Finished Radiation August 5th, 33 treatments... No chemo. I'm miserable. I'm starting to feel really depressed. I had this false belief that a few weeks after it ended I would start feeling better... but I don't. I feel awful. I'm really down right now and feel like my life will never be good again. I'm sorry to be so sad right now and a downer to everyone. It might help if people told me their stories of when they got better... maybe if I knew there was light at the end of this tunnel I could feel better about the future. Right now I feel lost and scared... My oncologists office did not prepare me for the time after treatments. They never said how it would be and how I might feel. I've just never been more depressed and don't know how to make it better. Please tell me life gets better again, because right now I cannot see the light... I have hopes it's there though. Thanks.

It does get better hon. Everyone heals in their own time! It will happen for you too. Watch out for it you will notice small changes - small improvements try to revel I those. I notice almost weekly changes now and I'm 3 months and feeling much better food still isn't great for me but it's okay. I think some of what you are feeling is that you expect immediate improvements sometimes we're impatient with ourselves. You've been through a traumatic experience it takes a while to get better - also there's usually some let down post treatment because up to this point you've been go go go - and working towards a goal now, it's stopped and it becomes a waiting game. Your focus needs to shift now. Look for small improvements...a little less drool, a little less swelling, etc... Slowly you'll begin to find the light. It does get better. Hugs!

Sherry - when I read this it took me right back to my darkest moments in the weeks after radiation. I actually felt a physical darkness and cold that seemed like it was going to overtake me at any moment. I was scared that I was going crazy and I, like you was not at all prepared for it and I felt like I was never going to get better. I also felt like I was going to disappear and that no one would even notice.
The light is there - one thing that I wished I had done more of - that I really think would have made a difference- was calling my friends and family over to visit to distract me a bit and pull me away from the darkness and bring me closer to the light.

Life does come back Sherry - it really, truly, honestly does!!! I just got back from a 5 mile run a little bit ago - as I was running, I thought (as I often do now since treatment) about how far I've come and still can't believe I feel like ME again. I can still vividly remember when I didn't - I thought that the real me was lost and that I'd never find myself again - and treatment ended for me 6 months, 19 days ago.
Hang in there! Call a friend, see a counsellor at the cancer clinic, join a support group - just reach out - there are a lot of people out there who want to help you!

If you feel like talking just PM me and I'll send you my number!

Love, light, and hugs to you Sherry!

It does get better, Sherry - good advice above. I can only speak as a CG, but the 3 or 4 weeks right after end of Tx were the worst for my son. It's not just the Tx itself, but when it ends, it's a change from your normal routine and any change that happens even when it's a good one, brings a lot of stress with it. During treatment, you sort of develop a routine which becomes familiar, something you can depend on. Then, it seems, all of a sudden you get that "what now?" feeling. And there's a whole new routine to get used to. But, little by little, it gets a lot better, so hang in there a little longer and you will begin to notice small improvements, and celebrate them! Try to do something every day, even if it's just walking outside to the mailbox and back, to develope a new routine. What really helped me and my son was following the progress of others who were just a little ahead in their recovery and knowing there were better days and more light ahead.

Hi Sherry, Im so sorry that you are experiencing such a low point in your life. Please check with your treatment center to see if there is a therapist of someone available to talk with. It really will help tremendously! Many patients need help to get back to their old selves. Alot take anxiety or anti-depressant meds.

At this point you have just finished your treatments. Congrats!!!! It is an accomplishment. You are used to going to treatment daily and seeing friendly nurses and technicians who boost you up. When all of that suddenly stops and you sit home all day you can easily slip into a 'funk'. Give yourself a little more time and you really will begin to feel more normal. It takes everyone somewhere between 2 and 3 weeks post treatment to feel alittle better. It took me just 6 weeks post radiation to return to my job on a part time basis. I started feeling better about the 2 week point. One day I woke up and felt almost normal for a change and then I realized I was out of the tunnel. I felt like I was waiting forever to feel better then BOOM, I felt human again. It will happen to you too. Try to push yourself to do little things like take a walk around the block. Maybe you can only make it to the end of the street, thats ok do it everyday and go a few steps further each day.

Keep us posted on your progress! Maybe it would help you to feel better by giving others some help on the forum. You are now experienced with what a person goes thru and maybe your can use that knowledge to help those behind you. I know it helps me to feel better when I am able to give others a hand. Give it a try, never know it might help you.

Best wishes with your recovery!!!

Hi, Sherry
my husband started to actually feel a tiny bit better physically about two and a half weeks after the radiation ended. I think that RO's especially are so worried about their patients dropping therapy and are a little less than honest with their patients as to how soon that they will notice improvement.

As others have suggested, getting out of the house (with your hat and sunblock) for even a brief stroll will lift your spirits. If you can pick a flower (or wildflower, aka weed) and bring it back, it will remind you that the world is there at the end of the tunnel. Walking and other gentle activities will help with you brain chemistry, and let you feel better emotionally.

Best wishes and keep posting!