Hi Julie,

Radiation treatment is cumulative and will normally get worse for 2-3 weeks after your last session. Then, you should see slow improvements. I had to learn to judge my improvement from radiation treatment in weeks/months rather than days. Eating and remaining relatively active was key to my recovery. I would pound whatever food I could using a Vitamix or similar helped. I would dump whatever in there I could stomach. I spent many hours eating every day for those months after rads. Add a 10-15 minute walk, light yoga or chair stretches, a nap, often 2 naps a day were common for me.

Most food tasted terrible for weeks/months. A couple items that never tasted horrible - eggs, green beans, avocados, vanilla ice cream, french toast. I can recall feeling like I was eating cardboard or dirt sometimes. I just keep slamming calories and searching for new flavors. I would measure my calories every day and reward myself if i hit my calorie targets (2,000 i think?) and exercise and mindfulness exercises. Sometimes, suddenly a flavor would come back. Suddenly a banana tasted normal again when last week I had to blend it with ice cream or avocado or ....

As for sleep...everyone is different...hard to say...depends on the other 6 hours. If those are active then maybe 18 is good. If you are not seeing improvement in food intake, activity, mood, etc., I suggest getting with your medical team soon.

Brian will have excellent feedback too so hope he chimes in here as well.

Stay safe and keep the faith - Nels