Need some help...

donfoo said:

may sound crazy

Jamie,

Something you said triggered this thought. "Acid indigestion" - One of my mini research projects is evaluating the efficacy of high alkaline liquids to minimize dental disease over the long haul. Maybe grab a bottle of Essentia or other high pH water and use that to mix with some protein powder. I'd dilute it a lot at first just to see if it helps. Not much to lose by trying. Hope you feel better, Don

It won't get you all of the nutrients that you need, but, have you tried a good old fashioned milkshake? 

hwt said:

Jamie

It won't get you all of the nutrients that you need, but, have you tried a good old fashioned milkshake? 

It won't get you all of the nutrients that you need

Not sure if you were referencing the suggestion of protein powders. I use this term somewhat loosely. There are many many variations of these powders and there certainly are those that include most if not all vitamins and minerals to offer a rounded diet. They are not scientifically designed for this purpose so they are fine for shorter periods of time.

The other thing about the canned sugar meals is they use lots of simple sugars and that is a huge load of sugar going into the gut at one time. Here is the contents http://ensure.com/products/ensure-nutrition-shake.

What is upsetting your stomach? Try to see what does not upset your stomach. Test water alone, milk alone, mix them, dilute to varing degrees. If you find something works, then start mixing in the powders to see which variations are comfortable.

Swing by the health store to get the whey protein powder and a complex carb like maltodrextine.

Another suggestion is blending in a few herbs and spices.  It has been scientifically proven certain herbs and spcies improve digestion - NIH study  , NIH study.

For example, ginger works. There are many common spices that improve digestion. Search on spice digestives, you will get plenty of ideas.

Good luck, Don

You could also try bolthouse smoothies. They are premade &  usually found in the produce section. They are still not a yreat long term solution b/c they are high in sugar but the sugar comes from fruit & they make several that are high protein. A 16oz bottle generally has b/t 400-500 calories. I drank 3-4 a day when I was in treatment.

I am too due to 2 feeding tube surgeries, no appetite, stomach unable to tolerate much food.  I have been able to swallow however so I eat cream of wheat (runny) for breakfast and a high cal. smoothiie with whey protein (too many ingredients to list), and a can of soup (Progresso usually split pea, lentil which I puree in the blender, or chicken and dumplins with kashi crackers broken up in the soup soggy so I can swallow them.

 I tried adding Boost VHC (530 cal) which tasted like an oil slick to me and I cannot stand the taste, but don't know if you can tolerate it via tube it would have to be watered down.   I can tolerate chocolate muscle milk orally which is 340 cal.  and can be found at Walmart or Costco but it makes me have more mouth mucous.

 I just found a supplement I really like but it is not high in calories.  It is called Svelte cappachino and I ordered a case from Amazon.  It is organic soy, natural ingredients not lots of sugar, does not taste like an oil slick and I drink one after each meal which only adds about 600 more cal. per day for me, but It tastes fairly good and it is made with better ingredients than most supplements.  No high fructose dyes, etc.

Don't know if any of this helps.

Also, ask your MD about Reglan which is supposed to help with digestive tube problems.

PJ

spector551 said:

Thanks

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys. I think some of you thought I had been given a feeding tube because I said I was on a liquid diet... but that isn't accurate. I still ingest it all orally, just can't keep it down.

Don, I'm going to try a couple of your suggestions. I already know that my body isn't very fond of cow's milk and I guess it is amplified by this emptyness in my stomach lol. My wife did pick me up some goat's milk today that I'm going to try to mix with the CIBE. I have tried goat's milk in the past with success.

My wife made me some homemade egg drop soup today which I was able to hold down. Thought I was going to lose it there for a while, but kept it down. 

God has been good to me in many areas of this treatment, so I am trying to remain always thankful - even though I don't feel well now.

I'm also going to try the suggestion about the store bought smoothies. Probably cheaper than going to Smoothie King everyday lol.

 

God bless,

Jamie

 

P.S. Steve, the thought of putting ginger in my mouth right now is horrifying lol!

 

Have you tried an anti-nausea pill or suppository before a meal?  Just a thought.  I do not do well with cows milk either so I make smoothies with almond or rice milk.  I really like the svelte supplement I found recently and it is organic soy. Guess it will be trial and error for awhile for you, but keep on trying. 

Yes I have the damn tube also but can still eat and it only makes me feel full not sick so I am lucky compared to you.  Have you had the tube checked out?  It could be the placement of it or something wierd.  I do take probiotics and do not know if that helped keep me from having more issues with digestion.  Hang in there and I agree the idea of ginger in the mouth is scary, but to add a small amount to a smoothie may be a good idea for the nausea and digestion issue.

PS I am in my 6th week also of radiation.

Take care,

PJ

spector551 said:

Thanks

Thanks for all the suggestions, guys. I think some of you thought I had been given a feeding tube because I said I was on a liquid diet... but that isn't accurate. I still ingest it all orally, just can't keep it down.

Don, I'm going to try a couple of your suggestions. I already know that my body isn't very fond of cow's milk and I guess it is amplified by this emptyness in my stomach lol. My wife did pick me up some goat's milk today that I'm going to try to mix with the CIBE. I have tried goat's milk in the past with success.

My wife made me some homemade egg drop soup today which I was able to hold down. Thought I was going to lose it there for a while, but kept it down. 

God has been good to me in many areas of this treatment, so I am trying to remain always thankful - even though I don't feel well now.

I'm also going to try the suggestion about the store bought smoothies. Probably cheaper than going to Smoothie King everyday lol.

 

God bless,

Jamie

 

P.S. Steve, the thought of putting ginger in my mouth right now is horrifying lol!

 

Jamie, Right. I sort of forgot where you were intaking nutrition. It is great when members list their details in their profile. One of the other lists the short profile at the end of each post. Very nice as it makes comment more relevant.

Anyway, I did not have the pleasure of the PEG experience but what worked well when it got hard to chew and swallow was to grind up solid foods using a cheap baby food grinder. It does a wonderful job of mashing all solids into a paste that goes down pretty smoothly. It seems I'm the only one or one of very few who did this. I found one at Walmart for under ten bucks. Not quite as nice as a Vitamix but 500 dollars cheaper. :-)

Personally, I'm like Steve and love the taste of ginger but with the grinder you can grind up a few slices right into the other foods and it would go down easier.

As your wife is Asian, maybe she has some ties to the ancient herbal treatments. Not sure where you live but here in the Bay Area there are plenty of traditional and new-age herbal shops.  You can bet they have plenty of things to solve your specific ailment. Maybe she can call her grandma and get the scoop and experience and wisdom you need.

Hang in there. Everyone has their own unique path and just needs to constantly refinng where the smoothest part of the path is for you.

Don