No TPN - Yet

On May 24 I wrote that I would be calling my GI doctor about my recent weight loss and my inability to get a full feed into me. Well, I did call and I saw him twice in the next week. As a result of my visits I will be trying yet another formula, Vital HN. According to the dietician who works with the doctor, this should be easier for my body to absorb. the drawback is that this product comes in powder form so I will have to mix it up one cup at a time. It also has a hang life of only six hours which means no more overnight feeds. So it's a matter of convenience really but if it works it should be worth the extra effort.

It also means using a new type of bag and tube, they arrived Friday. And the Vital is now on backorder so I haven't received it yet and have been continuing to use the Peptamen 1.5 in the interim.

It's also worth mentioning that the doctor prescribed Ciproflaxacin, an antibiotic, to clean out my gut. This is to replace the erythromycin which we had used previously. I am happy to report that the cipro worked from day 1 - no more diarrhea and I am taking some food by mouth again because I actually feel hungry. It has also allowed me to venture out of the apartment more because I am no longer afraid of having an accident. Put all this together and I can say that I am enjoying life again. Yeehaw.

Oh, one more thing. In a couple of days I will be going in to have my G-J tube replaced. A couple of months ago it developed a small crack where the hardware joins the tube. I patched it, first with duct tape, and then with duo-derm, but it still leaks occasionally so I'll be happy to get that taken care of.