We thought we would be getting a list of which doctor to go to for what ailment...
While under specific care... your surgeon, oncologist, radiologist, gastroenterologist, urologist, cardiologist each seems to have some say.
For long term care, the primary care physician is the one to go to schedule blood tests, B12 shots and replacement J Tubes.
I really wished someone would give us a flow chart as to who to go to. We've seen 3 dietitians, several PA"s and 5 Emergency Room Doctors. They all are comfortable in their own specialty. Fortunately, J's brother is a family doctor and he is there at all hours to help keep us on track! Thank you Dr. M!
It was truly enlightening when a young ER doctor asked us what we wanted to do! So I guess we've earned our PHD along the way!
Monday, March 7, 2011
J Tube Replacement Rate
has to be replaced every 12 weeks, if the feeding rate slows down, make an appointment or you'll be spending all day in Emergency to replace a blocked line. Funny how nobody told us before our 5th replacement!
When we got a thicker tube, this did not become an issue! I am hoping we won't have a j-tube any more as he has not had had any tube feedings in several months. He needs to get over the fear. I would think he would want to go swimming! Some people do swim with j-tubes, bandaged up.
When we got a thicker tube, this did not become an issue! I am hoping we won't have a j-tube any more as he has not had had any tube feedings in several months. He needs to get over the fear. I would think he would want to go swimming! Some people do swim with j-tubes, bandaged up.
Pre biotics and probiotics
Simply put I think Probiotics are the good things in yogurts.
Prebiotics help you digest food.
I went to Sprouts and bought a bottle of enzyme tablets that help you digest foods. BIO ALIGN by Source Naturals http://store.sourcenaturalscatalog.com/sn0660.html The bottle says to have one with each meal. That would be pretty expensive, about 75 cents a day... J hasn't tried them yet.
5/12 Costco now carries several kinds of digestive enzymes. There must be a demand.
Prebiotics help you digest food.
I went to Sprouts and bought a bottle of enzyme tablets that help you digest foods. BIO ALIGN by Source Naturals http://store.sourcenaturalscatalog.com/sn0660.html The bottle says to have one with each meal. That would be pretty expensive, about 75 cents a day... J hasn't tried them yet.
5/12 Costco now carries several kinds of digestive enzymes. There must be a demand.
Smoothies
Now that J is drinking smoothies with his yogurt... we have started looking for variations. I've put the smoothie recipes on index card and made a scoring system. I also write the ingredients down.
I bought Smoothies for Life! Yummy, Fun, and Nutritious! by Daniella Chace and Maureen B. Keane (Paperback - Apr 22, 1998) mostly because they have nutritional data and numbers are so important to J!!!
I just made a smoothie (He didn't finish it) with a whole banana, 4 T protein powder, 1/2 c milk, 1/2 c Fage Greek whole milk yogurt, 1/4 peanut butter and 1 t cinnamon. It needed an ice cube or two! It packed a whopping 843 calories!
Thanks to my sister in law I found King Arthur Flour's flavorings... I think I will have to see them on my next trip to Boston. Check out the yummy sounding cherry or cider concentrates! They are so strong all you need is 1 drop per cup! http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/ingredients/flavors-and-extracts?sortFormSortOrder=desc&page=1&sortby=popularity Forget the prices, with the money you'll save by not buying smoothies at the bistro!
There is a book I want called Super Charged Smoothies... I keep getting it from the Phoenix Library Overdrive downloaded to my kindle. http://www.amazon.com/Super-Charged-Smoothies-Sara-Corpening-Whiteford/dp/B006W3Z98C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336659536&sr=1-1
His default smoothie: 7 ounces yogurt, small cup of applesauce, 1 protein powder scoop (about 1/3 cup) and a little milk. I usually make the yogurt with whole milk and half and half. He lost weight when I didn't make the super yogurt. I switched to store yogurt because his cholesterol was too high.
He isn't adding bananas because he drinks the protein smoothies during the day and that is too much potassium!
I bought Smoothies for Life! Yummy, Fun, and Nutritious! by Daniella Chace and Maureen B. Keane (Paperback - Apr 22, 1998) mostly because they have nutritional data and numbers are so important to J!!!
I just made a smoothie (He didn't finish it) with a whole banana, 4 T protein powder, 1/2 c milk, 1/2 c Fage Greek whole milk yogurt, 1/4 peanut butter and 1 t cinnamon. It needed an ice cube or two! It packed a whopping 843 calories!
Thanks to my sister in law I found King Arthur Flour's flavorings... I think I will have to see them on my next trip to Boston. Check out the yummy sounding cherry or cider concentrates! They are so strong all you need is 1 drop per cup! http://www.kingarthurflour.com/shop/ingredients/flavors-and-extracts?sortFormSortOrder=desc&page=1&sortby=popularity Forget the prices, with the money you'll save by not buying smoothies at the bistro!
There is a book I want called Super Charged Smoothies... I keep getting it from the Phoenix Library Overdrive downloaded to my kindle. http://www.amazon.com/Super-Charged-Smoothies-Sara-Corpening-Whiteford/dp/B006W3Z98C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1336659536&sr=1-1
His default smoothie: 7 ounces yogurt, small cup of applesauce, 1 protein powder scoop (about 1/3 cup) and a little milk. I usually make the yogurt with whole milk and half and half. He lost weight when I didn't make the super yogurt. I switched to store yogurt because his cholesterol was too high.
He isn't adding bananas because he drinks the protein smoothies during the day and that is too much potassium!
Eating sort of
With the help of a J-tube, J is getting all his nutrition. Needless to say there was a lot of nervousness about eating. Applesauce didn't go down well, too high in acid. Ensures didn't go down well. It was then we knew we needed help with nutrition. So we made an appointment...
Adhesions and Antibotics
Things were not getting better, J kept saying he was feeling acid coming up! Guess what he was right and until he vomited bile, De B realized they needed to go back in and check things out. J had adhesions or scar tissue that was blocking his swallowing. So they fixed him up and sent him home with lots of antibiotics for a hospital infection. And yes we did get a doctor to admit that antibiotics do have an unsettling effect on the gastro system. Its funny how every doctor has a different slant. Now that J is off antibiotics, he is able to start eating.
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