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Barely eating - seeking any advice

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Ulcerative Colitis
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Posted 8/15/2007 11:06 AM (GMT -7)
Hi Again,

So it appears that the past couple of days I've not been getting any better.

I am barely eating - just some white bread and white rice right now.

I tried a banana yesterday and even that was too much to handle.

The pain over the passed few days associated with the bms and just gas in general has been awful, hence my hesitation to eat much of anything - plus things seem to go through me extra quickly.

I'm going to try some chicken broth or soup tonight, or possibly some baby food to try and get some vitamins back into me.

I am seeing my GI next week as well so if I don't get better I can talk to him.

Just wondering if anyone else has gone through this, and knows how to safely introduce nutrients, or when to really be concerned about not eating too much.

Thanks again everyone.

Posted 8/15/2007 11:55 AM (GMT -7)

You have to eat, although I know what it's like to be that miserable. mad  

You figure nothing goes in, so nothing comes out, right?  Some people have had a lot of success with Immodium or even Metamucil to bulk up your stool.  I notice that whenever I start to skip meals, I get worse, but you may be different.  Also, you should be able to call your doctor to get his/her advice and not wait til next week.  Good luck!!  I'm feeling your pain!

Posted 8/15/2007 12:13 PM (GMT -7)
Oatmeal, Peanut Butter (good for weight gain) and Bananas always seem to be safe staple foods for me
Posted 8/15/2007 12:23 PM (GMT -7)
If you can tolerate the taste, ingest some olive oil. (8 grams of fat per 10ML)
Posted 8/15/2007 12:45 PM (GMT -7)
Delarge,
I agree olive oil is a good one. Soothing on the stomach, delicious and healthy at the same time. I take a tablespoon per day for weight gain. A high quality extra virgin olive oil has a wonderful nutty taste. I buy the house version by the gallon at a local Italian market in the Little Italy section of Pittsburgh.
Posted 8/15/2007 12:53 PM (GMT -7)

KJ35 said...
Delarge,
I agree olive oil is a good one. Soothing on the stomach, delicious and healthy at the same time. I take a tablespoon per day for weight gain. A high quality extra virgin olive oil has a wonderful nutty taste. I buy the house version by the gallon at a local Italian market in the Little Italy section of Pittsburgh.

Nice, I try to consume 100ml daily. Olive oil is a fantastic anti-inflammatory agent, and as you said, it's quite healthy.
Posted 8/15/2007 1:20 PM (GMT -7)
Racing Chick, I'm so sorry you're in pain. sad I hope you feel better soon.

I used to go on a clear liquid diet* for up to 5 days during a flare, and it really helped rest my hurting colon. I would also take Immodium to help calm things down. You should think about calling your doctor before the weekend, so he can prescribe something to help get things under control.

Take care,
Cecilia

*A clear liquid diet includes beef, chicken, and veggie broths; apple and cranberry juice; Jello, popsicles, hot tea and iced tea, and of course, water
Posted 8/15/2007 7:10 PM (GMT -7)
flchurchlady: When you start eating again after a 5-day liquid diet, do you have to be careful about what you eat, you know, build up slowly again? How much does it help?? Thanks, jwogie
Posted 8/16/2007 2:41 AM (GMT -7)
After a liquid diet, I'd slowly introduce soft, bland foods like scrambled eggs and mashed potatoes. It helped a lot.
Posted 8/16/2007 11:03 AM (GMT -7)
Since you're worried about getting nutrients, I would suggest seeing a Registered Dietician. We are all deficient due to UC, especially if you've been flaring. I got the SPECTRACELL test done. It told me exactly which vitamins and minerals I was deficient in. My dietician gave me about 6 supplements, but I was flaring so badly, I wasn't absorbing any of them. I went to my GI begging for the Rowasa enemas again. Overnight, I went from 7 BMs a day to 1. **KNOCK ON WOOD** I'm taking advantage of this reduction to heal my mucosal lining and regenerate my cells with the supplements. Healing from the inside out.
Posted 8/16/2007 11:27 AM (GMT -7)
You can also take liquid vitamins, which supposedly have a higher absorption rate than pill vitamins.
Posted 8/17/2007 7:21 AM (GMT -7)
Are you bleeding alot?  I just got out of the hospital yesterday and I would love to compare notes.  I was as sick as you are describing and bleeding alot.  Feeling improved but Im not 100% yet. still bleeding some..

Posted 8/17/2007 7:38 AM (GMT -7)

Hi Lori,

I was actually not bleeding at all before last week, but it seems I am a little bit now. I believe that there were chemicals or preservatives in the food at my cousin's wedding a week ago that totally threw me off.

I'm still being really careful about what I eat, and I did find the baby food to be easy on my system, and give me a little more vitamins than I was getting. I'm feeling a tiny bit better after eating more nutritiously I think, but I'm going to see the GI on Tuesday and we'll see what he says about it all. And I'll be seeking a dietician in the coming days as well to help me out.

If you are concerned about what to eat, I'm finding that white bread, the baby food, juices and oatmeal have been good for me to eat. And I'm avoiding eating out like the plague for the next little while.

Posted 8/17/2007 7:57 AM (GMT -7)
Im glad your not bleeding. When I see I am bleeding my anxiety shoots thru the roof. Stress is what brings this all on me anyway. Im getting back on my zoloft and the Dr gave me some good chill pills so hopefully it will relax me enuf to stop bleeding. I do not want to ever go back in the hospital. I kept food in good yesterday and a banana so far today...
Posted 8/17/2007 8:23 AM (GMT -7)
Oh that's great to hear! I hope you aren't in the hospital again either!
Stress does it for me as well - my year end projects and 6 exams in April set me off this spring - haha, being in mechanical engineering is not so good for keeping stress down.
So, I know what it's like to have a hard time chilling out sometimes.
Posted 8/17/2007 2:32 PM (GMT -7)
Racing Chick - 3 things
1. are you keeping down water? if not, go to the hospital. seriously.
2. don't take immodium. at least, that's my GI's advice. he says when flaring, it is dangerous to take it.
3. have you tried ensure? at my sickest, I can usually sip them slowly (I like vanilla) through a straw. I may still end up needing to go to the bathroom, but at least the calories get in there... ensure is a high calorie drink. it does have some sugar, so it isn't totally natural, and I know that some people on this forum think they have too much junk in them, but my feeling is just to get the nutrients and calories in the system when you are that sick. they are expensive, but you can get them at any drug store, grocery store. My mom drank these all the time during chemotherapy when she was too nauseous to eat anything....

good luck, keep drinking water. you can get by without food but dehydration gets serious really quickly, so be careful.
Posted 8/17/2007 2:43 PM (GMT -7)
Thanks for the advice.
I am keeping down water, so that's a good thing.
And I haven't tried any Immodium just yet.
I haven't tried Ensure, which is probably not a bad idea, but I'd have to check if it had any milk ingredients in it, cause that's one of the worst things for me right now.
I did try a vitamin enriched water last night - Propel sports drink, to try and get some more nutrients into me.
I'll swing by the grocery store tonight, and pick up some more baby food and maybe some Ensure then.
Posted 8/18/2007 7:34 AM (GMT -7)
Hey racing chik how r u feeling today?
Posted 8/18/2007 7:41 AM (GMT -7)
i wanted to add, while i was in the hospital they wouldnt let me eat for 4 days, not even ice chips. I was on an IV to stay hidratred. But when i asked about how long it is safe to not eat the Dr said "your ok" I am 125lbs so Im sure he didnt mean cuz i have plenty of fat but then my huband reminded me Jesus went 40 days. So, i think the goal this time was to let the colon rest as long as you can stay hydrated. They were giving me potasium and fosfate thru the IV also.
Posted 8/19/2007 7:54 PM (GMT -7)
Hi Lori,

I'm actually feeling a little bit better today. No pain - so that's a great sign for the week to come.

I tried the Ensure, and a bit more solid food, like chicken noodle soup, and I could handle it. It seemed to give me more energy, which was nice. I took a pretty relaxing weekend and I think that helped as well.

Being careful for a few days with what I eat is my way of resting the colon, like you said, though your case was a little more serious I think.

Thanks for the advice, and I hope you are feeling better as well.

I'm hoping this week will be better for us both!

Wishing you well!

Posted 8/20/2007 3:42 AM (GMT -7)
There you are! I just KNEW you were in the hospital! I have been praying for you!!! Im so glad your getting better! Long live remission!!!!!
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