Update: I had the 11 hour surgery on April 9, was in the hospital for a week, then was transferred to a skilled nursing facility for rehab. I had a detour and had to return to the hospital for 5 days for a MRSA infection. I was in the rehab center until July 11, and have been home since then. I have a feeding tube and a trach. I see a visiting nurse now once a week and an SLP twice a week. I don't think that I will be ever able to eat normally, but I still have my vocal chords (or "vocal folds" as my SLP says), and I am able to say some short phrases and some words. I have a portable suction machine and a machine with moist air. I also have a hospital bed, so I can keep my head raised. The next step will be trying to use a Passy-Muir valve to help with my speech. I am trying to speak as much as I can, without having to write everything down. I really like my speech guy. It has been really hard (and still is) but I am hanging in there, even though I get tired.