Hi Danielle -- a lot of what you are saying about your mom sounds so familiar... I just finished with radiation treatment (IMRT) in mid-January... It kept me beat up pretty good until around Valentine's Day, though I did start feeling much better about 3 weeks out...

The past few weeks I've actually been back at work around 30-hours per week and am actually enjoying real food again (I had Chinese stir fry for dinner tonight and could taste, eat and swallow without tons of difficulty, though I'm still on some pain meds).

I have "overdone it" a few times with my job as a sports reporter/photograher (which I love) and sometimes I have to remind myself it's OK to gear down, rest and skip things I may have done before...

I empathize with her waking up and feeling like she's choking on all the mucous and gunk. I was the same way. I still have some minor problems with that at night - it comes and goes...

SOmething your mom might want to ask her doctor about --> My mouth cleared up big time about a week after my last treatment when my doc prescribed some kind of steriod to reduce swelling. Within 48 hours, I went from having a constant gagging feeling to being able to sleep through the night with little problems... That made a world of difference for me... I can't remember the name of the steriod however, but it was one of those step-down programs where you take like six the first day, five the next, etc.

Regardless, a lot of folks say your mouth clears up pretty well a few weeks post-treatment... Tell her to hang in there -- there's a light at the end of that tunnel fast approaching...