7 weeks post treatment

Hi Jackie, he is still very early in his recovery, and his body has a lot of healing to do, which takes time, he must listen to his body, when he is tired he must rest. He seems to be doing very well walking 2 miles so soon. Many on here have had the same treatment, and have come through the other side, so will your husband. It all takes time and can't be rushed; He will get there. All the best to you both.

Regards Ray.

Thanks for your reassurance Ray, much appreciated 

Hi Jackie. It’s just still early days. He will still be suffering from radiation fatigue which is like no other. It can poleaxe you. For me I had turned a real corner at 12 weeks but it was six months till I was more my old self. 

Hi Jackie 

 have a read if this 

https://www.workingwithcancer.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/After-the-treatment-finishes-then-what.pdf

it may nit seem it but 7 weeks is still early in the scheme of things 

Get in touch with his cancer nurse there should be a lymphodema   clinic at his hospital ask for a referral. 
What he’s feeeling will be radiation fatigue it comes at yiu from nowhere and it’s like a wave washing iver yiu. Best advise I can give is listen to your body I’d you fight it you won’t  win I became the expert of the 20 minute Power Nap   It took me a good while to get I’ve r the radiation fatigue but as long as I had my nap I was fine coukd even manage a bike ride. 
Get him to read our blogs and he will see there us light at the end if the tunnel just takes a while to get there 

Hazel x

Thank you Hazel, Dani and Ray. As always you offer empathy and guidance, much appreciated 

Hi Jackie - early days and he's doing extremely well walking 2 miles just 7 weeks into recovery! Fatigue was a struggle months after I finished treatment. Like your husband, I was reliant on a RIG tube after wk5 but continued to drink all fluids orally to keep my swallow strong. The ulcers are a real bore - just keep up the mouth washes religiously and it will come right.

Food - I set very low expectations and combined with my stubborn streak I tried anything and everything; when it tasted vile/ of nothing I just left it for a couple of weeks and tried again! It worked, as I always felt I was exceeding expectations. Our bodies need time to heal so he should be kind to himself. It's frustrating but he will be making progress every week! However, he may also have setbacks (be prepared!) - which I found very annoying! One week I tasted something; the next the taste buds for sweet or sour or salt had gone again. This constant renewal is ongoing. My oncologist said taste and saliva can see improvements up to 3 years following treatment.

My go-to foods:

- Initially (first 5-6 weeks) fortisips just for calories as I lost 12KG. Then kept trying different soft foods and went back to them when I couldn't initially stomach or taste them = rice pudding, soups, porridge, overcooked noodles, overcooked pasta with creamy/ cheese sauces, soft-boiled eggs...

- Homemade smoothies (with plenty of antioxidants) that I still have at least 5 days per week now! = Strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, 3 tblsp yoghurt, almond milk, a banana, spoon of honey or maple syrup, handful of each brazil nuts & walnuts, tblsp of each of the following - spirulina powder, wheatgrass powder, collagen, seeds (from Holland & Barrett). Quite a lot of calories and it tasted good around wk 7 and even better now 7 months on!

- Poached or soft-boiled eggs with smoked salmon, avocado and wilted spinach (and salt) on well buttered toast or a muffin 

- Lasagne and green veggies (e.g. spinach, broccoli, asparagus, cabbage)

- Creamy pasta and green veg

- Fish with sauce, boiled post (mash was nightmare, sticks to the roof of mouth), veg

- Meats - lamb and porkbelly - very fatty with lots of gravy!

- Half a rare fillet steak, hollandaise sauce, sweet potato chips

- Desserts - my palate changed so chocolate tasted of nothing, but a biscoff cheesecake tasted great! Trifle, rice pudding, custard with fruit crumbles all very nice. Before treatment it was anything with chocolate from the menu - but now anything but!

Now, 7 months on I can eat everything, including mild curries. I always have plenty of water to get food down! Chocolate still pretty tasteless after 3 mouthfuls! I prefer coffee to tea (reverse before treatment!). Only alcohol I really enjoy is Champagne  

Keep going and if at first you don't succeed, try again!

Helen x

Thank you Helen for these suggestions, he’s a determined man and I’ve just shared this with him so I think tomorrow we are going to give soup a go. Thank you so much for such a detailed response. 

Glad to hear how well you are doing too xx

With soup: my favourites had pre4viously been creamy or tomoato - but couldn't stomach them after treatment. Instead, bone broths, clear soups, beef consommé and even oxtail were easier to eat! If you can get hold of any bone broths they're excellent post-chemo as your body needs them to heal. my other half boiled up the bones from any meat he was cooking. Little packs of chicken supernoodles with a lot of liquid - not exactly full of nutrition, but seemed to slide down easily. I definitely turned more to salty food for a while! Good luck xx

Good news,  Mark managed a poached egg on a round of buttered toast yesterday. What a milestone to boost his  confidence. For me , it was just amazing not to eat alone.

Fantastic! That was one of my first 'solid' meals too! I started adding an avocado for extra calories, even though I couldn't taste it at first! Smoked salmon is good too as it's salty (once my nausea caused by chemo had gone!!) xx