After seeing the Specialists with the Gastroparesis Clinic at Allegheny General I have to say I was left disappointed and frustrated. I had such high hopes that they were going to provide me with answers and tell me what to do to not feel so damn sick all the time. Instead I was told that I was not getting enough calories or protein. Well no shit! When I eat, even if it's only a few bites, I end up so sick for days. It was interrupting my personal life, my work life, my relationships with family and friends and especially with my boyfriend. I was missing an excessive amount of work. I was missing social functions with friends because I was just too sick to leave the house. My boyfriend even though he was trying to be as supportive as he could was getting frustrated with me. This was affecting everything!
I can not blame the Gastroparesis Clinic completely, it is just the nature of GP. Unfortunately there is no one plan of treatment that will work for everyone. There are different degrees of GP and not all GPers (people who have Gastroparesis) have the same symptoms. This disorder seems to vary quite a bit from person to person. The clinic appointment was an all day affair. While there I met with a GI Specialist, a Psychologist, a Nutritionist and a Dietitian. The GI Specialist seemed to think my GP was due to my Diabetes which would mean that I would probably have this for the rest of my life. The Nutritionist however believed my GP was caused by a virus which would mean that it may go away someday. Of course I'm rooting for the Nutritionist to be right!
Without going into too much detail, the doctors were very thorough in evaluating my individual case. I would recommend if you have Gastroparesis and are in or near the Pittsburgh area to give the Gastroparesis Clinic with Allegheny General Hospital a chance. They all looked at my test results and the journals I brought with me which reflected what I was "eating" and my daily symptoms. My biggest complaints were severe diarrhea, incessant nausea, extreme bloating, gas and vomiting. So they felt that the caffeine I was in-taking was a big contributor to my diarrhea issues. Turns out they were right. I drink a lot of homemade ice tea, so I started making it half decaf and half regular.
The Psychologist felt that part of my issues were stress related and offered some holistic alternatives such as Hypnotherapy, Bio-Feedback, Meditation and I'm sure there were others that I am just not recalling right now. I initially saw her every three weeks for awhile starting with the Hypnotherapy and it really helped me to feel better. Unfortunately the trips to get there did not. I had to discontinue the appointments because I got so stressed every time I had to make that dreaded trip into Pittsburgh that it defeated the good the appointment would do for me. The Psychologist was Barbara Jean Nagrant, PhD and she was wonderful. Too bad she wasn't closer to me. I am horrible with directions and do not know my way around Pittsburgh AT ALL. This results in full blown anxiety attacks for me which also made all my symptoms flare up. This was a 4 hour round trip for a one hour appointment. It was a no brainer to stop the appointments, but if you are near or in the Pittsburgh area I highly recommend her. She did however give me a copy of a daily meditation CD by Belleruth Naparstek. I have since purchased additional meditation CD's by Belleruth Naparstek.
Although they offered some good advice, the bottom line was it was up to me to figure out how to take in more calories and protein without getting sick. So I have taken a proactive approach and have formulated my own personalized Comprehensive Management Plan which I talk about in another post.
No comments:
Post a Comment