Paula, My mother and I have been "with" my father with his PD since the beginning. I can tell you that right now (except for the episode of aspiration on 8/30/02), he has been doing beautifully with pureed meals. If you've got one of those blenders that will puree foods, puree your meat, potatoes, vegetables and put them on a plate so that they look really "tasteful". Put some cream of mushroom or cream of chicken soups, etc. on the food to make it moist. Sip your water through a straw-----slowly. Stay away from breads and "crumby" foods like crackers and cookies that could make you cough. Don't talk when you're eating. I hope this is helpful. It certainly has helped my father. Though I mentioned that he has agreed to a gastric feeding tube in order to get more nutrients and to not become dehydrated (and because he has to be fed because he is unable to hold a utensil most of the time), we are going to make sure that he has "recreational" eating--any meals he wants pureed and all the lemon meringue pie and cheesecake (without the crust) he'd like. Deb White -----Original Message----- From: Neil Shook [mailto:[log in to unmask]] Sent: Thursday, October 03, 2002 10:04 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Swallowing/Talking/Breathing Dear Deb, I have been diagnosed with PD twelve years ago and have had deep brain stimulation two years ago. It was a success and has eliminated alot of dystonia pain and dyskinesia, but I can tell it is progressing at a fast pace. What bothers me most is the gagging at the dinner table--can't swallow, can't talk, and, ultimately, can't breathe because I'm so scared when bread gets stuck in my throat. Any information or exercises for the throat would be greatly appreciated. Paula from Pennsylvania ---------------------------------------------------------------------- To sign-off Parkinsn send a message to: mailto:[log in to unmask] In the body of the message put: signoff parkinsn