Congratulations! You fought cancer and won the battle. Well done. That took a lot of dedication and self-care and most of all commitment. Now comes a new change in your life, new normals with your sexual health and heart health and, if you are young, how you get pregnant and how it affects the baby.
The changes in your body happen because of the side effects of the radiation and chemotherapy in the body. These poisons take up to a year to leave your body and thus have side effects to deal with. Not only that, but if you had surgery and or hormone therapy, that changes your body too. Your fight is not over after you beat cancer. Stay strong warrior!
The damages affect your:
- Nerves
- Blood vessels
- Glands
- Organs
Your body has endured some radical changes so being kind and patient while you heal is painful both emotionally and physically. Be patient. Be kind. And most importantly talk to your doctors about it. Seek counseling during this challenging time.
Sexual Health:
Here are the sexual side effects:
- Low sex drive
- Vaginal dryness
- Vaginal Stenosis: This is a narrowing of the vagina walls
- Vaginismus: These are spasms that happen in the vagina wall
- Pain during sex
- Vulvovaginal atrophy: this is the thinning of the vulva and vaginal tissues
- Vaginal shortening: This happens after surgery the stitches and scarring causes the vagina to tighten
- Change in sensitivity
- Change in how you have an orgasm
- Physical problems
- Mood changes
Never fear there are some treatments for some of these issues. These include:
- Hormone therapy
- Vaginal dilator therapy: This is used to stretch the vagina
- Pelvic floor exercises
- Topical Lidocaine
- Vaginal moisturizers
Heart disease:
Unfortunately, one of the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation is heart disease. And if you have a family history of heart disease being mindful of this history and choosing to focus on your heart health will benefit you
Solutions include:
- Know your health history
- Eat a heart healthy diet
- Move more
- Stop smoking
- Take meds as directed
- Drink water
- Know your LDL numbers
Pregnancy:
You can get pregnant after you beat cancer. However, there are some things you need to be aware of before you start conceiving. Radiation and chemotherapy stay in your body for up to a year. This means that your eggs are exposed to this poison and can cause the fetus to have birth defects. Here is what you need to know:
- Make sure your eggs are not still exposed to the chemotherapy or radiation
- Make sure you are fully recovered from treatments
- Get a clearance from the oncologist
Finally, something that seems to be a theme during cancer treatments and after cancer includes mindful eating and exercise. Heck, these two things are important for life.
First let’s talk about mindful eating. Eating well will help with strength and healing. Especially if you include healing foods and less of the junk foods and processed foods. This is hard because when you are sick you want convenience. I am guilty of eating convenience foods. However, I have discovered some packaged frozen vegetables like Green Giant who are making great healthy vegetables that are convenient and quick. I really like their sliced zucchini so I can use these slices to make some great things and I don’t have to cut up the zucchini. Other tips include:
- Eat 3 servings of fruits and vegetables a day
- Eat healthy fats like avocado oil and olive oil
- Eat protein, protein is a big macro nutrient that promotes healing in the body
- Eat healthy carbs
Exercise:
I struggle with exercise. We are not friends at all. I know the importance, but my get up and want to does not exist. I hurt. I hurt a lot. That being said, I get it. This is where Karen Clemenson from Wellness Works NW can help you. Here are some great reasons to exercise:
- Slowly increase strength and endurance, your body is weak from the surgery, chemotherapy and radiation and pain so be slow and gentle with yourself.
- Exercise will help you fight depression
- It will help with anxiety
- It reduces fatigue, believe it or not. It does.
- Exercise improves your moods
- You will have higher self-esteem
- There will be less pain, it doesn’t take it away, but it does help
- Improvements in sleep
- Lowers the risk of having the cancer reoccur.
Again, if you need help making a healthy plan for after cancer, Karen is an awesome trainer for the job. She is compassionate and will make you laugh while you exercise.
Here are some links I would like to share with you:
- 6 Strategies to Live a Heart-Healthy Lifestyle by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Staff
- Cancer survivors: Care for your body after treatment by Mayo Clinic Staff
- Gynecology for Cancer Survivors and At-Risk Women by University of California San Francisco Staff
- Life After Cancer: Changes in a Woman’s Sex Life by University of Rochester Medical Center Staff
- Living as an Ovarian Cancer Survivor by American Cancer Society Staff
- Living Well Through Cancer Treatment and Beyond by Providence Cancer Institute Staff
- Managing Female Sexual Problems Related to Cancer by American Cancer Society Staff
- Pregnancy After Cancer by National Comprehensive Cancer Network Staff
- Sexual Dysfunction in Females after Cancer Treatment: an Unresolved Issue by Abhishek Shankar, Neelam Prasad, Shubham Roy, Abhijit Chakraborty, Aalekhya Sharma Biswas, Jaineet Patil, and Goura Kishor Rath for US National Library of Medicine National Institutes of Health
- Why do women face higher heart disease risk after breast cancer by Maria Cohut, Ph.D.; fact checked by Carolyn Robertson for Medical News Today
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Jamie Holloway is co-owner of Wellness Works NW and she is also our Research Manager and writes our Chasing Wellness with Jamie Holloway and Dear Jamie columns. Jamie is also an Independent Wellness Advocate at dōTERRA. She lives in the Portland, Oregon area. Since October 2011 she has been sharing her Journey Toward Health and Wellness with Vasculitis through her blog at JamieChasesButterflies.com. We hope you are as inspired as we are with the raw candor Jamie uses in her writing. If you would like to help support Jamie’s writing efforts please Donate now.
