[bejuce]

Thank you all for your wonderful suggestions and links! I've heard about Clonazepam before through my parents who take it to help them sleep. They had suggested I take it before but I was always afraid I would get drowsy fast.

The studies and info on Cortisol totally makes sense. I've always suspected that the increased stress I was under when pregnant with my 2nd contributed to my cancer. I had all the physical reactions to it like higher blood sugar level during pregnancy when mine had always been normal, the internal anxiety pressure that we feel when stressed, heartburn, etc.

I'll bring this up at my oncologist's appt next month. I'll also be doing my yearly round of scans after that and will definitely ask for a blood test to monitor my cortisol levels.

I also found it interesting the link between cortisol and thyroid function. My mom recently removed her thyroid due to a cancerous nodule, and my brother has hypothyroidism. Probably related to their stress levels as well, I'm sure.

More and more I'm a believer in the body being an integrated system that needs all its parts well oiled and maintained so nothing breaks down. We cancer patients need to be especially mindful of that - our overall well being can and does affect our overall health.

Thanks again!