Adventures with Gastroparesis

Do not adjust your screen!  The image above is as blurred as my brain.  An interesting phenomenon that happens with Gastroparesis is that sometimes you run on a 5-10-15-20 minute delayed reaction/response.  In your mind, no time has passed.  However, in reality several minutes have passed and much to your dismay the rest of the world hasn’t stayed on pause along with your brain.

This recently happened to me on this trip.  As mentioned previously, when I travel I purchase my own food and keep it in a refrigerator in the hotel room.  This particular trip I had forgotten to pack spoons.   My boyfriend asked me if I wanted him to go to the front desk and ask for a spoon.  I said yes.  I thought I responded immediately.  He had also asked me what time I needed the alarm clock set for.  I said that I couldn’t think about it yet.  (By the end of the night, not only is my brain delayed but it can’t multi-task.) I thought I responded immediately again.

However, this is what my boyfriend “claims” happened.  (He has always had my best interests at heart and is extremely patient.  Based on this, I have no reason to think that his claim is incorrect.)  He said that he asked me about the spoon and did not receive a response.  A few minutes later he asked about the alarm clock and after an additional few minutes I responded that I couldn’t think about it yet.  A few minutes after that he asked about the spoon again and quite awhile after that I again said that I couldn’t think about it yet.  Apparently from the first spoon question to my incorrect spoon response, 15 minutes had passed.  Apparently I answered the alarm clock question twice but thought that I only answered it once.

The basic chain of events is a complete mystery to me, but these types of conversations happen all of the time.  I also know of several other GPers who have the same issue.  However, all you can do is laugh about it and collect as many spoons as you can (both figuratively & literally!)

~Millie