We went to Pizzeria Uno and my meal there was less successful. Found myself choking on penne with vegetables in a tomato sauce. Also had french fries and a little salad. (How I love salad - got to keep trying!) Last night, I ate the penne leftovers with a plan. I cut each piece of pasta into thirds and swallowed each third before trying another. It worked. I'm feeling better about eating and more confident. My swallow muscles are getting stronger and the food more diverse. Hopefully, on September 22nd, when I meet with the Nutritionist and Swallow Therapist, they'll ok my stomach feeding tube coming out. My weight has to be stable and they have to approve my diet.
My Power Port is being removed on Wednesday, September 15th (not the 13th as I wrote before) - it's simple day surgery.
I keep walking everyday. It's hard to see progress with my stamina, but I'm sure it's there.
Thanks everyone for your support and comfort. It's been a long process but I finally feel like I'm getting close to being normal again.
Love...
Richard
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Hooray! Normal is great ... Well, sometimes ... I'm still fascinated by your Webster days and those yearnings to be something besides normal.
ReplyDeleteI so admire your tenacity in this process. It's a challenge to keep on when progress is apparent. To keep at it when progress is not as apparent is no less than amazing. I appreciate your warm spirit and determination through this process.
Just remember, in a year, like the rest of us, you’ll be back to struggling to keep your weight down instead of struggling to keep it up. Of course, a year seems like a long time … and, of course, it’s not. When Jackie and I moved to Ohio last year, I used the “one year” marker as a mantra. In one year, I won’t feel so lost and every day won’t seem like such a tragic upheaval. And I was right. It’s been a year now and, though I don’t feel like I’ve lived here all my life, I also don’t feel like I don’t know where (or who) I am. That year went by quickly … and slowly. I think this coming year will be like that for you. I think that, sometime during this year, you’ll push yourself away from the table and say, “Man, I’m so full, I shouldn’t have eaten all that salad.”
Here’s to you, my friend, as we go on.