Jessica Long44 said:I’m so sorry to be starting this on what feels like one of the heaviest threads on this whole forum... so, here goes. My mom had surgery just over a month ago, right after New Year's. She was having this intense pain in her lower abdomen, so we rushed her to the ER, and they ended up admitting her immediately because they weren't quite sure what was going on—they actually thought it might be appendicitis or something similar. After the surgery, we found out it was colon cancer. They managed to remove the tumor, but it looks like it spread a bit to the lymph nodes around the area. The thing is, she was doing so well right after the procedure! She could eat, she felt okay... but then, I don't know what happened, this past week has been brutal. She can barely keep anything down, everything nauseates her, and she keeps throwing up. We've already had to go back to the emergency room twice in just the last seven days. This time, they just told us it was stomach nerves due to stress. According to their CT scan, nothing has spread enough to cause that level of pain, so they gave her some Xanax, something for the pain, and Controloc for her stomach. What I really need to ask is, for anyone who has been through this: will this depression and total helplessness happen once chemo starts? And how is it being when she's around other people going through the exact same thing? I feel so lost on how to help her... she's only 47, but she's lost all desire to live, and every day she finds it harder and harder just to get out of bed, let alone eat. We're heading to the PET/CT at Medicol this Monday, and it looks like chemo should start in about ten days.
Sorry for the long post, I just couldn't find a way to make it any shorter...
I feel like I can answer some of these questions. I'm 38, and I went through a very difficult surgery about a year ago. The symptoms were almost identical—the behavior, the refusal to eat... everyone was incredibly understanding. Don't force it. I actually ended up hospitalized two more times after my surgery; I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep, nothing. Eventually, they started reading to me, and we began talking about things we'd never discussed before, just little bits at a time. It just takes love and patience... it's a long road, but it's worth it. I'm here now, I'm doing well, and my girls and my family are doing great too. Just stay brave, everything will turn out alright...