Hang in there, punkin! You have us to lean on for support. We will help you get thru the rough parts of treatments and thru your recovery.

Best thing I can tell you is no matter what, keep eating and drinking. Even taking small sips of water thru out the day will help make your swallowing reflex active so it doesnt "forget" how to function.

Focus on what is within your control... your intake and pain management. Your daily intake must be the very most important thing to pay attention to. Every single day thru rads and for at least the first year post rads you need to take in a bare minimum of 2500 calories and 48-64 oz of water. If you are struggling with water intake, ask your doc to write you a prescription to get extra hydration a few times a week in the chemo lab. It will help you to magically feel a little better right after you get a couple bags of fluids. Plus when getting chemo you need those fluids to help flush all that poison out of your system so try extra hard on chemo day and the day after to push your water intake. As far as calories, if you can push to take in 3000 or even 3500 calories it will only help make everything easier. This must be something you do every single day without skimping as you only are hurting yourself and skimping here and there quickly becomes a bad habit turning it into the norm rather than the exception. Im speaking from experience as Ive done this myself and been admitted to the hospital several times for dehydration and malnutrition. Im hoping you avoid the pitfalls I encountered by listening to my advice. Ive nagged many members over the years and found the ones who "know better" end up just like I did... in the hospital feeling terrible.

As far as your pain goes, make sure you relay this to your doctor. Being in pain only makes treatments more difficult. The fentanyl patch works great for pain, many of us have used it. Fentanyl is the strongest pain medication there is. Its very simple to use since you only have to put a new patch on a different spot every 3 days. Just be sure to always follow the directions by never bending, folding, cutting, tearing, ripping or otherwise damaging the patch. Avoid long hot baths or showers while wearing the patch too. But that should also be done if your neck has the open weeping sores from rads.

Many OC patients going thru rads use some type of cream or lotion on their "sunburned" skin. If you havent started patting the cream on yet then you may want to start using it now. I used a prescription called beta-val cream. Others have found aquaphor works or many other over the counter creams or ointments. Just never put it on prior to going to rads as it could interfere with your treatments. Make sure whatever you put on your sensitive skin that you pat it on and never rub it in. Allow it to soak in on its own, reapplying several times per day. If your skin begins to have weeping sores thats completely normal, I had them too. At that point continue gently patting on the ointment and place a nonstick piece of gauze on the wound. Dont tape it on as it will only make things worse when it has to be removed.

Try rinsing your mouth a few times a day with 1 cup warm water, 1 tsp baking soda and 1 tsp salt. Swish this mixture in your mouth for at least 30 seconds, 4 times a day. This should help your mouth sores. You can also add an ounce or two of non-alcohol mouthwash with warm water in a waterpik on its lowest setting. That will help to keep between your teeth clean and later help with the thick gunky mucous.

Sorry to overload you with info!!! Im just trying to help you get thru this easier. Hang in there and stop back often to give us updates.