More Birthdays!

D Lewis
D Lewis Member Posts: 1,581 Member
edited March 2014 in Head and Neck Cancer #1
More birthdays! Isn't that why we are all here? And why we went through this horrible treatment?

It was my husband's birthday yesterday. I made a potato salad and grilled shrimp with butter and capers on the BBQ. I tossed zuchinni and summer squash in olive oil and italian seasoning, and grilled them too. I was able to eat everything, and it tasted great! Teeny tiny bites, extra olive oil, lots of water, eating very slowly, sometimes swallowing more than once, I'm learning all the tricks to get by. It just feels wonderful to be out there at the party and acting like a "normal" person again. And, if you eat with enough panache, no one notices the toddler-sized portions.

Additional hints - never overcook anything, it makes it a lot harder to get down, especially chicken and fish. Just about anything tossed or dunked in olive oil goes down easier. Chopped fruit, tossed in yogurt or a yogurt shake goes down easier. And, if the taste appears to fade as you are eating, take a good slug of water, I think the tastebuds might need the water to get activated again. If you haven't really gotten back into eating, ask a friend to take you out to lunch. Most all menu's have soup and smoothies on them. You will find something on the menu you can play with on your plate, and sitting at the table with friends makes you feel like a human being again.

I'm 6 1/2 weeks out from end of treatment (May 12th -Stage 4a BOT and lymph nodes). I haven't used the PEG since June 1st, and I have an appointment this Wednesday to have it removed. I saw my Stanford doctor last Thursday, and he scoped and palpated my tongue. I still don't know how he got past my gag reflex, but hubby said it was amusing to watch - kind of like giving a pill to a cat. Everything looks good, and he will set up an MRI in 4 to 6 weeks, and a PET-CT 4 to 6 weeks after that. I'm okay with that time frame. I get to see all my local docs this week.

Hoping for clear scans and more birthdays from here on out!

Happy Deb (feeling like a human being again)

Comments

  • rozaroo
    rozaroo Member Posts: 665
    #2
    Deb!
    I am so happy for you! I totally agree with you on the eating & how to get by lol! Every little bit of information help's each of us. Plus I thought I was the only one eating toddler size portion's lol. If anything is cooked in a sauce or gravy I can get alot more in
    lol. Happy belated birthday to your hubby!
    Hugg's Roz
  • SASH
    SASH Member Posts: 421 Member
    #3
    Birthday
    And for fun if you are having a birthday party, you can use a whole cow tongue as a centerpiece on the table. I wanted to do this just after my surgery for my birthday, but the idea was shot down by my family that was throwing the party.

    Maybe next year I will do that.
  • D Lewis
    D Lewis Member Posts: 1,581 Member
    #4
    SASH said:

    Birthday
    And for fun if you are having a birthday party, you can use a whole cow tongue as a centerpiece on the table. I wanted to do this just after my surgery for my birthday, but the idea was shot down by my family that was throwing the party.

    Maybe next year I will do that.

    Cow tongue
    In many cultures, cow tongue is considered a delicacy. Ask your family to serve it as the entree next year.

    Deb
  • Greg53
    Greg53 Member Posts: 849
    #5
    D Lewis said:

    Cow tongue
    In many cultures, cow tongue is considered a delicacy. Ask your family to serve it as the entree next year.

    Deb

    Cool Deb!!
    Hey great to hear you're doing so well!! You're setting the bar high, but I'm going to try and keep up with ya. I'm 11 weeks post R/C and just started eating a couple weeks ago. Great hints on the food. Thanks and keep it going! As for the cow tongue, since I'm cutting out meat (eventually), I'll take a pass on that.
    Greg
  • Hondo
    Hondo Member Posts: 6,636 Member
    #6
    Hi Deb


    You are sounding great, keep your positive attitude and keep being happy as it helps in healing.
  • stevenl
    stevenl Member Posts: 587
    #7
    Hondo said:

    Hi Deb


    You are sounding great, keep your positive attitude and keep being happy as it helps in healing.

    Good Times
    Hi D,

    Glad to see you are doing good. Things are going good for me too. Still struggling with some food, some of it just grosses me out but this ain't about me it's about you. Glad you are feeling better all the time and here's to continued success!!!

    Best,
    Steve
  • micktissue
    micktissue Member Posts: 430
    #8
    D Lewis said:

    Cow tongue
    In many cultures, cow tongue is considered a delicacy. Ask your family to serve it as the entree next year.

    Deb

    barbacoa burrito
    One of the best burritos I've every had was a barbacoa burrito (made from tongue and cheek of a cow). I ordered and tasted before I knew what it was made from, but I loved it. It's best at a taqueria - the most authentic Mexican food place you can find where no one speaks English is the best for this amazing meal.

    Best,

    Mick
  • Pumakitty
    Pumakitty Member Posts: 652
    #9
    Deb
    That sounds great. Glad to hear you are doing so great!
  • Landranger25
    Landranger25 Member Posts: 210 Member
    #10
    Pumakitty said:

    Deb
    That sounds great. Glad to hear you are doing so great!

    First tongue palpation
    Was that the first time the Doc palpated your tongue? The very first time I saw my ENT cancer guy, at the very end of the checkup after he had scoped and thought he had the tumor zero'd in he kind of snuck up behind me while he was talking, put the crook of his left arm against the back of my head and then reached around with his right hand and reached as far into my mouth as he could with his hand and felt way down my throat for the tumor. He did this just long enough while I was gagging and choking that it wasn't really, really bad, just bad. He apologized right away and said he didn't like doing it but had to. He didn't do this during my treatment but has every 4 weeks since last October. He still apologizes. I tell him to just do whatever he has to and let me worry about the discomfort. I also joked one time about the size of his hands. He is a short very stout man with hands like boxing gloves with fingers on them. He held them out to me and said "Just be glad I'm not your proctologist". I'm glad he's not. Glad you are doing well Deb. Drive on.

    Mike
  • debbiejeanne
    debbiejeanne Member Posts: 3,102 Member
    #11
    deb, that is fantastic!!
    deb, that is fantastic!! Eating real food also seems to help our attitudes...lol. I'm really glad everything tasted right, most foods I try still don't taste right and I'm 8 months out from last trmnt.

    All, I still have a lot of trouble with the food getting stuck, in fact it seems like the more time that passes, the worse my throat gets. I've told my ENT about it but he doesn't think anything is wrong. Is anyone else experiencing trouble with food getting stuck? Thanks for your replies.
    God bless you,
    debbie
  • sweetblood22
    sweetblood22 Member Posts: 3,228
    #12
    debbiejeanne said:

    deb, that is fantastic!!
    deb, that is fantastic!! Eating real food also seems to help our attitudes...lol. I'm really glad everything tasted right, most foods I try still don't taste right and I'm 8 months out from last trmnt.

    All, I still have a lot of trouble with the food getting stuck, in fact it seems like the more time that passes, the worse my throat gets. I've told my ENT about it but he doesn't think anything is wrong. Is anyone else experiencing trouble with food getting stuck? Thanks for your replies.
    God bless you,
    debbie

    deb and deb
    OP Deb: Glad you are feeling more like you. I am still struggling with eating and I am not brave enough to eat out yet as I still choke one stuff, only eat a couple of tbs of food at a time and everything still tastes so salty to me. I cannot do prepared soups, they are way too salty. My tongue still burns. I am glad your able to eat well.

    Debbiejeanne, not sure why your ENT wouldn't believe that you are having a swallowing issue. My stricture was caused by the radiation damage. It's not like it doesn't happen. Mine swelled up to less than 2mm. I could hardly get yogurt down and liquids were getting hard. I would request a swallowing study if it continues to bother you.
  • debbiejeanne
    debbiejeanne Member Posts: 3,102 Member
    #13
    sweetblood22 said:

    deb and deb
    OP Deb: Glad you are feeling more like you. I am still struggling with eating and I am not brave enough to eat out yet as I still choke one stuff, only eat a couple of tbs of food at a time and everything still tastes so salty to me. I cannot do prepared soups, they are way too salty. My tongue still burns. I am glad your able to eat well.

    Debbiejeanne, not sure why your ENT wouldn't believe that you are having a swallowing issue. My stricture was caused by the radiation damage. It's not like it doesn't happen. Mine swelled up to less than 2mm. I could hardly get yogurt down and liquids were getting hard. I would request a swallowing study if it continues to bother you.

    sweet, it is actually
    sweet, it is actually getting worse. Today is the first I've eaten real food in 3 days b/c I keep getting food stuck and each time I do, it takes me longer to unstick it. I have to put the handle part of a fork or a straw down my throat for 20 minutes until it finally comes up. Now, I have started experiencing burning on my tounge. I've haven't had that before but my tongue gets read and it looks as though it has little cuts on it. So, that doesn't make me too anxious to eat either. Guess this is just another few bumps in this road...lol. I'm sure I will overcome this as well.
    God Bless you all,
    debbie

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