Will I be able to swallow again?

Dr Casasola at Dundee Ninewells told me to expect 6 months/a year for recovery to reach a decent level....he was right.

Peter

Thanks Chris for your words of encouragement, Norfolk here we come for a change of scenery and maybe some nice walks that I haven’t done since my RT and I know helps with recovery x

Sue

Go away if you can.  I still take my fortisips with me in case I get into difficulty eating some 8 months down the line.  I very rarely use them now.

A change of scenery will do amazing things for your recovery.  Hope you have a great time.

Plus go away take your feeds and medication the change won’t hurt you. Just don’t try and do what you did before it’s slowly slowly. Take a gentle walk and smell the fresh air 

I lived reading but had no concentration it did come back but did me took a while. Now I’m back tob2-3 books a week. 

hazel d

Thanks Peter words of wisdom from someone who has been in the same position. I will try to stop worrying and treat it as convalescence 

Three weeks is very early days.  I continued using my RIG for 3 months after finishing treatment. Swallowing was a challenge and it took time for things to get easier.

Initially I found liquids difficult.  They didn’t so much regurgitate back into my mouth…they disappeared up behind my nose which was very uncomfortable. I could manage soups and  cappuccino , but very little else.   Perhaps counterintuitively I eventually found that taking big gulps of lukewarm water was easier than small sips.  It was quite a while before I could down a glass of water with continuous sips if that makes sense?

When it came to eating, my smoothie maker was (and still is) my best friend.  I hate most dairy, so that ruled out yoghurts, custards, cream and most of the other things people recommended.  

I just kept trying different things.  Some worked, some very definitely did not!  But even the disasters when tried again a few weeks later were manageable.  Now, nearly 10 months downstream I have good days and less good days.  But it is getting easier….and quicker.  I can eat more of a meal while it is still hot…or at least warm which helps.

Should you go away?  I would say go for it and take things with you that you know you will manage.  
Liz

Funnily enough Hazel I’m the same with my kindle but haven’t had the energy to read it these last 8 weeks and no concentration whatever. One good thing is that the time flies just doing nothing! I don’t think I’ve watched one tv programme all the way through x

Thanks Liz, I’m packed now with all my liquids and syringes and look like a travelling chemist! The biggest problem I have is that whatever touches my tongue I hit the roof. Can you tell me how long was your tongue sore for? 
Sue xx

Hi Sue  ditto,took me months to concentrate long enough to read or watch anything. No ide what I did do I didn’t even do our garden or allotment. Hubbys says I slept a lot it was eat feed sleep repeat. I know flying tomSpain to Spain  was hard it was leaving my bubble but it did do me good and so will your trip,, best advise I can give re your tongue is try to leave it to heal for a week the way I treated mine was it had bee burnt and fried and had to regenerate. The last 3  weeks of treatment and first  of recovery nithung went in my mouth and when I started  to reintroduce food I used to think ok if a baby can eat this I can try it. Our tastebuds need regenerate remember it’s not forever. We all react and recover differently.  
enjoy your few days away. 
Keep doing mouth and swallow exercises I never had any issues once I started to swallow orally I’m it was  slow and breakfast bowl of porridge from 45 minutes to eat   Don’t forget any medication toothbrush mouthwash and toothpaste. 

hazel 

Thanks Hazel it’s weird how the days fly just cleaning your teeth eating and drinking. It takes me longer to have a liquid drink and medication than cooking a roast dinner! I just feel grateful that I’m retired, however do people cope with full time jobs or young children I’ll never know. Oh well onwards and upwards and sunny Norfolk to look forward to! Xx