I have found these valves last me about three to
four months before they need to be changed. I live
quite near my Speech Therapy Department and if I
have a problem such as a ‘leak’ in the valve, I can
be seen to quickly by one of the Therapists who’ll
put a new valve in very quickly.
One of your readers is asking about the use of
Pencil Torches with are a bit expensive to run as
the batteries don’t last long. I use a little torch
that I bought for £2.50 that gives off a good,
white light. It takes three of the small round flat
batteries that can be bought on a card of assorted
sized batteries for £1. There are usually six per
card and they last for weeks. There are also
torches that wind up, needing no batteries at all,
which are very cheap to buy.
I hope this will be of some hope to Geoffrey N.
Read. His second question was about the tissues.
I use kitchen roll which I cut into four pieces from
each one I tear off. Of course, he could also send
away for wipes from kind Countrywide people(!)
but I do prefer kitchen roll.
Finally, on the question of eating and drinking:
after my laryngectomy I could eat and drink
with no problems, however after 20 months of
radiotherapy I could not swallow any food at all.
I was put onto the Fortisip vitamin drinks which
were packed full of nutrients and kept me going
for some months until my swallowing gradually
returned to normal. I got these from my GP on
prescription. They are excellent and come in
assorted flavours. I took three bottles a day and
never felt hungry or thirsty.
I was told these drinks would help maintain my
weight, which they did. In fact whilst I was on
them I was the perfect weight for my height!
Since I went back to ‘normal eating’ I have gained
a few extra pounds I didn’t want! I hope that Mr
Read benefits from the treatment to correct his
problem.
Good luck to anyone who has problems after their
laryngectomy operation. Try to be patient as it
does get better with time. Thank you for The Voice
magazine, a very interesting read!
Terry Sheehan
(Sunderland, Tyne & Wear)
Ed: Thanks for your ideas Terry. There’s plenty more
on the subject of torches to come – take a look at
the Shining Light feature on page 20. If you’re on
the lookout for a new model, remember that our
Countrywide torch takes rechargeable batteries, and
we will always provide a replacement torch if you ever
need one.
Will powers
Following on from your article ‘smoking after a
laryngectomy ‘ in issue 3 I certainly don’t wish to
pass judgment in any way – I even had a cigarette
one hour before my main op, so it can’t be said that
I don’t know about smoking. Just from personal
experience I can tell you that it is not the smoking
that I missed, or even the craving for the nicotine.
Daft as it may sound, what I miss most is a cigarette
after a meal and that feeling it gives of being full. No
matter what I eat now, I still don’t get that full feeling
– that’s why smokers always put on weight.
I’ve not had a fag for over 4 years, but I still crave for
one. Even thought about a pipe! Now that’s scary!
Tony Powers
Summer 2010 | THE VOICE
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