Phlegm never stopped + DIY blended meals

KD50

I am surprised no one in this thread talks about making your own meals and blending. As soon as I got home from hospital, I began blending. I always maintained a healthy diet, but interestingly, I have no cravings whatsoever now. It is surely because my diet is so balanced. I live on wild salmon, chicken, turkey, eggs, quinoa, buckwheat, and LOTS of vegetables, beans, some fruit, blue berries. Minimal sugars, only a bit in morning formula drinks. I do supplement with formula, 1-3 a day, but have begun to wonder if they contribute to the phlegm, even if claimed lactose free. I’m currently trying vegan Orgain. I use magnesium, Calcium, & a FEW drops of high quality Melatonin at night, and sleep better than ever. I have good energy, and after early weight loss, have maintained a comfortable 110 lbs at 5’4” over 10 yrs.
I am convinced that having a normal, balanced diet, though blended, has kept me reasonably well. I do have some debilitating issues such as head pressure, but this predates the treatments.
My cancer was stage 3 Squamous cell tongue. Neither smoker nor drinker. Surgery 11/23, six weeks radiation. Nearly 11 yrs out, STILL suffering isolating phlegm, foamy or thick sticky. Extremely adverse during social interactions. Working on finding ways to mitigate. Best to all of you.

CivilMatt

KD50,

I was just passing by and I noticed your post. Sometimes it takes a while for members to respond to a post. I had such an aversion to eating (normal foods) that I lived on smoothies and a ton of tomatoes and cucumbers with olive oil. I was always trying things but I could not enjoy eating, but I was happy to still be around, and I carried my small igloo cooler with me at all times. This went on for 221+/-days. Then one day out of the blue my taste buds switched back on and I was back to the word of the eating. It has been 12 years, 4months and 15 days since my last rad for my Stage IVa, BOT, SCC, hpv+, surgery, rads and Erbitux.

Now I have other BIGGER issues to deal with and those times when I didn’t want to eat, are now just fond memories.

Seeyou,

CivilMatt

motorcycleguy

KD50,

My fiance made smoothies, when I needed them. Even when I couldn't swallow - I could chug a 20 oz. smoothie, no problem. She added protein and fruit and I'm sure it helped me maintain some weight, during treatment! She has shared her "recipes" with several of my friends on here!

12 years - fantastic! I just passed 5 and feeling good…

MG

wbcgaruss

KD50, Welcome to the CSN Head and Neck discussion forum.

As far as the phlegm problem have you asked your care team or ENT about it?

Any phlegm problems I still have are from radiation treatments affecting my saliva production. But I am sure there are other reasons.

I have a situation with phlegm still and probably always will. I can't sleep on my back or it is soon making me cough. During the day and evening when I am up, I am always sipping coffee or water or other liquid due to dry mouth. I believe this keeps my saliva thinned down and washed away as I swallow but if I am not doing it enough or say overnight it can happen that I get thick phlegm in my throat and have to spit it out. I can get it even if I am doing all the right things. If you are out and about or in a public place discreetly put it in a paper towel or tissue. This is all due to radiation treatments affecting my saliva glands to produce adequate saliva and I am sure there are many on here who have this side effect. Could this be what is affecting You? It is not so much that your saliva is a phlegm or naturally thick, it is that your saliva is not being produced in adequate quantities causing a thickening thus the phlegm problem. It is not hard to handle at home or in the yard or out in the woods but in something like a restaurant setting is a whole different situation. There are many on here with damaged saliva glands from radiation. I had my first radiation back in 2013.

Here is an article on the many possible side effects we can get post-treatment…Dr. Itzhak Brook…

Late side effects of radiation treatment for head and neck cancer

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7533405/

I hope you work out a way to deal with your phlegm issue efficiently and discreetly.

If possible can you give details of exactly what is occurring and the issues it causes such as swallowing issues, breathing issues, etc. it would help to narrow the problem down.

Also, be aware you need to be meticulous about your dental health if you have H&N radiation.

I am glad you are through treatments and eating so well and feeling so good have great energy and maintaining a healthy weight, I admire you.

Also keep in mind that a certain amount of folks on here have not recovered as well as you have and or had much more extensive treatments and surgeries and can't achieve your level of recovery success but I am sure they are glad for you, I know I am when a cancer turns into a success story, that's what the goal always is. Congratulations.

As far as making and blending meals I would say it is definitely discussed on here but not on an ongoing basis like a fairly constant thing. You just have to be here when they are discussing it on a thread. Over the years there has been much discussion of blending foods using the Vitamix or Nutribullet, or other blenders.

Your best bet is to do a search of the previous discussion forums here on CSN and you can turn up a lot. Below is a link with the search terms "Making meals" and it shows 10 threads you can look at and when you get to the bottom click next for another page and 10 more threads…

https://csn.cancer.org/search?domain=all_content&query=Making%20meals&scope=site&source=community

Here is a link to a search called "Blending meals" and the same applies, check out the threads and go to the next page…Try any search terms you like to narrow the answers you are looking for…

https://csn.cancer.org/search?domain=all_content&query=blending%20meals&scope=site&source=community

Also if you check out utube there is quite a resource for blended and or blenderized foods just do a search with your desired search terms. Try terms like "blended food recipes for tube feeding" link below…

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=blended+food+recipes+for+tube+feeding

Or the term "blended food tube feeding" link below…

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=blended+food+tube+feeding

Below are a couple of examples of recipes and videos you'll find…

What Is the Best Tube Feeding Formula?

Play Video

Blenderized Tube Feeding: 5 Foods That Don't Blend Well

Play Video

DIY BLENDERIZED TUBE FEEDING

Play Video

Blended Diet Demonstration for G-Tubes

Play Video

There is a lady who has a utube channel where she discusses recipes but has videos on lots of information about feeding tubes which I found very helpful…

Natural Tube Feeding

https://www.youtube.com/%40NaturalTubeFeeding

But that's not all…

There are a ton of videos on utube plus that's not all if you do this search on a general search on the internet "blended tube feeding" there are practically endless resources to pull from…

https://duckduckgo.com/?t=ffab&q=blended+tube+feeding&ia=webError

I highly recommend you check out the "Superthread" at the top of the Head and Neck page as it is loaded with links and info to help you.

Also, our motto here is (NEGU) Never Ever Give Up

Take Care, God Bless,

Russ

Also, I have the standard thing I post about recipes and weight gain that I have collected from mostly on this H&N forum which I will post here at the end because it is fairly long…

KD50 Welcome

The 2 times I had substantial treatment for cancer I had a feeding tube and both times when it was finished it took a while to gain the weight back. I think now I am pushing to be a bit overweight but I found through my experience it is good to have a little reserve. To gain weight, for now, don't worry about any certain I recommend eating food that has a substantial amount of calories and or fat also. Like bacon and eggs, or sausage and eggs and or pancakes, waffles, etc. with lots of butter and syrup. Cheeses are good to add such as cheese topping on a bowl of chili. Also after my last bout out of the hospital, I had lost a good bit of weight also and had a bit of trouble putting it back on so I purchased Boost VHC(Very High Calorie) and was drinking one in the morning with breakfast including trying to eat at least 3 meals a day of somesize. This boost is 530 calories per 8 ounces serving and you can drink more than one a day till your weight picks up. This is a quick easy drink to pack in 530 calories. Usually, the Boost VHC is mostly available online unless you can find it locally mostly regular boostis in the stores. Here is a link showing the product made by Nestle  I bought it by the case on eBay but you can buy it online in many places like Walmart online etc.

Also eat a bunch of snacks like candy, cupcakes, peanut butter crackers, etc. You can fit one in any time your sittin around. Also, nuts like peanuts, cashews, almonds, etc. have a lot of calories and are even good for ya.

Also, there is a weight gain recipe that 2 ladies shared that found a long time ago related to cancer and gaining weight afterward--

Deb,

So sorry I’ve taken so long to get that recipe for your dad! I checked with our nurses and here it is:

1 box (3.4oz) of instant pudding 3/4 cup half & half cream 1/2cup of water 1 cup of carnation evaporated milk(use canned notpowdered etc.)

Mix together in a bowl then mix with a mixer for one minute until it begins to thicken. This recipe makes 4 servings. We use it to helpindividuals we serve who are underweight to assist in gaining weight. As you can see…it is very rich and full of calories etc. Let us know how your dad is doing!

Karen

• These Recipes and Tips Are From Debbiel0 on CSN H&NSection

And here is another communication shared recently with me by Alady on this forum concerning weight gain after cancer treatment and I am sure she would be glad if I would share it--

• Coffee cream ( 18%) 1 cup 480calories
• Coconut milk 1/3 cup 150 calories
• Greek-style yogurt 1 cup 270 cal
• 2 tbsp Ground Flax seed 100 cal
• 3 tbsp Hemp Hearts 170 cal
• 1 tsp nut butter 100 cal
• 1 tsp honey 100 cal
• banana 80 cal.

I would mix all of the above into a shake for my husband. It makes about 3 - 3 1/2 cups and 1300 calories.. he would sip on it all day. Then we would make him soft eggs or oatmeal to top off the calories for the day. Jello or pudding and ice cream are also another easy food to slide down.

Using coffee cream when making soups, or sauces, cooking oatmeal in it, using it for puddings. Is an easy way to boost calorie intake. The Hemp Hearts and ground Flax can be expensive. If you have access to Costco, they are reasonably priced there. ( at least in Canada is the way it is)

Use honey as much as you can in tea or coffee, or just in warm water.

I think the best advice I got from our nutritionist was to think outside the box and add cream or Greek yogurt to whatever you can think of. Throw in a couple of tbsps of flax or hemp seeds to soups, your boost, hot cereal cooked in heavy cream. Mashed potatoes with heavy cream and lots of gooey gravy is always good too.

Hope some of these ideas help. Another well-balanced change from Boost is Soylent. I can't remember the calorie count, but it is a very good meal replacement.

I know I am kind of rambling... but hope some of these ideas help, or at least give you a variety. It is hard to get excited for a meal that is the same as the last one!

Split pea soup and baked beans with honey are great for calories..

The flaxseed and hemp hearts don't change the taste all that much..just a way to sneak another 100 calories in. I had never ventured into that type of food either. My daughter-in-law is super healthy and introduced me ( young ones, ya know!)

Almond butter or cashew butter is just another alternative to peanut butter. Change up the taste a bit.

I have a long list if food allergies, no dairy, no cheese, no chocolate, so finding calories was really tough for me. For example, geek yogurt can be up to 270 cal, my non-dairy yogurt is 60 calories.So, when my husband was going through his treatment it was actually fun for me to keep finding new things to make for him. Cheese is another good source of calories, melt it and add it to soup, or potatoes.

Take care, Russ. Maybe sit down and try to enjoy a slice of pumpkin pie with whipped cream!

Also Here Are A Few MorePostings For Weight Gain From TheForum

Flyinhighsays:

Highcalorie

I use a powdered mix from GNC called 1340.  If you followed their mixing instructions and used 4 large scoops with water and supposedly get 1340 calories.  I mix it half or third strength with 12 oz. of milk and figure I get 500-600 calories, plus a lot of protein.  You can try this and if you don't like it or can't tolerate it GNC will take it back and refund your money. It comes in vanilla, chocolate or strawberry(my favorite).

Grandmax4says:

calorie

I used a drink called Scandishake, and bought it through Amazon. It's really good, can't remember the calories and protein, I made it with crushed ice and milk in a blender, delicious

Drivingdaisysays:

Drinks

Only drank Orgain, organic, and a small amount of natural sugar. Decided no more chemicals in My body. I just poured it in My feeding tube. I still drink it but the plant is plant-based. Became lactose intolerant.  Good stuff. I'm more of a naturalists but to each their own. Going on 4 yrs NED, so did something right.

Suzj says:

if you want to mix it up..

If you get the urge to mix it up, go with a high Protein Boost, mixed with a carnation instant breakfast, and a few scoops of ice cream - that'll up your calories

In Closing:

I too and most folks on here had trouble swallowing and getting some foods down but it will come just be patient but for now eat what goes down easiest with a high calorie count. You may have to add liquid as you eat whatever you prefer. Try donuts and coffee. Eat small bites and be patient. With my 2 cancers and 2 radiations to this day, I am thankful I can still eat but it is just a slower process. but in your case, it will probably come back completely. Get with your speech therapist and do your swallowing exercises. I assume you have had contact with a speech therapist on this journey because most of us have it is standard procedure in this Head & Neck cancer game. if not contact your doc and get one assigned to you.

Lastly, I highly recommend that you Do Not have your PEG removed until you can have a stable weight or have some slight gain in weight going on but it is your choice. I know after my first cancer they would not remove my PEG tube until I could maintain a stable weight for 2 weeks.

Be patient and Eat, Eat, Eat.

I hope some of this rambling helps you in some way-Wishing YouTheBest-Take Care-God Bless-Russ

https://www.nestlenutritionstore.com/boost-very-high-calorie.html

GarlandCan

Hi Russ,

I can not swallow anything but tiny sips of water. Nothing. It will not go down. All my nutrition comes from Ensure drinks. I’ve no cravings and no desire to eat either because my taste buds are not back. Nothing is good. It’s been 4 1/2 months since radiation ended. Am I expecting too much too soon? I’m in speech/swallow therapy and doing all the mouth and neck exercises but nothing has improved. What is the timeframe for taste buds to come back? And are there people who live with feed tubing forever due to not being able to swallow? It’s hard to find any normal without drinking and eating.

God bless you!

NEGU

Garland

wbcgaruss

Garland I answered you on the other posting you made first but here is an excerpt that covers this posting also…

Just remember you are only four and a half months past radiation and I would imagine you are just starting to feel good enough in a reasonable sense, yet still beat up by the treatment and what you went through fresh in your mind, and you can't swallow yet, with little taste, and saliva not there. Trust me it is early out of treatment for you now and this will all come back. But keep in mind that anybody does I also tell people going through this treatment and coming out the other side you will not get off scot-free, I don't think anybody does. Your saliva may be less or taste not back 100% but still, youmade it through the hell of H&N treatment and you are on the other side and Praise God even though you may not taste as well or have some other small issue to deal with he or you made brought you through.

I was like you, I am finally starting to feel better but will I ever get my taste back, or my saliva, or will I ever be able to swallow again and eat again? I went through the same questioning period as I am sure many others did and now you are too and Garland I am here to tell you that you will get through this and get these functions back, maybe not at the same level but just the same thing will keep getting better.

It seemed like a long time but then one day while I decided to try testing eating again lo and behold I could swallow a small bit of food and even get some taste out of it.

I too had some food-sticking issues with my throat and in total-underwent 4 dilations in total. They have to do a small amount at a time so they don't tear the esophagus. But it worked and made a big difference for me. You will find your throat to be slightly sore and I don't know how to explain it. It's a sort of an odd feeling when you try to swallow but will be gone in about 3 days, not a big issue or soreness just noticeable.

Again, keep in mind you are still early out of treatment and it will probably be about 8 months post-treatment till you will be feeling much better. And that's going to involve things like taste and treatment recovery saliva and other things affected by the treatment but be patient they will come back. That's the average time for this treatmentrecovery and for many, it is up to a year or more till we feel back to a reasonable normal. There are those that recover quicker and dearlady I hope you are one of them. My radiation oncologist nurse, whom I will never forget, sat me down and tried to drill into the seriousness of the treatment and how brutal it is and to prepare mefor what was coming and she said "You might as well figure a year of your life to get this treatment and get through this and backto somewhat normal again", and you know what she knew her stuff because she was about right on in her prediction in my case. One year but thank God he got me through and provided treatment and doctors for me and nurses, and others who were so skilled and caring.

So now dear Garland it is a time of patience and waiting for your body to heal up and get your strength and stamina back, and though largely a waiting period but don't sit around, do all you can do, work around the house, take walks to do whatever you can do and stretch the limits doing it. The more active you can be I believe helps your body recover and using your muscles in walking, exercising, vacuuming the house or any other physical activity will bring strength and recovery and even faster with activity. Keep the nutrition going and the hydration because your body needs it to repair and rebuild and get you back in shape again. And you will be off the feeding tube before you know it and you can eat, eat, eat again.

So young lady I am celebrating with you and for you that you made it through this Brutal treatment and are out the other side now recovering.

Wishing You The Best

NEGU (Never Ever Give Up)

Take Care, God Bless

Russ

I hope something here helps if you need anything else or have more questions feel free to post here on the forum or private message me…God Bless