Archive for the ‘Personal Experience’ Category
Awareness: What It Means To Me
If you follow my Facebook page or you subscribe to my newsletter, you’ve probably heard that this is Digestive Tract Paralysis Awareness Week. DTPAW, I’ll call it for short, was developed by G-PACT to help spread awareness about gastroparesis and related conditions.
Spreading awareness, like everything else, means different things to different people. For some, it…
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Calling All Peanut Butter Lovers!
Peanut butter has always been one of my absolute favorite foods. Fortunately, smooth nut butters are generally GP-friendly in small amounts! I regularly include some almond or peanut butter in my daily diet, almost always at breakfast — on toast, in a smoothie, or in hot cereal — since my digestion is best in the morning…
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Declaring My Independence
Tomorrow is Independence Day, a holiday most often celebrated with picnics and barbecues. Ironically, for the 5 million of us with gastroparesis, these food-centered events will remind us that we are not independent — at least when it comes to what, when, and how we eat (or how we feel afterward).
Gastroparesis is a life-altering disease. …
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This Is Why I Love My Job (Claudia’s Success Story)
As you may know, in addition to having gastroparesis myself, I also work with others with the disease as a health and nutrition counselor. The best thing about my job is being able to truly make a difference in the way someone feels on a daily basis. I recently received an email from one…
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Gastroparesis Survey: Updated Results
Last fall, I started a gastroparesis patient survey and posted the initial findings in December. Since then another 70+ fantastic GPers have added their input, so I’ve created an updated version of the results (14 pages, complete with charts, graphs, and your advice in your own words!). While it’s not in any way a scientific…
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Birthday Reflections…And Oprah Audition!
Today’s my 29th birthday! I’m officially “almost 30″…and I couldn’t be happier about that. The last several years were difficult ones but I’m glad that I kept the faith and kept fighting. Thanks to the gastric pacemaker, health counseling, this blog, and my amazing friends and family, my life has completely turned…
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DDNC Wrap-Up (Better Late Than Never!)
I can’t believe I still haven’t shared the details of the Digestive Disease National Coalition Public Policy Forum that I attended in March. Initially, I intended to take a week to digest and absorb the experience (horrible pun) before writing about it. Somehow one week turned into two months. But better late than never, right?
Review: Orgain Meal Replacement
Like many with gastroparesis, I rely on meal replacement drinks to supplement my nutrition and increase my protein intake, especially during flare-ups. But the chemicals, fake ingredients and high sugar content have always given me pause. How nourishing can it be if there aren’t any real ingredients in it?
So I was definitely intrigued when I…
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Constipation & Pelvic Floor Dysfunction
After a 16-hour drive (in my new car, at least!), I’m back at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN.
While I will be seeing Dr. Fox for a neurostimulator check-up while I’m here, that’s not the main reason for my visit this time. I’m here for a two-week biofeedback program to address chronic constipation…
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The Cobbler’s Children Have No Shoes
Like the proverbial cobbler who is so busy providing for his customers that his own children go without shoes, I have been so focused on counseling clients, completing my schooling, and helping others manage their gastroparesis, that I temporarily lost track of managing my own. Predictably, it caught up with me.
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