Managing Side Effects Day to Day: What Actually Helped Us Through It

NOTE: Every body is different. Not everyone will experience every side effect listed here, and yours may show up differently than described.

What helps with chemo side effects?

The honest answer is: different things work for different people and different treatments. This guide covers what helped us, the stuff we kept reaching for, and what we wish someone had told us before round one.

Side effects can feel like a full-time job. One day, you're managing nausea. The next day, your stomach has completely shut down, your mouth tastes like metal, your brain forgot the word for "refrigerator," and you're wondering how anyone is supposed to function like this.

This is the stuff that genuinely helped us get through the bad days, the things we kept reaching for, and the real-life advice that made side effects feel a little more manageable.

Before we get into it, always check with your oncology team before starting anything new. That includes medications, supplements, icing, creams, stool softeners, nausea support, or anything that could interact with your treatment plan.

Stay Ahead Of The Nausea

Take the anti-nausea meds.

Seriously.

Take them on schedule. Take them before you feel sick. Take them even when you think you feel fine, especially then.

One of the biggest mistakes people make is waiting until the nausea fully hits before taking something. At that point, you're not preventing it anymore. You're trying to climb out of it, and that is a whole different situation.

Set alarms. Tie doses to meals. Have someone help you keep track. Keep a note in your phone. Do whatever you need to do so you're not trying to remember medication timing while trying to get a hold of your life.

Getting ahead of nausea is always easier than chasing it.

CQ Advice

If your nausea meds aren't working, say something. There are different options and combinations. You do not have to suffer through it because the first thing they gave you didn't do the job.

ALSO! Ask to include extra hydration infusion days in your treatment plan. This can help tremendously. Blythe got them weekly at the infusion center, and it was a godsend in her recovery!

The Bathroom Situation

Okay. We need to talk about this because nobody warned us enough.

Constipation during treatment can get real, fast. Between chemo, anti-nausea meds, steroids, pain meds, dehydration, and just not eating or moving like normal, your body can get very dramatic in this department.

Start the stool softener or laxative your care team recommends early. You are absolutely going to read this thinking, "That probably won't happen to me." And then a week later, you're going to remember this section with an entirely different attitude.

Trust us on this one.

Ask your care team what they recommend, whether that's Colace, Senokot, or something else. Just don't wait until you're miserable to bring it up.

Neuropathy & Cryo Gloves, and Frozen Fingers

If neuropathy is a possible side effect of your treatment, cryo gloves and cryo socks may be something to ask your care team about.

Cold therapy is used by some patients during infusion to try to reduce symptoms in the hands and feet, especially with certain chemo drugs. It is not for every treatment plan, so check first.

Blythe on this one

Put the cryo gloves on before treatment starts. Not once the infusion begins. Before. I usually started about 20 minutes early. The window when they're giving your pre-treatment meds is a good time to start icing.

You can also ask your infusion center for bags of ice if you don't have the icepack gloves.

And yes, your fingers may feel frozen. You can do it in shifts. You can take mini breaks. You can wiggle your fingers and question all your life choices for a second.

It's worth it.

When Food Sounds Off

There may be days when the thought of food alone makes you want to leave your body.

On those days, keep it simple. Bone broth, smoothies, toast, noodles, rice, crackers, applesauce, bland warm foods, and anything your stomach can tolerate are all fair game.

This is not the season to be precious about perfect meals. Fed is fed.

Kettle & Fire bone broth was genuinely a lifesaver for both of us during treatment. It felt easy, warm, soothing, and like we were getting something into our bodies when food felt impossible.

Also, this may sound dramatic, but try not to eat your favorite foods during chemo if you can help it. Protect them a little. Your brain can start associating certain foods with treatment, side effects, smells, and nausea. Sometimes that association sticks around long after treatment ends.

Kesley on food

Smoothies and bone broth were basically my entire personality during the hardest months. There are still foods I cannot eat because my brain immediately connects them to chemo. Save your favorites for later.

The Metal Mouth Reality

Metal taste is one of those side effects that sounds small until it's happening to you. Kesley experienced this bad but Blythe didn't. So this is a perfect example of how symptoms are hit or miss.

Suddenly, water tastes wrong. Food tastes weird. Your mouth feels like it's betraying you.

A few things that helped were lemon drops, Jolly Ranchers, Queasy Drops, Queasy Pops, plastic utensils, cold drinks, and small sips throughout the day.

For quick nausea relief, smelling ground coffee beans can do the trick. Strange? Yes. Did it help sometimes? Also yes...This is the part where weird little tricks are the ones that work best.

Chemo Brain Is Very Real

Forgetting words mid-sentence. Walking into a room with absolutely no clue why you're there. Reading the same paragraph four times and still retaining nothing.

Chemo brain is very much a thing. And no, you are not losing your mind. Your brain is processing a lot right now. Treatment, appointments, fear, logistics, side effects, conversations, medications, insurance, family updates, and the casual emotional weight of your entire life being interrupted.

Write things down. It doesn't have to be perfect or a novel. Just enough so future you has a little trail to follow.

Write how you're feeling that day and date it. It can be a paragraph, a sentence, or one word.

Nauseous
Foggy
Angry
Meh
What the actual F!?!
Okay-ish
Couldn't sleep
Cried in the car
Ate noodles

When you meet with your doctor, those notes help you shed a little light on what actually happened instead of trying to remember everything on the spot.

For the fog days

We made something for this. The Head in the Cloud Collection is a soft, wearable nod to the post-infusion fog and the strength it took to make it through. It's not just a shirt. It's a knowing glance. A silent hug. Your well-earned souvenir from a chapter that changed everything. The fog won't last forever.

Shop the Head in the Cloud Collection →

Fatigue Is Different Than Being Tired

Chemo fatigue is not "I stayed up too late" tired. It's heavy. Deep. Full body exhaustion that sleep does not always fix.

Some days, brushing your teeth may feel like a full task. Showering may feel like an event. Replying to a text may feel like too much. REST is the assignment here. Rest is part of your treatment.

CQ Advice

You do not need to perform wellness right now. On the days you can move a little, even a short walk around your house counts. Listen to your body instead of forcing yourself to function like nothing is happening.

Track What's Happening

Side effects shift constantly throughout treatment.

What happens after round one may be completely different from what happens after round four. You may feel like you have a handle on things, and then suddenly a new symptom pulls up like, "Hi, I live here now."

Similar to how you're feeling, track your symptoms when you can, too. Quick notes on your phone count. Voice memos are great also, you can add them right in your Notes app!

The goal is to give yourself and your care team something to work with.

Try to keep track of:

What day of treatment you're on
What symptoms showed up
What helped
What made it worse
What medications you took
What you ate
How you slept
Questions for your doctor

Quick Picks: The Stuff That Came In Clutch

These are a few things that helped us manage the day-to-day side effects.

Always check with your care team before adding anything new, especially supplements or topical products.

Restless/Cramping Legs: Theraworx Magnesium spray helped when legs felt achy, restless, or uncomfortable. Ask your care team before using it, especially during treatment.

Dehydration & Headaches: Electrolytes and Liquid I.V., LMNT, can help bring you back to earth quickly.

Random Hot Flashes: A neck fan is one of those things you don't think you need until a heat wave hits you without warning. For something a little more compact and on-the-go, a small hand fan can be a lifesaver tucked in your purse!

Dry/Brittle Nails: Onyx Professional Hard As Hoof Nail Cream was incredible for nails that felt weak, brittle, dry, or wrecked from treatment. Brought them back to life. Layer the lotion on and let your nails absorb.

Chapped lips: Laneige and Sunday Fridays we're our go-tos, especially at night. Both have been our tried and trues since before and after treatment

Dry Everything: Aquaphor, this is so versatile to the magic it offers, dry skin, rash, Kesley had dryness in her nose often during the Taxol chemo, and this saved her!

Nausea: Tummypops and Queasy Drops are easy to keep in your bag for quick support.

Nausea Continued: Something as simple as smelling ground coffee beans can help with instant relief.

Metal Taste: Lemonheads and Jolly Ranchers can help alleviate the taste, dry mouth, or when you just need something different than a dusty mouth.

When Good Sounds "Meh": Bone broth like Kettle & Fire, was a lifesaver for us, especially when we needed something warm and nourishing; this was our fave!

Smoothies were easy, customizable, and sometimes the only thing that sounded remotely doable. Plus, you can pack it with so many nutrients masked in the flavor of the week.

The Tiny Things That Made A Difference

Sometimes the little things made the day feel less impossible.

Keeping nausea drops in every bag.
Having electrolytes nearby before the headache started.
Writing down symptoms before the appointment.
Putting cryo gloves on early instead of scrambling once treatment started.
Letting someone else handle the research when our brains were too tired.

None of it made treatment easy. But it made the day feel a little less overwhelming.

One Last Note

Side effects are not a sign that you're doing anything wrong. They do not mean you are weak. They do not mean you are failing treatment. They do not mean you're handling this badly.

You are literally in the thick of something incredibly hard.

Take the meds your team gave you. Ask the questions. Write things down. Let people help. Keep the easy food nearby. Rest without guilt.

Some days will be manageable. Some days will be weird. Some days will feel like your body is playing games without telling you the rules. Some of you feel a glimmer of who you used to be. You're still you!