It is now 3 years since they took the chemo pump off and the pic line out and I looking like a POW and not being able to walk across the room breathed a sigh of relief that treatment was over.
The recovery back to strength has been a lot longer and tougher than I expected but finally I feel I can manage a whole day without a nap. I have put some weight back on, still not curvy but at least I can sit on a chair without needing a cushion. My brain is not the total chemo fuzz it was still not the logical brain I did have but it is improving (some of that might be age related too)
Life is good and I am enjoying it more than I did before, I have learnt to look after me and take time for myself to give in and rest when I need too. to live life a little more slowly but still there is nothing I cannot do just need a bit more planning.
Thank you to everyone who has inspired me and kept me going
Take care, god bless
Lizzy
Written by
liz_crisp
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I am so pleased for you; it's a long road and just when you think things are as good as they can be you sometimes you get a welcome surprise. I will be 5 years post op in April, I am not saying life is easy but I am amazed at what I have acheived.
So good to hear inspirational stories like yours, lets us all know there is light at the end of the tunnel, I will be 3 years post op in June, and feel so lucky to be here.
Keep up the good work and you will soon be dancing round the garden in the sunshine.
Many congrats on your 3 year milestone. as you quite rightly say things take a lot longer and are a lot tougher than you expect. I'm almost 6 years post op now and I feel a lot better year after year so you have a lot to look forward to. stick with it.
Thanks I remember thinking I would be back to normal in no time but now realise there is a new normal and it improves each year
That is good news and worth celebrating. I never know whether it would be helpful to know at the time how long it will all take, but this does hopefully give some encouragement to those who are wondering why on earth it is taking so long to recover. Taking a long time ( and far longer than most doctors suggest) is NORMAL!
I am 17 months post op and your reflections echo my own personal experience. Thank you for sharing it with us. I think it is important that others are able to hear the positive side to our lives, as much as the downside in order to enlighten them as to what might lie ahead on their own journey. This disease and the knowledge and understanding of it is shrouded in vagueness and generalities and very often those that have been beset by it are at a loss to know the true picture. No doubt the light, at the end of your personal tunnel, that you have been kind enough to relate will prove a great inspiration to others.
Well done Lizzy and so pleased. It just shows that you should never give up and you should trust in the treatment you have been offered. It can be a long haul back but in your case has been so worthwhile.
I was told that it would take a year after my Merendino Interposition before I was back to normal, if you can call it normal. Its taking a bit longer but getting there.
Well done you, your medical team and your OPA support.
It's great hear some good news, really lifts the spirits. Sometimes during this ongoing ordeal you wonder whether things are actually improving but then you think back to one month ago, six months ago, a year ago, and realise what you can do now that you couldn't do then.
Alan's right about it taking a lot longer than most doctor's suggest - when I talk to other patients, we all feel the same. It's a long, hard haul.
Hi Lizzy, To climb a mountain is difficult and a long journey, but once you reach the summit the climb is a distant memory and you can look out over a vista of a new life filled with hope and new things to do, the body will only allow you to recover at its own pace, I am only one year post op this month, and recovery is slow and sure, I am looking forward to getting back to my hives, as a Bee keeper I missed my girls last year, and felt very guilty that they didn't get the attention they deserved, however this year I will be well enough to ensure they will get all the attention they require. Incidentally bee keeping gives you a sense of tranquillity and oneness with nature which is all part of the healing process.
Keep going lizzy, positive thoughts like yours are good for the soul
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5 years post op
Here we go again.
12 Years Post Oesophagectomy (achalasia) Breathless
8 Months Post Operation 
12 Days and Counting
