Yes, she could swallow, but not voluntarily. Which is a requirement when being fed orally.
What make you believe that a person who couldn't swallow in the 90's could suddenly swallow 10 years later? You have an example of a similar case?
What I do understand is that Terri had caregivers who said that she enjoyed sucking from a washcloth, and that she was fed small amounts of soft foods at one point. I'm not absolutely certain of the time frame, but I think it was while she was at Sabal Palms. I'd have to go back to review. Is it possible that she began to regain some skills? Yes. Is is probable? No.
How interesting that you think I meant Terri regained anything suddenly. Nothing could be further from the truth. Of course, this is my opinion, so you can do with it what you wish, but I am of the opinion that Terri may have been gradually emerging from a persistent vegetative state over a long period of time, and was at the point of the minimally conscious state at her death. Of course, this can never be corroborated, because Judge Greer refused to allow Terri to be tested for this state. The legal reason is clear. The very first lawyer for the Schindlers, Pamela Campbell, made a glaring error by not questioning whether Terri was in a true PVS or not. By not contesting it, Terri was legally deemed to be PVS. Without contesting her diagnosis, Campbell might as well have signed Terri's death warrant herself.
Whether it was medically the case would have to have been borne out by tests that were never used on Terri, especially an fMRI (functional MRI). Why were they not used? Michael had no need to show that Terri had any more capability than PVS. He wasn't going to spring for it, for sure. There may have been a point where Michael would have had Terri tested had he known about the advancements in neurology, but I feel very confident saying that the boat was moving away from the shore whether Michael went along for the ride or not. That's my way of saying that once George Felos was on board, there was nothing Michael could do to stop Felos from pursuing Terri's death. Felos made himself perfectly clear in his writings that can be found on the internet (his bios about himself, his aspirations to complete a second book with Terri's litigation as the central theme). Felos was looking for (and found in the Schiavo case) another notch in his attorney's belt.
Terri swallowed her saliva just like you do.