The "joys" of Chemo brain....

Many may not know this about chemotherapy but people who have gone through chemotherapy have what they call "chemo brain". Chemo brain is a mental state that occurs due to the amount of toxins that were pushed through your body. Many people tend to have short term memory loss. It's hard for the individual to remember things that are important to them, for example their car keys, their work schedule, or even to take out the trash. Many patients have effects of chemo brain well after treatment, especially people who have a history of alzhemier's or dementia. Since my grandfather has shown signs of these dieases, I am prone to having the effects the rest of my life. The only signs of chemo brain that I have seen in myself would be the fact that I can't remember the next word in a conversation that I've had many times before. I tend to forget birthdays that I use to ALWAYS remember. I even tend to forget the numbers in addresses I knew for years (which EVERYONE knows I remember numbers). However, chemo brain has not effected my brain when it comes to my academics. I feel as if my brain has become more focused on my statistic subjects then I have before. My chemo mom has had problems with chemo brain also when it comes to simple tasks. It's one of those things that we call collateral damage from chemo, oh well. I look forward to making the best of the situation that I can. I tend to look for new ways to do the same thing in order to allow my brain the ability to grow more. :-)