Food and sleep

Tiredness is normal. I was periodically hit by waves of it. 
I know peg feeding is easier if you get no enjoyment from food but I’d urge you to persevere. Exercising your throat muscles, taste receptors and surviving salivary functions is only going to speed recovery. I had problems with appetite for six months and couldn’t care whether I ate or not but I just quickly got the food down and moved on. 

Hi Alan I can only echo what Dani has said, do try to eat, the more you eat the easier it will be, as for tiredness it does go on for a good while, post treatment. Hope things get better for you soon.

Ray. 

Morning Alan

I am Rig dependant, although i am able to managed vey small pieces of soft food. 

I won't say how long it took to take to come back as i didn't have anywhere near as many Radiotherapy sessions as yourself, which will effect it.

At first, like you say it had not taste or it tasted foul, but one thing i found was that eventually one day it wouldn't be so bad.. the next it would be bad again, eventually it would even it's self out my taste came back little by little, and then food just tasted so so good !! when i did find something that was ok, i stuck to it for a while, not sure if that helped kick the 'ol taste buds back in to action !

I would chop and change and try different foods because one may be tasteless but another may not, i did end up wasting some food, others i palmed of on to my son when he came round, but keep up with it, even if it's only small 

Cat x

Hi Alan unfortunately you’re in a vicious circle the tiredness is radiation fatigue and if you’re nit eating enough calories both fatigue   and not eating will continue I have been in here 5 years now and the ones who struggle with food take the longest to recover. I know it’s nit what you want to eat but honestly there’s no magic wand . I forced myself to eat with very little pleasure I found 6 smaller portions spread through the day helped. With you working a manual job you’re burning what calories the peg is giving you. swallowing and tasting improves with use. Can you start with home made soups blended maybe put into a flask for work fortify with protein powder. I’m surprised the dieticians haven’t been in ti you mine were eagle eyed and that was in first  weeks if recovery.

The radiation fatigue may linger it’s a tiredness like no other.  i was eating 2500 calories a day for a gokd  15 months .. I’ve some links to head and neck cook books will pop on below.

 Liquid diet ideas 

https://www.yumpu.com/en/document/view/66263025/cookbook-by-andrew-gaylor-head-and-neck-cancer-survivor-2022
https://www.workingwithcancer.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/After-the-treatment-finishes-then-what.pdf

The last article is also very good at explaining why we need to let our bodies recover. 
Hope this  helps Hazel 

Thanks to all of you for taking the trouble to reply 

Hi Alan

Just another thought. Have you had your thyroid checked. It sometimes takes a bashing during radiotherapy and can also be a culprit for fatigue. It is easily checked with a blood test from your G.P. Just to rule it out of the equation.

Hope things start to improve for you soon.

Best wishes

Lyn