After starting your treatment, you may begin to feel an ongoing sense of tiredness or exhaustion. This can be caused by your cancer or treatment and often does not fully go away with rest. This fatigue can make small efforts seem hard and change how you think and feel. You may find you cannot do as many activities as before, and it could become harder to work, be involved with your family or socialize. Although fatigue is a normal side effect, some symptoms are more worrisome than others. If you have any of the effects below, please let your care team know:
- Dizziness
- Feeling a loss of balance when walking or changing positions
- Falling or hurting yourself
- Trouble waking up
- Trouble catching your breath
- Sudden increase in fatigue
To help manage
cancer-related fatigue:
- Exercise several times a week.
- Attend physical therapy sessions.
- Plan rest times into your daily routine.
- Do one activity at a time.
- Try easier and shorter versions of activities you enjoy.
- Keep a diary of when you have more energy and use it to plan your daily activities.
- Save your energy for your most important tasks.
- Figure out what helps you feel less tired and do those activities first.
- Eat healthy foods and drink plenty of fluids.
- Take short naps or breaks, rather than one long rest period.
- Relax for at least one hour before falling asleep.
- Establish a “before sleep” routine to be used every night.
- Join a support group for people dealing with the side effects of infusion treatment.
- Seek treatment for depression, pain, sleep disorders or other conditions that may be adding to your fatigue.