Recovery

Hi everyone.  It has been so long since I visited that I had to re- register with a new name.

I have forgotten all the abbreviations and buzz words, but I had squamous cell stage 3 cancerous lymph on right side of neck, primary site unknown. Had right side neck dissection, feeding tube, Erbitux (sp?) chemo and full radiation between eyes and collar bones.  Doctors recommended removing all of my teeth, but I declined.  Lost some hearing, all taste, all saliva, over 100lbs, thyroid, and ended up highly depressed.  You all know the drill.  

That was 7 years ago.

I wanted you to know that despite what you might be told, and as bad as it might seem now, you can have a great recovery.

My general MD got the depression under control after several weeks and it was gone after several months.  Still had to take the meds for a full year to prevent recurrence.

Recovery took a lot of time.  9 months after treatment ended I still had one large sore on my tongue that wouldn't heal and it precluded me from even thinking about eating.  So I asked my oncologist to remove that part of my tongue.  That actually made a big improvement.  But, it still takes time.  

Taste returned to 99% after about a year.

After three years, my saliva came rushing back.  It happened over a few days.  It's not 100%, but close.  I struggle with peanut butter and still have a bit a dry mouth some mornings, but nothing like the cotton mouth for 3 years.  I consider it fully recovered.

After 4.5 years I awoke one morning and no longer choked on food, of any kind.  After all that time of choking at least once every meal, it suddenly stopped.  My layman's version is that by continuously forcing normal food down and struggling through, I worked it open enough to be able to eat normally. I never bought into the idea of just having to change my diet to all soft mushy foods.

Also around this time I realized the numbness in my face and neck from the dissection was gone.

So, I still have poor hearing when my wife speaks, minor tinnitus that I rarely notice, very little shaving and the applicable scars.  I have to use Biotene toothpaste because the other stuff still burns a little.  I had a lot of cavities before my saliva returned, but my teeth are now doing fine.  I have to say that my new normal is pretty normal.  I hope yours will be too.

I can fully remember the pain and the darkness, and unfortunately you have to take that head on, hopefully with a great support group.  It will get better, and you will be a better version of yourself.

Fight and inspire.