The Side Effects of Chemotherapy

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This is the seventh in a series of blog posts about my experiences as a cancer patient and survivor. Before we begin, I want to be clear that all opinions expressed here are my own. Nothing that I say in these posts should be taken as medical advice. If you have any questions or concerns, you need to reach out to a licensed medical professional immediately.

One of the most intimidating things for me initially was receiving the BINDER’S WORTH of disclosures about the medications I would be receiving during chemotherapy. Each drug was its own packet–and they were LONG. The biggest section of the packet would be the potential side effects, and they are all awful side effects.

It’s kind of like when you are watching TV and you see a commercial for some drug (why are they even allowed to advertise drugs?), and you hear the list of side effects and think to yourself, “Surely X condition wouldn’t be nearly as bad as all those things?!?”

…that’s chemotherapy.

So, in the interest of full disclosure, let me be clear–not everyone reacts to the drugs in the same ways. And that’s part of where that ridiculously long list comes in. They are things that MIGHT happen to you. Like you MIGHT lose your fingernails. But you MIGHT NOT. Many of the side effects I experienced wouldn’t necessarily be experienced by others–and I think that some of my side effects were exacerbated by the fact that I don’t have a gallbladder.

However, here are the side effects I experienced, and how I dealt with them:

  • Hair loss – This started QUICKLY. Like, I was astonished at how quickly I started finding hair on the floor. And then I realized that every time I touched my head or I rested my head on anything, hair was coming away. There is a treatment that some people do for this called a cold cap (the concept, as I understand it, is that there is less chemotherapy getting to the hair follicles and you lose less hair). I didn’t use a cold cap. Instead, somewhere around August or September, I got my husband’s trimmers, used the 1 inch attachment, and buzzed my shoulder-length locks off. I couldn’t bear to go fully bald, but I figured the super-short hair would annoy me less when it fell out. Anyway, one of my nurses at Dr. Kittinger’s office recommended Biotin (coconut oil) as a supplement, and I really do think it has made a difference. My hair is growing back pretty fast, although it’s coming back in a different texture and color. It’s definitely darker than it was.
  • Irritated scalp/skin – My scalp didn’t like chemo. At all. About three or four days after each round of chemo, my scalp would break out into painful sores. I’d also break out across my back and chest, but the break out and the sores would disappear just as quickly as they came. The dehydration also made my skin super tight and itchy, especially when it was cold outside.
  • DRY MOUTH – Oh my word. One of my least favorite side effects is the dry mouth and dehydration that chemo causes. Somehow, it makes your saliva production diminish, which means your mouth and throat are constantly dry and sore. I went through ridiculous amounts of sugar-free gum and mints. Why sugar free? Well, because chemo changes the way your blood clots, so dental care isn’t recommended for chemo patients. I didn’t want to find out that I had rotted my teeth away during chemo, so sugar-free it was. But imagine feeling like you have strep or cotton mouth for eight months. Not fun.
  • Nausea – This is one of the hallmark side effects that everyone knows about, and I definitely experienced it. What was odd to me is that I wouldn’t be nauseous that day. It usually would hit me around day 3. I still get a little nauseous every now and then with chemo, even though I’m on “chemo lite”. My nausea was thankfully controllable by medicine, and I was only actually “sick” a handful of times when I just couldn’t get the meds into my system fast enough.
  • Fatigue – Uh, yes. So much fatigue. I have probably slept more in the last year than I ever have in my life. Maybe even total, lol. Cancer has EXHAUSTED me. But part of that is because chemo made me anemic, so that just exacerbates everything. But yes–fatigue. I’d be sitting in the recliner, talking to my husband, and I would literally fall asleep mid-sentence. I’ve never done that before in my life.
  • Stomach issues – So, I’m going to be delicate here, as much as possible. But the absolute worst side effect for me was that chemo DESTROYED my stomach. I’m not sure if it was worse because I don’t have a gallbladder or just because I was especially blessed, but chemo brought me to my knees. After each round of “scary chemo”, I would have diarrhea for about 10-12 days. I couldn’t eat a lot of foods because they would literally go straight through me. For the worst days, I would literally eat eggs, cheese, or a baked potato. Every meal. I was staying dehydrated (because chemo is dehydrating enough without living in the bathroom), and I went through over a dozen boxes of Immodium (I would rotate Immodium with my prescription). It was terrible. It hurt to sit down, to be honest, and I wouldn’t eat when I was at work for fear of needing to rush to the bathroom. I have bashful bladder as it is, and the thought of having to admit to the class that I needed to go to the bathroom and–well, I couldn’t do it. I just couldn’t. It was just too demeaning. It’s almost pathetic the lengths I went to trying to hide this symptom from people. While it doesn’t bother me in the same way now, with “chemo lite”, it has at least been positive in one way. Normally, with all of the iron and other supplements that I am on for the anemia, you’d have to be on stool softeners. Not so with me, lol! Hands down, this has been the side effect that made me the most miserable. 
  • Water retention – the chemo pill that I’m on now makes me retain water, which is weird, because I’m constantly battling dehydration. I can’t explain it. But it’s frustrating, because I constantly struggle with it.
  • Headaches – y’all, I’ve had some doozies. They feel like migraines. You don’t want to move, because moving makes it hurt more. You feel nauseous. It hurts to blink. I don’t know why, but caffeine tends to help kick these headaches faster. I consider Dr Pepper one of my medications for that reason, haha.
  • Temperature issues – I don’t even really know how to explain this one. I guess it’s similar to hot flashes? However, I can’t seem to regulate my body temperature as easily. I’m almost always hot (and I mean HOT) when everyone else is fine or I’m under a blanket when everyone else is in shorts. What really bothers me is that when I get hot, I get a prickly sensation all over and I just want to come out of my skin. I am hoping that one passes, or it’s going to be a LONG SUMMER.
  • Brittle nails – My nails (fingernails and toenails) are pretty brittle and break if you look at them sideways. I have Beau’s lines on my nails too–you can count the chemo on my fingernails kind of like you can count a tree’s age by its rings. However, as my nails grow out, the Beau’s lines will disappear and I’ll have healthy, normal nails again.

There you have it–the major side effects of chemotherapy (or at least the ones I experienced). It has definitely not been fun, but at least the battles are coming to an end soon. 

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