a month ago i awoke from surgery without a tongue,before sugery i was told that i may lose part of my tongue,which was fine with me.if i had been given a choice i would of preferred to remain intact,(i was functioning fine i could eat,taste talk the only medication i needed was a few codine or oxycontin a day).and go into hospice when necessary,i was stageIV.i still am in shock over what happened.i live alone in the middle of nowhere and can barely function without speaking.a few weeks ago they gave me a plug on the end of my tube so i can utter words,but many are incomprehensible. i can't swallow,i gag when rinsing and have feeding tube since operation 10/18.according to the surgeon the cancer was so large that they took muscle from stomach instead of arm with artery,which i guess would of helped me to swallow.i don't know what else to say, the only relief i get is from pain med.they cut the artery in my shoulder which they said they wouldn't and told me trache would be out in a few days,it's been five weeks now since rad.neck dissection.i can breathe thru my nose.some of the stitches in my lip are still in and have become infected.