Dear Sara,

Hey sweetheart! How has college been treating you? Your mom and I have been missing you a lot lately. It’s tough with you being so far away at college, but we know how much you love it there. We’re looking forward to you coming home for Christmas vacation and stealing every spare moment that we can get with you (we know you’ll want to spend all your time with your parents while you’re home).

I know that you have been very curious about how I have been doing with my dysphagia. You haven’t been kept completely up-to-date on what all has been going on with me, so I thought now would be a really good time for you to see some of the things that have been helpful to me along the way. Before I get into that, though, I want you to know that I understand that you couldn’t possibly be home with me while I’ve been going through all of this. You mentioned in your last letter that you felt like you were not getting to be a part of my recovery, but I want you to know that you have been. The only reason that I work as hard as I do is because of you and your mom. I want you to know about everything, though, so here is what I have been up to.  

I have a really nice speech therapist named Kristen. She always seems really interested in me and my progress, and I like that. When I first started seeing her for therapy, she thought that it would be nice if I knew a little bit about her, so she showed me her web page that discussed some of her interests. It was pretty neat that she let me get to know her a little better, and I felt like she was more of a friend and not just another therapist.

When I was first diagnosed with dysphagia, Kristen gave me this informative pamphlet on the disorder. It really helped me to get a basic understanding of dysphagia and I think it will help you to understand it more also. This is kind of embarrassing, but I also wrote a poem when I first started therapy because Kristen thought it would be helpful for me to reflect on my emotions and focus them into something creative. I secretly think she just wanted something to get a good laugh out of because I am not much of the poetry man, as you well know. However, it was very helpful at the time because I was able to think about how I was feeling and write it down. I also started keeping a journal around that time because I wanted to express how I was feeling, but I didn’t really want to talk to anyone about it. I am letting you read it now because I think it will give you a lot of insight into what was going on when I was first diagnosed with dysphagia.

After I had been diagnosed with dysphagia, I became very curious about what kinds of treatment were available. I found this neat PowerPoint presentation that discussed the treatment, and I was able to figure out a little bit more about what to expect. I think it will help you to understand the therapy too. Also, your mom and I exchanged an email after my first day of therapy and discussed everything that happened. It explains pretty much everything that went on in my therapy, so I think it will give you a good idea of what my therapy is like.

Well, I think you’re caught up with everything now. Look at the information that I am sending you and I know that you will be able to understand about dysphagia and all the things that I have been doing. I hope you find it interesting; I know that I did. All of those things were a huge help to me, especially when I was first diagnosed. I can’t wait to see you in a few weeks! I love you so much. Write back soon!

Love always,

Dad

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This page was created by Kristen Sirk, a student at Marshall University, as a requirement for CD 315.

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