Stacy - your husband's experience sounds so much like what my son went through just after completing the Rad Tx. He really suffered with the mouth blisters and swallowing issues plus difficulty talking which he did in barely a whisper. He would get so upset with me when I couldn't understand or hear him and I was trying so hard not to ask him to repeat stuff because I could see how much it hurt him to talk. We were both so frustrated that at one point I told him I had some hearing loss and (I really didn't) and that he would have to be patient with me. That helped a little. We also developed a sort of sign language like thumbs up or down for yes/no, shrug shoulders for Don't know. I would try to give me him choices like "you want chicken broth or beef broth", or #1, 2, 3 choices so he could respond more easily. He did not appreciate questions about his weight either, just saying it was "OK" but I could see how much he had lost when he walked towards his Rad treatment and his jeans seemed about to fall off his hips in the "pants-on-the-ground" fashion. He didn't like accepting advice from me and I thought it was because it was coming from his mother (me). What I did was print out encouraging posts from others on this forum (like Davidcpa) and just leave them by his bed while he was sleeping which really did work! I could tell by his improved attitude that it did. These couple of weeks are so difficult for both you and your husband. Even the most wonderful survivors can get a tad "stubborn" after being zapped so many times in the Rad Room. But they soon get back to their former sweet loving selves very soon. Yours will too!