Gee, where do I start? I’ve been using this night feeding pump for 5 nights now and have adjusted to the process. It seemed to be doing the job of getting 3 cans of IsoSource into my stomach over a 9 hour period leaving me 15 vertical hours to get the other 3 in. At least until today.
I woke up around 6 AM again and detached myself from the empty pump container and went back to sleep feeling a little full but ok. By 9:15 AM I was violently sick. The most vomiting since the chemo days. Now what?Back to that in a few……meanwhile I went to my RadDoc yesterday and asked if I had Thrush (yeast infection of the mouth) since my mouth and throat were so horribly sore. He said I didn’t but I talked him into prescribing Thrush meds anyway (nothing to lose). With these you take 2 pills the first day and 1 each day for 6 more days. Well, I took the first 2 pills yesterday and by this morning the pain in my throat and mouth was less than 50% of what it had been. I could talk again without pain or sounding like Donald Duck. I looked at my throat with a flashlight and could see the difference. Keep in mind I was busy vomiting during this same period. Again, now what?
The day wore on and I had a scheduled visit with a Gastrointestinal doctor (same one who installed my feeding tube) and I told him my tale of woe. He really didn’t have much to add to my “cure” except to tell me it was ok to have beer for calories and the fact that it might increase my appetite. He said I needed to gain my weight back. Well duh!!!! And if the vomiting continued I could have a blockage (based on the busy non-constipational activities that were also going on this morning, I doubt I have a blockage). This appointment was in the late afternoon and by that time I was feeling a bit better nausea-wise and was showing off my lack of a sore throat by drinking water without grimacing.
Tonight I ate Matzoh Ball soup (my wife makes it great) and ate it the normal way. Then I also had a can of Boost by mouth which makes today the most food I’ve consumed by mouth since Easter Sunday (my last real meal). My throat tolerated it just fine and my stomach has not returned to its previous behavior.
What to learn from all this……..well…..I’m glad I had Thrush early in my treatment so I could recognize the symptoms because 2 separate RadDocs 5 days apart said I didn’t have it ! Maybe I don’t and it was an amazing coincidence that my throat improved remarkably at the exact same time I started taking meds for something I supposedly didn’t have. And maybe I’ll wake up in the morning and my throat will again be on fire. We’ll see.
Tomorrow morning I’m going to try to eat oatmeal and see how it goes. Then it’s mashed potatoes and ground up veggies and other real food. I’m also not going to use the feeding pump tonight; I’ll wake up for pain meds and “eat” something then. Tomorrow is another day and I’ll see what I’m in for next. What a miserable ride this continues to be.
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