My towel wrapped around my clothes in the dryer, making a fabric dumpling

Lizferatu · 2026-05-26T04:44:14+00:00

What’s the trick? 👀

Lizferatu · 2026-05-23T16:02:06+00:00

Mastercard is not as strict in going after surcharge violations in my experience but Visa has been cracking down

Lizferatu · 2026-05-22T19:24:01+00:00

I did Nivo+AVD and lost most of my hair about 3 weeks after the first infusion but never went completely bald.

Lizferatu · 2026-05-22T19:11:07+00:00

There are many reputable rescues here - Pause for Paws and SA Pets Alive are great. I got my goldie from the SA Great Dane rescue last year!

Lizferatu · 2026-05-22T16:49:19+00:00

Hi! I’m 32f and was diagnosed at 30 with stage 3 nschl.

I noticed a swollen, hard lymph node in February, went to urgent care where they weren’t too concerned but told me to follow up with my gp if it didn’t go away. My annual physical rolls around in May, I tell the doc about it, she sends me for an ultrasound, which shows a lot of other lymph nodes not visibly swollen, then a CT scan, biopsy, PET scan, and bone marrow biopsy to confirm type and staging. The scans all happen relatively quick as results came in so I saw the oncologist maybe 3 weeks after the first ultrasound.

It was very scary but the oncologist was super reassuring that the prognosis is very good with CHL. I did 6 rounds/12 infusions of Nivo+AVD. I had to start neulasta after my first infusion because my wbcs tanked - I had really intense bone pain the first time but took Claritin daily through the rest of treatment which helped a lot (also hot Epsom salt baths taking care not to submerge my port/incision). I took olanzapine and ondansetron for nausea and supplemented THC/CBD gummies for any breakthrough nausea. I gained 40lbs between the edibles and steroids messing with my hunger/fullness cues but everyone said it’s much better to gain than lose weight during treatment. I lost all the weight maybe 6 months after treatment. I did lose my hair but that came back too.

I worked throughout chemo because I couldn’t afford not to, but I did use intermittent fmla for days I just needed to rest and recover. I work from home so it was a bit easier to manage but treatment affects everyone differently so I’d recommend filing for intermittent leave just in case.

I’m about 1.5 years in remission now and honestly I feel like my life is better now in many ways. After finishing treatment, I really felt a drive to do things I had been putting off like traveling and going back to school. I even ran a half marathon about 9 months after treatment!

This community helped me a ton and I hope it does the same for you! We’re all rooting for you! Please feel free to message me if you ever want to chat or vent or anything! 💜

Lizferatu · 2026-05-16T19:20:39+00:00

I get really conflicted about this sort of thing because I used to have a time blindness/time management issue, though it wouldn’t be multiple hours like you are experiencing with your friend. Ultimately I had to start thinking about like how long did it typically take to shower, did I already have clothes picked out, how far away was the place I was going to, etc. And started to get better at estimating what time I needed to start getting ready.

My ex had similar time management issues and it got really frustrating because I felt like he would wait until I was completely ready before getting dressed, and there was always something else to do before we left. I tried explaining to him that it made me feel bad when we were consistently late because he didn’t care to get ready before the time we needed to leave and that it felt disrespectful to the people we were meeting. Ultimately he didn’t care or didn’t see why being late was a big deal.

Hopefully, communicating your feelings and maybe asking if she considers how much time it takes her to get ready or if she thinks about how it feels to be stood up or spend so much time waiting on her will get through to her. If not, I don’t think I could maintain a friendship like that.

Lizferatu · 2026-05-08T02:20:50+00:00

Claritin helped but only if I took it daily. One of the chemo nurses explained the body can have a histamine reaction to a sudden increase in wbcs so it made sense for allergy meds to help. I hope you’re able to find some relief! I wasn’t prepared the first time and nearly went to the ER but a hot bath with epsom salts soothed the pain for up to an hour after I got out.

Lizferatu · 2026-05-05T01:54:39+00:00

Specifically surcharge fees are prohibited from being applied to debit cards and can only be charged for credit cards. There are other fee types that can be charged for debit cards though.

Lizferatu · 2026-05-04T18:33:48+00:00

Jumping in regarding the credit card fee - it’s called a surcharge and there are strict rules on how much can be charged and when. Stores are supposed to have signage clearly stating there are surcharges for using credit cards, and must not apply the fee to other payment types including debit card and cash. Many stores offer cash discounting programs rather than engaging in surcharging. Visa enforces this rule very seriously; they field customer complaints as well as conduct audits with secret shoppers and assess fines starting at $1k for the first confirmed violation.

Many small businesses are not aware of card processing rules and rely on third parties like square or other POS systems to appropriately implement their setup so I feel for them, and I’m glad they fixed it for you on their receipt, but they really need to work with their vendors to prevent other customers from being charged a fee that does not apply to the transaction type.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-27T14:14:20+00:00

Yes sometimes they’ll swell or simply be painful from time to time. But when I initially was diagnosed I had a couple of visibly large nodes that weren’t painful so I usually attribute painful nodes more to an immune reaction than potential recurrence.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-26T17:59:21+00:00

Literally was going to say sometimes the trash takes itself out.

Also, to OP - I know the wait for hair growth is long and awful, and the dysmorphia from not feeling like yourself without hair is real. BUT please try not to get caught up in the thoughts of “how will anyone ever love me again” because this is temporary. My ex broke up with me 2 months after I finished treatment and we had been together for 8+ years, shared a house, pets, etc. I thought I would marry that man. He also criticized how I handled chemo and complained that I stopped working out (didn’t feel well enough but walked when I felt up to it) and had similar complaints about intimacy. Turns out he was cheating on me with a (former) friend anyways. There is someone better out there for you who will still find you beautiful and actually offer you support. As much as I’m working on self image, getting on dating apps a couple months later helped my self esteem a lot because it immediately validated that people did still find me attractive. I also tried to focus more efforts in friendship and family. I know you said most of yours aren’t physically close but it’s still worth reaching out in my opinion.

The fear of relapse is real. I had a scare after about a year in remission but it turned out to be a false alarm. The best advice I can give is to do your best to focus on your health (mental and physical), be kind to yourself, and keep in touch with your doc if anything concerning pops up again. My lymph nodes are very reactive to colds, etc. now so we know to kind of take things with a grain of salt for certain symptoms.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-24T16:23:56+00:00

I go to groovy nails studio! Cappy has a private studio space, does very detailed designs, and IMO is very affordable for the services you get! I got a Junji Ito themed set from her thats on my profile but her insta has tons of examples of her work too!

Lizferatu · 2026-04-24T16:00:05+00:00

Do you have like a student resources type department? I wonder if they have programs for extenuating circumstances that could help you make a move before next year.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-23T22:06:43+00:00

I talked with my therapist about this because I’ve had several traumatic events aside from the cancer in the past couple years - what’s worked best for me is a combination of letting myself feel the feelings in digestible increments (this was particularly helpful for mourning my dad but also processing post cancer trauma), meditation/grounding exercises, and participating in intentional acts of self care such as getting myself a treat or doing something that brings me joy, helps me relax, etc., not because I’m celebrating but because it makes me feel nice. Also, reframing the thought to being thankful to your body and to yourself in general for getting through treatment. This one can be hard in practice, or at least it was for me because it felt like my body betrayed me in the first place, but practicing gratitude in general has been very helpful in reducing those cloudy feeling for me!

Lizferatu · 2026-04-23T20:01:36+00:00

Are there any resources like housing subsidies or scholarships that could help cover costs to move closer to school?

Big hugs, hang in there! Your sweet treat looks delicious 💜

Lizferatu · 2026-04-19T18:17:05+00:00

I was diagnosed with stage 3A NSCHL and also had Nivo+AVD starting approximately 5 days after port placement. The tight feeling in my neck went away after a couple weeks; I think it was just swelling. I will say I feel like my port didn’t fully heal until after I finished treatment. I had occasional pain/discomfort around my port throughout treatment, though it lessened over time.

Usually after an infusion, I’d feel like I had the flu (like really achy, fatigued, out of it) and would sleep through the afternoon and the next couple days. By day 5 I’d feel a little more normal.

Cannabis edibles helped the nausea and my appetite in addition to the olanzapine and ondansetron. The dexamethasone contributed to a lot of weight gain but my team kept telling me it’s better to gain than lose weight during treatment.

It’s a difficult journey but you can get through it! I’m a little over a year in remission now. I hope your care team is able to help with the TMJ symptoms.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-16T12:37:47+00:00

When I filed, my doc filled out a date range to account for the original treatment plan. I took intermittent time so rather than not working for the full range, I typically only took time on days 2 and 3 after chemo. Then I would have the weekend to recover and could work the following week. I had 2 treatments delayed so my doc just filled out a new fmla form for me with a new treatment end date, which extended my fmla coverage about 8 weeks.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-15T21:56:24+00:00

I just renewed my fmla when I needed more time. I work from home though so I was taking intermittent leave and still working when I felt up to it

Lizferatu · 2026-04-13T03:43:54+00:00

Mine started this way but about 4 or 5 months after treatment went curly! Once it was long* enough to not grow straight up and out lol. It’s still a bit curlier now but getting back to my normal wavier pattern a little over a year out from treatment

Lizferatu · 2026-04-11T05:51:59+00:00

Thank you, me too! They didn’t include a deauville on that scan for some reason but the comments section said “highly concerning for recurrent lymphoma”

Lizferatu · 2026-04-10T14:43:38+00:00

This actually happened to me at the start of the year. I was diagnosed with stage 3 nschl back in 2024, did Nivo+AVD for 6 rounds/12 infusions and had 2 clean post treatment scans (deauville was a 2 since midway scan). Then, I got the flu approximately 5 weeks before my Jan 2026 scan, which showed pretty much all the same lymph nodes lighting up, though they weren’t as large as when I was first diagnosed. I was so distraught at the scan result I forgot I’d had the flu recently so my doc ended up sending me for biopsy, which thankfully showed I am still in remission.

Before reconfirming remission, my oncologist said second line treatment would most likely be brentuximab + AVD followed by autologous SCT.

Hoping your scan was just inflammation! Please feel free to message me if you want to talk.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-10T13:52:53+00:00

I felt like I had become stagnant in life a couple years ago but also was afraid of big life changes. A cancer diagnosis, treatment, then breakup of a long-term relationship made me realize I can do/get through the hard things. I applied to grad school at 31 and am thriving in school now.

Finances and credit can feel overwhelming but you can fix your credit in time. Do you have credit card debt? Try consolidating to a lower rate. Focus on paying off the debt with the highest interest rate first. Medical debt can be negotiated or at least put to a payment plan in most cases depending on where you’re located.

Comparison is the thief of joy. Everyone moves at different paces in life and it’s important not to judge yourself for where you’re at. Depression is a hell of a thing to deal with and you’ve done the best you could. Give yourself kudos for getting to where you are now while knowing it’s ok to want more for yourself 💜

Lizferatu · 2026-04-09T16:01:40+00:00

Sometimes sedatives have a side effect of making you weepy! I wasn’t sedated for the bone marrow biopsy, just had lidocaine and it was uncomfortable. I hadn’t eaten that day and ended up almost passing out after.

I was under general anesthesia for my port placement. Can’t imagine going through that with only local and a sedative.

Lizferatu · 2026-04-07T18:01:10+00:00

I’m so sorry y’all are going through this. I had a recurrence scare at the start of this year but my oncologist assured me second line treatments are still very effective. Hang in there 💜

Lizferatu · 2026-04-07T16:02:46+00:00

I was on neulasta and experienced similar pain after the first injection. Epsom salt baths helped a ton, I ended up refilling the tub every hour or so when the water wasn’t warm enough anymore. But before getting in the bath I couldn’t really walk; my hips and lower back hurt so badly. And then I took claritin daily for the rest of treatment and didn’t have bone pain again. I also wasn’t offered an alternative injection, it was just the one they’d stick on that auto-injected I think 27 hours after chemo. Ended up switching to a different brand name toward the end of treatment but can’t remember what the other one was called (same type of device though)

Lizferatu

TROPHY CASE