Yawn…
Being able to sleep well is enviable. Since my breast cancer diagnosis, I’ve hardly been able to do so. I was completely taken aback by the results. I went to bed knowing I had cancer and woke up with that same thought. It took a long time until that was no longer the first thought I woke up with. Emotions and stress are bad for a good night’s sleep.
After the operation I could no longer sleep on my (favorite) left side because of the wounds and I had to find the right position. With several pillows I tried to support my breast and arm as much as possible to be somewhat comfortable. Turning over in bed became quite a task with all those pillows. Pain is bad for a good night’s sleep.
About five weeks after the operation, radiotherapy started and towards the end of the radiotherapy the skin on my left breast became quite sensitive. Contact with clothing was already painful. In addition, radiotherapy requires quite a lot of energy: your body is working very hard on healing and recovering. Fortunately, my breast and skin healed well. The pain decreased and after a few months I was able to lie gently on my left side again.
Following the radiotherapy, I started hormone therapy. I started with Tamoxifen and that caused many side effects; one of them was insomnia. I could no longer keep my eyes open due to fatigue, but my brain would not turn off. That one little pill a day was maddening.
You can say that cancer treatments are also bad for a good night’s sleep. Quite contradictory when you consider that you really need your night’s sleep during such a period.
I am happy with all the good results I received last week after examinations by the gynecologist and gastroenterologist. X-rays of the back and lungs are good too. Unfortunately, that does not provide any relief for the neck and back pain that I have had for some time. A good night’s sleep remains a problem more than a year after diagnosis.
Nail mat
I took a few tips from my sister and friend to heart. To relax before going to sleep, I lie on a nail mat (Flowmat) with headphones on and meditation. We had that nail mat in our house for years because of my husband’s back pain problems.
This helps a lot to clear my head and relax my body, I even fall asleep on the nail mat! I now have to find a way to extend that to the whole night. I would love to be able to sleep all night!