Michael finished his radiation on 12/5/06 and had a great CT scan on 1/23/07. He was being fairly active a couple weeks ago - using the computer (which is upstairs), doing his eBay thing, driving to the post office and even a small amount of grocery shopping (he used to be our main grocery shopper), but for the last week he says he says he feels worse again - very tired, neck and back ache, now his upper arms ache. He still has sleep problems which have been on-going and decreased appetite again - he has lost a couple pounds. His weight had been stable for several weeks. The last couple days he did not even get the newspaper. I seem to have a cold so I suppose it could just be that, or I think he sort of thought that with the great CT scan he would immediately feel

Barbara S,

I remember doing well and then not so well. That kind of recovery lasted 2 to 3 months after Tx. I don't see hardly any swings in the way I feel day to day now but I do remember swings early on. It probably affects us all differently but I remember thinking our good I was feeling one day and the next day I would wake up and feel like I had been run over by a truck in my sleep.

Tell Michael to hang in there it will and does get better with time.

David,

Michael said to tell you thank you. He can relate the the feeling he has been run over by a truck thing (although he tells everyone freight train).

Barbara S

Barbara,

Recovery will take a while. Everyone is different but Michael will have days that are wonderful then some that are not.

I was in bed for at least 2 months after treatment. I would get up for about an hour or so and then back to bed. I just did not have any energy or strength. Around 4 months out I started to feel a little better. Each month that passes he will see little things improve. It just takes time. Our poor body's have been through so much. I am at a year now and doing much better. I still have a few small things I am dealing with.

Make sure he is getting enough nourishment and liquids. May want to add an extra can of Boost or what ever you have. Yes, and stay away from anyone that is sick. He does not need that on top of everything else.

Take care & give it time.
Diane

I didn't have ups and downs so much -- They were mainly downs!

I would get up, do my morning stuf, pour my junk down the tube and then lay on the couch reading or sometimes messing with my laptop until it was time to pour more junk and go to bed, where I would read some more and then spend hours trying to get to sleep.

Tell him to treasure the Ups! <grin>

Hi, Barbara, Our experience is in agreement with the above posts. I would suggest you have his Docs check thyroid levels too. I assume you all are still keeping track of calories and liquids consumed daily. Is Michael tracking his blood pressure, temp. etc? Is he still on any pain meds? The CT report was great news- but it has nothing to do with how he feels after undergoing his treatment. He is just starting the recovery phase- remind him that he needs lots of rest and good nutrition. Show him Pete's post to Sharlee about the microwaves "still cooking". Amy in the Ozarks

Thyroid is very important. They basically fried mine, which was to be expected. I would have a TSH done quickly and see if he needs levethroid. I'm taking 88MG and it helps a lot. I took me over 18 months to not be tires at the end of the day. Tell him to hang in there and get some his vitals and blood work checked.

Hi,

Thanks for all the comments and advice. We had talked with his oncologist on 1/23/07 about the possibility of Michael having thyroid problems because he has been losing some hair on his head. He is also constantly cold (although it is 32 outside this AM) and tired, of course. The doctor indicated that he might want to get it tested sometime soon, but did not order it then. Michael saw his ENT on 2/1/07 and we asked for the test, he ordered it and we get the results Monday.

Last night he agreed to try going out to dinner again (we always used to go out on Fridays, but hadn

Barbara,

While Michael's rate of recovery may seem slow to him, it sounds as though it's actually much faster than many others here (including myself) experienced. He's certainly eating foods that I couldn't even attempt at that point. On the few occasions when we tried to venture out to eat in the first couple of months after my radiation, I was also very self-conscious about my struggles with food, and I always tried to be sure we had an out-of-the-way table where I wouldn't be noticed too much. Patience is the key word here -- he can expect much more healing than what he has seen in just two months, but it will likely take many more months to get there.

Cathy

Cathy,

I do feel guilty sometimes whining about things and Michael