Hi Christine,
I'm 30, still with estrogen coursing through me, and I also find myself forgetting words and loosing things. It bothers me, but I try to recall how I was before chemo for comfort.
I know for a fact that I forgot words or lost things before treatment, however, a red flag never went up then. Also, recall returned quicker because I wasn't so worried about it. Now, after all the drugs, when I forget things or lose things I feel a little panicky and think -- oh no, I can't believe I can't remember or can't find that thing, the chemo/herceptin must be making me stupid, I hope it is reversible. Since my brain shift gears into the "oh, no" mode, I think it distracts me from remembering or finding things and feeding the fear.
Don't get me wrong, I am a believer in Chemo brain, and also Herceptin brain to some degree. I have felt it. We have so many chemicals in us it is bound to get in the way of something. I just think that stressing about it exacerbates the effect. In a self-fullfilling prohecy kind of way, maybe it becomes difficult to remember things when we attach so much significance to the ability to remember.
Now these are the things I like to tell myself so I can remain OK with this bizarre side effect. (I find support in my theory when I watch my young, healthy peers loose and forget).
If this makes little sense, then I reserve the right to blame my babbling on chemo/herceptin brain
.
Shannon