Hi Pam!

I am 7 weeks out of radiation and learning how to eat again with a tongue flap that will not move. I have NO TONGUE. Nothing. Notta. I do, however, have all of my teeth. I was entirely dependent on my PEG until mid January. When I could swallow again (two or three weeks following radiation), I began to slowly swallow liquids. Then, as I got more confident, I began swallowing small quantities of soup. Then, one day, I felt really brave and microwaved soft bread for 30 seconds wrapped in a moist towel. I then dipped the bread in warm, melted butter. I then tried to swallow the very moist bread. At first, this didn't work. I would eventually spit it out. I then tried "chewing" alot of things and then just spitting them out - macaroni and cheese, mashed mushrooms, vegetarian chicken nuggets, etc - ie anything soft that I could also easily swoop in and get out with my finger. It encouraged me to keep trying, strengthened my mouth muscles, made me feel more comfortable with food in my mouth, and helped me figure out how to move food using my finger and mash it with my teeth/any liquid. Then, I began swallowing the bread using the microwave and butter technique. I now swallow donuts and croissants in the same way - except I dip them in coffee. I also will vegetarian nuggets in a moist towel and then swallow that. I've also done oatmeal with alot of extra milk. I then mash it up using my teeth and a little more liquid and then push it back with my finger. If I'm around other people, I stick to pureed foods. I love butternut squash soup and this peanut pepper soup I found online. I make the pureed soups at home, but I also have found that I can manage the drinkable soups that you can buy at the store. I am
now trying to use the PEG as little as possible. Yesterday, I went the entire day without using the PEG. Today, I used the PEG for water after hot yoga. I don't know if any of this is helpful, but maybe one of these tactics will be useful for your partner. I could be wrong, but I think the most important thing is to keep playing - keep trying out different strategies and different foods. Sending you both good vibes!

R0se

PS Im struggling with speech too - I haven't gotten much support from my team either. I try and talk loud and slowly. I'm mostly understood - although, there are definitely sounds I cannot say. I hear that a speech therapist can help you create replacement sounds.