(no subject)

[the_rck]

I'm going to see a nutritionist through the cancer clinic. I'm hoping that such a person might help me unravel the complications of only being able to eat sometimes and not being able to eat or drink within a certain time before lying down (when I want to lie down most of the time). I'm supposed to be drinking lots and lots of water (2 liters a day minimum) and eating lots of protein.

The radiology nurse suggested Ensure or something similar, but as far as I can tell, that pretty much amounts to drinking sugar water with some protein powder and oil in it. I'm also not convinced that it wouldn't cause reflux, given the fat content. It would have the advantage of requiring pretty much zero effort, and that's a very attractive prospect.

The protein is going to be a real challenge. In terms of food that's currently working for me there's frozen fruit and crackers and bagels. I can't eat eggs, peanuts, walnuts, yogurt or anything with more than a very minimal fat content. Scott has fixed fish and chicken recently, and the odors repulsed me. I managed to eat some fish anyway, but I wasn't happy about it.

In terms of what I can (usually) safely eat, reflux wise, within three hours of lying down, there's vanilla ice cream (in very small quantities), air popped or microwave popcorn, saltines, and dry bread. I really want to arrange my day so that I can nap in between 2 and 4 and 5 and 7. Of course, if I put off eating dinner until after 7, I can't go to bed until near to 11.

I'm trying to be very cautious about fruits and vegetables because of, er, intestinal difficulties, and that adds another layer of difficulty to the balancing act.

I have been eating cheese in the mornings as part of my breakfast, but I can't persuade Scott to buy enough. He shopped yesterday, and I've already finished off what he got for me. He thinks of cheese as a garnish, as an extra added to the real meal.

Comments

[untonuggan]

if you want i can offer some of the things that i could eat when i was getting treated for C diff? which was lots of nausea both from the infection and the godawful meds.

other than that maybe smoothies? there are some pretty good recipes, not just fruit ones if the acid is setting you off, and it can be a good way to get protein in (via soft tofu, yogurt, soy/milk, or whatever).

also chia pudding is surprisingly delicious if you can handle the fiber and energy making it (which is fairly minimal but can be messy).

[the_rck]

The main difficulty with smoothies and pudding and yogurt is a texture thing. I have a lot of difficulty swallowing things that aren't either strongly solid or strongly liquid. I've even had occasional trouble with things like mashed potatoes and applesauce. Pudding and yogurt are survivable if-- and only if-- I can manage not to think about what I'm eating. If I do, I gag and everything comes back up.

I can handle a smoothie if it's milkshake temperature and consistency but not if it's any warmer. I think that the cold convinces my throat that this stuff really is food/drink.

I can't take liquid antacids or mineral oil because of this problem.

I'm also not going to be up to making anything that requires more than opening a package and, maybe, a short time in the microwave with no clean up afterward. I'm not even 100% sure about canned soup being feasible.

I do need to see if I can get Scott to buy us some more ceramic bowls, though. We're going through them fast than we go through any other type of dish, so that we end up spending two or even three days between when we use the last bowl and when the dishwasher is full enough to run washing bowls by hand. I'm not going to be up to that, and there won't generally be anyone here to do it for me.

[kyrielle]

Is there any chance you could buy or borrow a recliner, and nap in that, and would it help enough?

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

Possibly useful (or maybe not useful): Sometimes taking digestive enzymes is a big help with intestinal difficulties.

TMI

[the_rck]

I'm not sure that digestive enzymes would help. The problem is frequency and urgency, not consistency. I end up in the bathroom with no more than a minute or two's notice 3-5 times every morning. It tends to involve cramping and chills, but it's not diarrhea, not even remotely.

Re: TMI

[evalerie.livejournal.com]

Enzymes help with everything digestive, so maybe!