advice. All in all Dad's been doing pretty well in the 3 days since his treatment. He's slept through the night, every night, and hasn't actually thrown up. Yesterday seems to have been the worst and today so far he's feeling good. Karen335, Dad takes the dexamethasone twice daily starting the day of his big treatment and continues with it for the following 3 days. He doesn't take it with the small treatment which is the Gemcitabine alone. I'm not really sure why it was prescribed other than the nurse said it is all helpful to control side effects of the chemo. MaryM, you said that Gemcitabine doesn't have the same effects by itself? Can we expect then that the worst of the side effects will be for the few days after his big treatment? Thanks again everyone. I don't know what I would do without you all. God Bless, Lynda Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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