What Diet Are You On?

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 15, 2013
Posted in: But you don't look sick, Diet, Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , , . 2 Comments

waist

You’ve lost so much weight!  What diet are you on?  You’re looking great!

These are things that EVERYONE with Gastroparesis has heard at one point or another.  Everyone wants to know how you’ve lost weight so quickly and how you stay so thin.  They want in on the next latest and greatest diet fad.  Responding to all of this is a delicate situation.  On one hand, you want to take the opportunity to educate them about Gastroparesis (if you’ve accepted your fate & are ready to fight to make a difference.  more on this in future blogs).  On the other hand, you know they are not wanting to hear that the reason is that you can’t eat, you’ve been vomiting for days (maybe months) and that you would give anything to keep weight ON.  So what do you do?

My approach has always been to disclose as much as I feel like dealing with that day.  Some days I just want to go through the motions, get the day over with and therefore get in/out of this weight loss conversation as fast as possible.  Other days I am feeling fiesty and wanting to take the time & energy to educate.  It really all depends on the person, the day, the hour, the minute, and the second.  The one thing that is constant is that it is hard to hear that “you look so good” when you know it is because you are so incredibly sick and barely functioning.  It is hard for them to understand that you are so incredibly sick when “you look good”.  (Check out the blog on “But You Don’t Look Sick” https://adventureswithgastroparesis.com/2013/02/01/but-you-dont-look-sick/)

The flip side of this (that no one really talks about) is that you also go through periods of inexplicably gaining weight.  No one come rushing up to you saying “how did you do it?  how did you put all of that weight back on?”  However, it takes a toll on your emotions.  Your body is so out of whack and changing dramatically day to day that it is hard at times to feel comfortable in your own skin.  It is hard to feel confident when the pants that fit perfect yesterday are now following off and might not button tomorrow.

However, you have to look at yourself and say “I made it out of bed today.  I managed to wash my hair today.  I got out of my pajamas, so who cares if my pants are following off?  Who cares if my pants are unbuttoned under my shirt & no one can see?  I have accomplished a great thing today by going out and facing the world and continuing my life.  I am beating GP today, so take that!”

You’ve got to find a way to keep those pesky Gastroparesis depressive thoughts away and celebrate what you have conquered.  The more you celebrate what you have conquered, the more likely you are to say “Thank you.  I do not have a diet plan, but have a rare condition called Gastroparesis.  Let me tell you about it.”  Because knowledge is power and the more people we educate, the more powerful the Gastroparesis community becomes!

(Fortunately, my weight has been level for the past few months so I have not been asked about my diet plan since last spring!  However, I ALWAYS take an opportunity to politely educate others.)

~Millie

Test Driving Acupuncture

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 13, 2013
Posted in: Acupuncture, Energy, Gastroparesis, GERD, health, Inspiration. Tagged: , , , , , , . 4 Comments

acupuncture

Through the various Gastroparesis message boards, I have heard that some people have had some success with acupuncture for symptom relief.  Continuing on my adventure of trying anything to feel better, I decided to take acupuncture out for a test drive.

I have been waiting a month for this appointment and have anxiously been anticipating the results.  The acupuncturist is fr0m the center where I receive my digestive massages (aka belly rubs).  I completed all of the usual intake paperwork:  complete with adding extra spaces and writing on the backs of pages.  Four lines available for medications & supplements?  Child’s play!  Please turn the sheet over for a detailed list of medications, dosages, and times of day taken.  Two lines for medical procedures?  Hmmm….maybe I should just type up a medical resume to staple to these forms.  I’m not sure if all GPers are this way, but I get extremely detailed on my intake forms.  I view it as a time bonus.  (I even say “Time Bonus” as if a video game is playing in my head.)  The more information I give the medical provider, the faster he or she can appropriately help me.  (In theory, anyway.)

My gusto for detail was noticed!  The acupuncturist commented and stated that it was one of the most detailed forms he had ever received.  He said it was going to be a lot easier to dive right in to helping me.  SUCCESS!  Let’s get this ball rolling and stick some needles in me to get rid of this nausea and cramping.

The next step was a big disclaimer about the needles and how they were going to feel.  My response, “I just had an IV on Saturday that finally was able to use the large gauge, so these little guys are nothing.”  (On a side note, I squirm like a giant wimp with every IV I get.  I think it is because it usually takes 4 tries.)  At this point I wasn’t sure if the doctor appreciated my gusto or thought I was completely nuts.

Woohoo!!  Finally some needles going in & getting this party started.  I couldn’t feel the ones in my stomach or legs at all.  My thought is the following:  when your stomach hurts like hell the majority of the time, how on earth would you ever feel a pin sized needle?  Then came the needles in the wrist….OUCH!!  I’m not sure if he was teaching me a lesson, but those little guys hurt…at first.  However, the pain quickly went away.

The doctor was so impressed that I “handled it like a pro” that he asked if he could keep going even though it would be more than the usual amount of needles for the first time.  Time Bonus!  Already advancing and skipping ahead!  He then covered me with what looked like a blanket of tinfoil and left the room for me to relax and let the needles do their work.

I fell asleep and then woke up with the nausea gone and less cramping in the stomach.

SOLD!  I am not sure if it was all coincidental or if it really did work, but either way I will be back to the acupuncturist over the next few weeks.  I will keep writing about my pins and tinfoil to let you know if it is indeed working.

Oh….and I “borrowed” a needle to stab those pesky GP elves with whenever they decide to rear their ugly heads.

~Millie

Please Note:  Before trying any acupuncture procedure (or anything mentioned in these blog posts) please consult with a trained medical professional.  My experiences should not be substituted for the guidance of a trained medical professional.

Please Also Note:  No GP Elves were harmed during the writing of this post.

Battling for Sanity

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 11, 2013
Posted in: Energy, Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , , . 6 Comments

It is the middle of the day and I FINALLY just made my way out of bed.  I am still not feeling well after my journey and am still extremely depleted.  My head is spinning, my stomach hurts, and my hand and feet are extremely swollen.  Needless to say, another fun day in Gastroparesis paradise.  Had it not been for my dog wanting some lunch, I would probably still be in bed.

These days are hard.  The days when your mind is mostly with you but your body is stuck in park.  You often feel as though you have a devil and angel on your shoulder telling you two different things.  It is a constant battle going on in your head and a difficult one to manage.

angel_devil

The devil tells you that you are too sick to do anything.  You need to lay in bed.  You can’t continue to make it in the “normal” world.  Your going to have to stay home and watch the bills stack up while you don’t get paid.  This leads to a viscous cycle which leaves you in bed all day in a combination of a lot of pain and hiding from the world.  It’s when this side wins that Gastroparesis gets REALLY ugly.

However, there is another voice in your head which is telling you that you can do it.  That you just need to rest for 30 minutes more and then you feel at least well enough to accomplish just one item today.  If you accomplish one item, then you are a success and will continue to succeed.  This side of your brain is screaming to be heard because it knows the truth of what you can accomplish.  (I personally play the loop from Stuart Smalley from Saturday Night Live:  You are good enough, smart enough, and dog gone it, people like you.  Cheesy but effective.)

Teaching yourself to hear the positive side of your brain is one of the hardest pieces of Gastroparesis to manage.  This is something that is taught and takes a tremendous amount of willpower to accomplish.  If you are able bodied and reading this, you might think it’s no big deal.  However, think of the time when you had the flu and were too sick to get out of bed.  Now couple that with a time that someone was just down right nasty to you and made you doubt yourself.  Combine all of this with the fact that you know these times will always follow you.  They will never go away.  The best you can hope for is that they are limited and happen fewer.  This is what someone with Gastroparesis fights with to get out of bed and get back on a normal daily routine.

It is a hard battle and one that I am determined to win today.

~Millie

A special thanks to my amazing dog for helping get me out of bed today and doting on me non-stop this morning.  (More on pet therapy in future blogs.)

Sleeping For Two Days

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 10, 2013
Posted in: Digestive Massage, Energy, Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life, Medical Massage. Tagged: , , , , , . 4 Comments

sick-in-bed

For the past two days I have done my best to imitate the above photo.  My week long journey has completely diminished my energy supply.  Yesterday, I received an IV in hopes of it increasing my energy level.  It did not.  Although it did get rid of the dizzy spells and blurred vision, so I think that it was the right decision.

However, that IV seems like a long long time ago, in a place far far away.  I have literally done nothing but sleep for two days straight and I think I could probably sleep for two or three more.  It is the beginnings of what I like to call a Gastroparesis coma.  You are not in a full GP Flair, but you have zero energy to do anything.  It takes all of your strength to move from your bed to your couch and back again.

I honestly can’t tell you what I did over the past two days.  This is probably because it really didn’t involve anything.  Oh wait….I had a digestive massage today which seemed to help with some stomach cramping.  However, it seems like it was over a week ago not a few short hours ago.

This blog is really the only productive thing I have done all day today.  As I am writing this, my eyes are closing and I feel my head bobbing.  So I guess it is back to bed for me.  It isn’t looking optimistic to make it into the office tomorrow, so I am sure the morning will be filled with circular references on making that decision.

Now it is time to go back to sleep and count the GP Elves….1…2…zzzzzzz

~Millie

I’ll Take the IV with the Zofran Starter Please!

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 10, 2013
Posted in: Energy, Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , , . 2 Comments

Even though my smoothies helped to keep me on pace, I still felt like my body was completely out of whack.  I was having dizzy spells, blurred vision, nausea, & stomach cramping.  All signs that I was malnourished and dehydrated.

Usually when this occurs, I wait until I have completely tanked into a horrible flair before going for an IV.  This typically leads to the nurses having a difficult time finding my veins and usually 4-5 attempts to get the IV in.  (Needless to say, a fun afternoon in the park.)

This time, I decided I would attempt to be smart and get my IV when the symptoms of a flair were starting.  I went to my local MedExpress where I have become somewhat of a legend.  They joke that they are going to dedicate the IV room to me and put my name on the door.  I remember a time, not that many years ago when it was always a terrible fight at an ER to try to get an IV.  It shows huge progress for the Gastroparesis community to have the staff at MedExpress view the IV as a routine part of my life and to fully understand Gastroparesis.

Below is a photo of how I received my “dinner” last night.  I wanted to use a photo of my actual arm, to show everyone that this is a reality for anyone fighting Gastroparesis.

IV

This IV was the first part of my post-travel “tune up”.  Today, I am going for a digestive massage in order to continue to have my body get back to “normal”.

Hey, you tune up a car after adding 30,000 miles so why not tune up my Gastroparesis Fighting Body!

~Millie

Yes TSA, That is a Blender in My Bag

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 9, 2013
Posted in: Energy, Gastroparesis, health, Life, Travel. Tagged: , , , , , . 18 Comments

bagxray

As mentioned in my previous posts, I have been traveling A LOT lately!  First, for Gastroparesis advocacy & then for business.  This had me away from home for 8 days.  Being away from home this long is difficult for anyone, but it is particularly challenging for someone with Gastroparesis.

If you are able to eat “normally” and are reading this post, THANK YOU LUCKY STARS!!  Gastroparesis is difficult enough to manage at home, so you can only imagine how difficult it becomes when you are away from all of your necessities and normal food.  However, I was determined to do this.  I was determined to travel back to back for both GP advocacy and for business.  This led me to start to devise a plan for how I could achieve this and minimize the chance of a flair.

Naturally, the main item on my list was FOOD.  I live off 2 smoothies per day, greek yogurt, & 1 solid meal at night usually consisting of some type of chicken dish.  I knew that I would be busy so I knew I would need to keep my protein intake high.  I also knew that if I strayed from my “normal” eating plan, that I was going to get deathly ill.  So the main thing I had to figure out was:  how to have my smoothies on the road.

Step 1 to Smoothies on the Road:  Pack a Blender. 

It was a pretty simple decision to pack a blender.  Although, I was hoping it would make it’s way through the 4 airports I was about to travel through.  It was also worth every penny of the $25 checked bag fee.  So I packed my blender & checked my bag.

Step 2 to Smoothies on the Road:  Pack Dry Goods, Measuring Cups, Plastic Spoons, Smoothie Bottles. 

Just as important as the blender are all of the other necessary items to make smoothies with.  Your measuring cups, your smoothie containers, and dry goods.  For me the dry goods are particularly interesting.  As mentioned, I knew I would have to keep a large amount of protein intake in order to have enough energy to attempt to burn during the days.  This meant that taken my protein powder was an absolute must.  Whey protein powder tried to kill me and almost sent me to the ER on a couple of occasions, so at the suggestion of my nutritionist, I use Hemp Protein Powder.  It is purchased from the Vitamin Shoppe, but I was not sure how well this would go over with TSA & their hounds.  This led me to Step 3.

Step 3 to Smoothies on the Road:  Get to the Airport Insanely Early

Considering all of the random items that were in my checked bag, I wanted to make sure I gave TSA plenty of time to ohhh & ahhh over the contents.  I doubt they get to see blenders, hemp protein powder, measuring cups, bottles, rolled oats, all wedged into a bag with a business suit, dress slacks, and sweaters.  Oddly, my bag was only opened once by TSA.  It was on my way home, so I guess the third time through security was the charm.

Step 4 to Smoothies on the Road:  Make Sure Your Hotel puts a Fridge in Your Room

Considering, Step 5 is to have groceries delivered to your room, you’ll probably want to make sure you have a refrigerator to store them in.

Step 5 to Smoothies on the Road:  Find a Grocery Delivery Service

Grocery Delivery Services are my new favorite thing in the world.  They have also been a complete & total life saver for this journey.  I did not want to have to rent a car, find a grocery store, shop, return the car, etc.  I also did not want to walk for blocks and then carry a ton of groceries back to the hotels.  (Shocker:  Carrying heavy objects for long periods of time will tank a GPer faster than putting on cement shoes & jumping in a river.)  Here is the best part of the grocery delivery service, the fee was only $10!  Again, not even a question in my mind that the $10 was worth it. 

Step 6 to Smoothies on the Road:  Who Cares if You Run a  Blender at 6 AM, It Is an Opportunity to Educate

Making these smoothies is a medical necessity, so I did not care one bit about running the blender at 6 AM.  Sure, it might have annoyed the people in the rooms next to me, I have no idea if it did or not.  However, if I would have received a complaint, I had planned to explain Gastroparesis to the hotel staff and keep running the blender anyway.  (I am a rather courteous person, but when it comes to my health I put me first and don’t apologize.  I educate on what I have to go through and people usually have a hard time saying no to you needing to do something.)

Step 7 to Smoothies on the Road:  Carry Your Smoothie Wherever You Go

Be proud of your smoothie.  Sip on it throughout the day, no matter where you are.  You will be amazed at how no one seems to notice or care.  When I first started carrying smoothies around at work, I was worried that people would ask a lot of questions.  I was absolutely amazed at how few questions are asked.  In this health conscious world, people don’t find carrying a bottle around all that odd.

Step 8 to Smoothies on the Road:  Keep Your Hotel Room Clean and Place Your Smoothie Supply Garbage in Plastic Bags

The hotel staff isn’t expecting a plethora of empty yogurt containers, empty tofu containers, empty ginger ale cans, empty frozen fruit bags.  Be polite and place everything neatly in a garbage can so that it is easy for them to dispose of your garbage.

All in all, I would say that my attempt at smoothies on the road was a huge success!  Now if I could only find a way to have TSA allow me to take a smoothie through security so that I can sip it on the plane!

~Millie

No Longer on an Island

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 6, 2013
Posted in: Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , . Leave a comment

island

Growing up I battled Gastroparesis symptoms without knowing the name for what I was fighting and only knew of one other person fighting the same set of extreme symptoms, my grandmother.  My entire life was spent comparing symptoms and modeling my eating after my grandma.  My childhood doctor didn’t know of Gastroparesis (not many did back then), but knew I had the “Millie” issue.  My grandma and I share our name, practically share our birthdays and apparently share the same gut issues.  This is why he called it the “Millie” issue.

I remember spending at least a week in the hospital during third grade.  There were lots of blood draws, nurses, and doctor’s visits.  My doctor was one of the founders of the local hospital and as such I was in the penthouse (aka a private room at the end of a hall).  I made items for the nurses and ordered Popsicles for my visitors.  However, no one knew what to do for me.

Then in my junior year of high school I had my first endoscopy.  I remember my grandma telling me what to expect and that it would be okay.  I had no one else to talk to about this.  Even though I was having so many issues I stayed extremely active in school.  I ran cross country, acted in plays, marched in the marching band, sang in the choir, studied my way into National Honors Society, and spent a fair deal of time cruising around with my friends.  Little did I know that staying activity might have helped me prolong the seriousness of Gastroparesis (more on this in future blogs).

In college, I had to make friends who had cars so that if I needed to go  to the emergency room, I knew that I could get there.  I remember a few instances in college where I was vomiting so badly that I had to be driven to the ER while my friends sat there in shock of what was happening to me.  Again, I had no name to tell them, I had no idea what was happening to me other than that this was “normal”.  I had no one to talk to except my grandma.  Thank goodness for her!  It was always comforting to know that she was fighting the same mystery issue and was not slowing down one bit!

After college I had another endoscopy and my first gastric emptying study where I literally got to eat radioactive eggs and drank radioactive orange juice (more on this in future blogs).  The test results were inconclusive and I still only had one person to compare notes with.  (Although my grandma has never had the pleasure of a radioactive breakfast!)

Now I have moved further into my adult life, had another endoscopy and another gastric emptying study, except this time I had a name of what I was fighting:  Gastroparesis.  As dim as a Gastroparesis diagnosis can be, it is also extremely uplifting.  FINALLY I was no longer on an island with my grandma.  FINALLY I was able to interact with more people.  FINALLY I was able to share stories of fighting with doctors.  FINALLY I was able to share stories of feeling like a lab rat.  FINALLY I was able to share the feelings that come along with knowing your life is changing in a dramatic way.  FINALLY I was able to share in all of the ups and downs, left turns and right turns, expanding and contracting stomachs.

Needless to say, it is an emotional roller coaster to after 30 years of being on an island to have a support group.  This weekend I met many people from this support group in person.  Words cannot express what it is like to be surrounded by a group of people fighting the same fight.  It is extremely rare to spend a day with someone that is dealing with all of the cramping, vomiting, and smoothie making.  It is even rarer to spend a weekend with an entire group.  It is an extremely emotional experience.  An experience that is life changing.  An experience that has put more fight in me than Muhammad Ali or Joe Frasier.  So watch out world, this GP Sister is about to take the world by storm and leave that island in the dust.

Grandma, we are no longer on an island and I’m going to fight so hard with all of these amazing people so that others  will not have to live with all of the sickness that GPers battle.  I love you!

~Millie

Finally Meeting in Person

Posted by Mildred Jane on March 1, 2013
Posted in: Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , . 8 Comments

friends

There are many downsides to Gastroparesis, but one of the coolest things about GP is that you meet so many amazing people from all over the world.  Most of the “meeting” is on-line.  In fact almost all of the meeting is on-line.  You chat on IM, you send Facebook messages, Twitter messages, share items on Pintrest, or maybe chat on the phone.  It is amazing to see and hear all of the great things that people are accomplishing in spite of Gastroparesis.

It is so helpful to make Gastroparesis friends to share in the ups and downs, to laugh and cry, and to understand what the heck you are trying to say during brain fog.  For me, I have been privileged enough to make a GP BFF.  Something about our personalities just clicked immediately when we were chatting on-line.  We swear that we were separated at birth!

We are both working professionally and have chatted numerous times about the challenges of navigating Gastroparesis in the work place.  It is a very difficult situation to navigate and it helps to know that someone else is treading the water with you.  It helps to have someone know exactly what you are talking about when your brain leaves you.  It helps you to know that you are not going crazy and that so many things that now happen to your body is a result of this horrible disease.

Marie (My GP BFF) lives on the opposite coast of the country as me.  As such, we never thought that we would meet in person.  We have only ever communicated via IM and have never spoken on the phone.  Although, I can tell you that there have been more  than a handful of occasions where she has completely turned my day around.

Today was quite special.  I was flying into Washington DC to advocate for Gastroparesis and so was Marie.  In fact, we had decided to share a hotel room.  So today, we met for the first time in the Washington DC airport.  It has been a fun day of talking in person to one of the best friends a girl can have!

So as much as Gastroparesis turns your life upside down, it provides you with an opportunity to meet so many amazing people that you would have never met otherwise.  I am so thankful for the on-line support groups and for all of my GP brothers and sisters.  I hate having this disorder but am so glad that it provided me the opportunity to meet all of you.

~Millie

PS…Hey Marie!  I see you over there, you’re not just in my computer anymore!  😛

Images are Deceiving

Posted by Mildred Jane on February 27, 2013
Posted in: But you don't look sick, Energy, Gastroparesis, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , . 1 Comment

Anyone with Gastroparesis inevitably becomes a good actor/actress.  We learn how to put on the happy face and pretend that we are fine, when in reality we are not.  This has been the case for me over the past couple of days.

How I appear:

wonderwoman

vs

How I feel:

the-little-train-that-could

I am preparing for a multi-city trip which will be a combination of Gastroparesis Advocacy & a conference for my day job.  (More on these & the joys of flying with GP in blogs over the next few days.)  As I prepare for the trip, there are several items that need completed for my day job, for the advocacy work, and at home.  I must confess that I am about to reach my breaking point and keep telling myself “I think I can, I think I can”.  All the while, keeping up my appearance as Wonder Woman who can handle it all and do it with grace.

My latest tactic is not only lying to everyone else, but lying to myself that I feel fine.  I think that maybe if I pretend the burning in my stomach isn’t there that perhaps it will magically go away.  Deep down, I know that this is a horrible horrible plan and will result in a major crash.  I just keep telling myself that if I can hang on until I am safely on a plane Friday, that it will all end okay.  That somewhere over the course of the next 36 hours that I can magically finish all of these items.

Part of the reason I keep smiling is that if I tell someone just how sick I feel, they’ll tell me to slow down.  They don’t realize that if I slow down that it won’t make everything go away.  They don’t realize that it will just keep the stress of it all hanging over my head which makes it difficult to take it easy.  They don’t realize that you think this is the best way to keep from launching into a downward spiral.

Gastroparesis is a tricky thing to manage.  On one hand it is best to give in and take a rest, but the stress remains.  On the other hand it is best to rem0ve as much stress as you can, but this forces you to push your body beyond your limit.  It is a vicious cycle.

So I will do what I can.  I will continue working on a project for my day job with a hard stop at a certain time.  I’ll do some yoga to clear my mind and then go soak in some epsom salts.  All the while, trying to figure out how to put those pesky GP elves to work and do something productive!

~Millie

Did I Swallow Razor Blades?

Posted by Mildred Jane on February 26, 2013
Posted in: Gastroparesis, GERD, health, Inspiration, Life. Tagged: , , , , . 10 Comments

For the entire day I have felt like I have swallowed an entire box of razor blades.  It has felt like someone is dragging their fingernails ever so slowly down my entire esophagus.  Perhaps the GP Elves have decided to scrape off all of the wallpaper from the inside my esophagus and are making sure that the job lasts for the entire year.  Pick an analogy, any of them.  All of them would be an understatement to the extreme pain and discomfort caused by GERD.

You might be saying WOW, another acronym?! Yippie!  Whatever does it stand for?  GERD stands for Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.  It basically means an extreme version of Acid Reflux.  Think of the old movie “Twins” staring Arnold Schwarzenegger & Danny DeVito.  Normal acid reflux is Danny DeVito & GERD is Arnold Schwarzenegger.  GERD is the super sized, extreme version of Acid Reflux.

GERD leads to a lot of serious issues (on top of the normal adventures with Gastroparesis).  Simply stated, GERD erodes your esophagus.  Think of what happens to a hillside after a rain storm; part of the hillside is gone and will never come back.  This same concept is what happens to your esophagus after a boatload of acid has washed over it; part of the esophagus rips away and does not return.

When you begin to have enough rips, tears, or erosion of your esophagus you are labeled with yet another medical issue (and corresponding term).  So let’s add Esophagitis to the mix.  Now the fun part about Esophagitis is that you can achieve anywhere from a Grade A to a Grade D rating.  Thankfully I am holding steady at Grade A Esophagitis which is the least severe of the 4 ratings.

GERD & Esophagitis are extremely common in GPers.  The concept behind this is pretty simple and is best illustrated with the help of the photo below.  Gastroparesis means that our stomach is paralyzed and does not expand and contract like a normal muscle does.  This leads to any “food” that we consume to be laying in our stomach for extremely prolonged periods of time.  (This goes for liquids too.)  This creates a build up.  (Imagine the yellow food in the photo below rising all the way to the Esophagus.)  This creates very little space for acid production within the stomach, so that acid has nowhere to go but into the Esophagus.

gerd_stomach_image

Yes, I am on prescription medication to limit my acid production.  Even with my three doses per day, I still have a severe ripping sensation in my throat.  When this occurs, it means that I have to sleep sitting up to have gravity help pull the acid back down.  It is extremely difficult to sleep in this manner and usually results to not falling asleep.  This leads your brain to wonder which is dangerous for GPers.  (More on this in future blogs.)

So as I attempt to sleep sitting up, I start to feel those GP Elves ripping away at the wallpaper on my Esophagus.  When I feel the ripping, I worry that they are going to cause it to be downgraded for Grade A to Grade B.  I guess I’ll find out how much progress those elves have made next year in my Biennial Endoscopy.

~Millie

Please note…I am NOT a trained medical professional.  All medical terminology is based on the insane amount of medical research and knowledge that GPers are forced to understand (more on this in future blogs).  A formally trained medical professional should be sought out in regards to your specific medical situation & treatment plan.