THE BIRDS OF SPRING!!! A MOURNING DOVE AND THE JOHN-BIRD

This is the message I posted in 

THE CARING BRIDGE 

this morning.

I know some of you can't access that site

so this is for you.

Good Morning!

We have survived another week  post-treatment!  We have seen some definite improvements this week!  

John had two appointments this week for assessment and 'training'.  He learned some exercises that he needs to do daily that will help him learn to swallow properly again. One of them is to hold your tongue between your teeth and then swallow. Sounds easy, right?  Go ahead-try it- I'll wait.  Y'all did it, too, didn't you?  I know you did.  Not as easy as it sounds, is it?  It is kind of what a baby does when they are nursing-the undulation of the tongue that takes the milk/food to the back of the throat and down.  Yeah---NO NURSING allowed here--so the exercise is his only option.  I said that to my son and he said that even saying NO NURSING created too horrible of a visual to even think about.  So-there is your smile for the day. You're welcome!

Some of the exercises he will have to do for the rest of his life; others are temporary while his face/neck is retrained.  We also found that all of his saliva glands were destroyed except for one large one on the far back right side.  Simply put, this is a 'reactive' saliva gland and only works when called upon to produce saliva--as when a person chews.  That means that John will most likely have to chew gum during his waking hours.  At night, he has a throat spray that sits by the bed that he can use to moisten his throat when he wakes up.
  
He started trying to eat a bit this week.  He found that he CAN get food down his throat now.  However, NOTHING tastes right!  His goal this week is to drink one liquid protein drink over the course of a day-whether it tastes good or not.  He is also going to eat a half cup of soup or applesauce or something soft each day.  Everything tastes bitter, or sour, or tinny at this point.  Hopefully, some of his taste buds will regenerate. Meanwhile,  I am still tube feeding him about 2400 calories a day.  He has lost a total of 63 pounds since last Fall at this point-but, as of this last week, he is now holding his own.

He has set a goal to go back to work on May 2nd.  He really doesn't have a choice because of insurance and no more FMLA (family medical leave).  So, ready or not, he will have to go back.  I think, at this point, that he will be able to handle it.  It will tire him out but also be good for him to feel part of real life again.  Being sick and in limbo is no fun at all but I think John has handled it pretty well.  The golf channel has had quite a workout and ROKU has been a life-saver for those long nights when sleep will not come.

We have put off doing things we normally do-inside and out.  However, yesterday was a nice day and for the first time since last Fall John spent a bit of time out on the patio.  He swept the patio off and enjoyed the fresh air.  I decided to brush off the small side porch we have off our dining room.  I am just a LITTLE BIT LATE.  I had an old urn that I placed in the middle of the glass table out there around Thanksgiving time.  I stuck some greenery and berries in there and put some twinkle lights on it in preparation of the Holidays.  Those twinkle lights have acted as a nightlight when we get up in the middle of the night.  Well, we can enjoy them for a few more weeks because a mourning dove has taken up residence in the "tree" and laid three eggs in a nest.  I took the picture through the window (screen) from our kitchen window.  Oh well!  If anyone asks I will tell them we are headed towards Christmas in July! Gotta love how those Mama Birds protect their babies.  She never took her eye off me the whole time I was watching her.

Speaking of BIRDS~The next message here will come from John.  If he is well enough to sweep the patio he is well enough to type! RIGHT????!!!!!  This Mama Bird is pushing the John Bird out of his comfort zone.  

It is time to 

GET WELL, BABY!!!!!  
 
Thank you for reading and visiting and continuing to support us in prayer and well-wishes.  We are blessed---even in spite of cancer---we are blessed.  Have a wonderful Spring weekend and live life to the fullest.  That is what we are trying to do!   Love to all of you-