Leg muscles aching

linn65 · 01-01-2013, 09:42 PM

Chemo finished November 27th and surgery done two weeks ago today. But my thighs still are not as strong as they were, it feels like I did a bunch of exercise and I have to sit down and rest.....is it chemo still or surgery.

dchips1 · 01-01-2013, 10:06 PM

oh my dear, please give your self the time to recover. You have been thru so much, do you still have drains in from your surgery? The chemo continues to work in your body, pain medication from surgery, all of these affect your energy level and strength. You need to rest, then while sitting try some pelvic and thigh muscle squeezes then relax, stretch your toes all the way out then all the way toward ceiling,take short frequent walks through out the day around your house. If you are unsteady, stand by a chair and do gentle marching, side to side leg movements. You can also do upper arm movements as well(check with surgeon first). big arm stretches and large inhale and exhale helps keep some muscle strong, shoulder/and neck rolls.

Give your self time to heal, baby steps, and every day it will will get better. Also make sure your potassium and magnesium, calcium levels are ok. Take care
Prayers for healing and a Blessed new year
Darita

starwishn2 · 01-01-2013, 10:32 PM

Hi Linn65~
I finished my Taxotere/Carboplatin on Dec. 6th and have continued with Herceptin. I seem to have those same symptoms. Some days my legs feel like I ran a marathon the previous day. I know fatigue is a huge side effect from the chemo and when adding your recent surgery - no wonder you ache. I have found that taking short walks (even to just the end of my driveway and back) help some. Be gentle to yourself and don't push it. All this seems to take time! I'm anxious to feel "normal" again soon as I'm sure you are.

best wishes~
Jeri

Gerri · 01-02-2013, 08:20 AM

I know it is hard, but give yourself time to recover. I assume you are still receiving Herceptin so it will be a while before you feel somewhat "normal" again. While going through treatment I read in a book that it takes the same amount of time to recover from treatment as it does to go through it. That made sense to me and helped put things into perspective. For me, that was a little more than a year (including Herceptin alone). Of course, we are all different - some will recover a lot quicker and some may take a little longer. Do as much as you can to build your strength back up, but give your body the time it needs to rebuild.

Best of luck to you!

'lizbeth · 01-02-2013, 10:09 AM

Linn65,

I had the same symptoms with Taxotere and Herceptin. I believe it is part of the peripheral neuropathy. My symptoms resolved after finishing chemotherapy.

I would advise exercise too. It helped quite a bit with quality of life. I know it is tough - with the nausea and diarrhea, etc. I managed a walk everyday, I just didn't eat first, lol.

karen z · 01-02-2013, 10:15 AM

Hi. "a bunch of exercise" may be way too much after finishing chemotherapy at the end of nov. Why not start with more reasonable goals and ones that don't fatigue you too much as the chemo is likely still doing that as well. As someone said......baby steps would be good. Nothing wrong with exercising now but your body has gone through a lot so you really don't want to "beat it up" some more.

'lizbeth · 01-02-2013, 10:59 AM

Like my Doctor of Physical Therapy said . . . you never get better by resting.

You need to start with small amounts of exercise that you can tolerate.

If you can find a physical therapist in your area that specializes in rehabilitation for cancer patients, and get an evaluation that would be the best course of action.

I didn't believe him in the beginning when he was describing the benefits, blah, blah, blah.

You will be shocked the difference that the correct level of exercise makes for you. Dr. Joe took me from a frail, shaky, weak person to a powerhouse in 8 months. Insurance covered the prescriptive exercise program except for co-pay.

I feel like Dr. Joe helped me get my life back after cancer treatment. I wish I had known about the program earlier.

Here is a link to my Doctors' website:

http://www.newhorizonspt.com/aboutus.html

conomyself · 01-02-2013, 10:04 PM

Linn, I finished my chemo on November 17th too. I feel the same way, and to me it gets a little frustrating, because while I need more time to recover, I feel so much better than during the Taxotere that my mind is charged and has more ambition that the body can handle yet...but it's getting a little better every week, just needs time and patience I suppose!

Rachael