orion70

kramerbrooks, I think what you went through is very common and normal for what happens after finishing active treatment. I went through it, and know of many other people who went through the same thing. Things happened very fast after my diagnosis and I was so focused on treatment that it didn't sink in until later the depth of what my cancer diagnosis really meant. It hit me a couple of months after I finished radiation, then whammo. PTSD like, stuff I still struggle with. If you think it would work for you, therapy can help, and many people do benefit from medical intervention. Between chemo and stuff like Tamoxifen, hormones and moods are all out of whack. Never mind adjusting to the whole "new normal" thing.

FWIW, I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2010. I was tired from a lot of stress/overtime at my job, but not otherwise, and I had no unexplained weight loss or what not. I actually felt quite well going into surgery etc, and often said that I didn't feel sick, but that my doctors were about to make me sick (with chemo etc).

If you are taking Tamoxifen, you are cautioned from the get-go about not getting pregnant, because of the way it can affect the fetus.

Can I ask what part of the world you are in and whether you had an oncologist? You mentioned that your sister is a gynaecologist, not an oncologist. After I was diagnosed via biopsy (in Canada) and my surgical samples were tested, I was provided with a several page document that contained all these details and more. But besides that, my surgeon and my oncology team brought it up many, many times during my active treatment.

Ugh I've heard about that test, my nodes were removed during surgery and sent for testing, so I did not have to go through it. I was treated aggressively as if I was node-positive in any event, due to my younger age.

A cancer diagnosis and the resulting treatment can be traumatizing for many people, so I think the post-traumatic stress descriptor is accurate, but I see what you mean. Some of the psychological treatments they use with cancer patients are similar to those given to those with "traditional" PTSD, like EMDR, though. So professionals make the comparison. Lots of people have flashbacks and similar symptoms.