Welcome, lctrumbull. I also had Taxol and Carboplatin and rad. Two things: 1) I sucked on honey lemon cough drops which banished the chemo taste, which in any event didn't last more than a week or two; and 2) Taxol took my hair too, and I was surprised and pleased to have it grow back in a normal hair line even though I was burned way beyond the hairline from radiation, so if that happens to you, it is not necessarily permanent. One week down, six to go. You are correct that they won't be easy, but it is something you can do. We are here to help with suggestions or just to listen if that is what you need. Never forget that many of us here have gone through radiation and come out relatively unscathed, and definitely alive, and you can too!