Question about appetite, weakness

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BintasGirl
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Question about appetite, weakness

Postby BintasGirl » Thu Jun 21, 2007 12:39 am

Please helpl me understand what my father (in hospital with post-surgery c diff 9 weeks now) is going through. He simply cannot eat, but feels no pain or nausea. Is it flagyl or vanco that might cause this, or the disease itself, or both? We urge him to eat, but he simply can't. Nothing tempts him, yet he can't tell us exactly why. Two bites, and he's done. I see so much about Ensure and Boast on the site, so I assume this is universal. My dad is being given Boast pudding, but for some reason is on a liquid-restricted diet and doesn't get Ensure. (I get no straight answer about the liquid restriction.)
Also, he is very weak. Is this a symptom of the disease itself, or a something that develops because of lack of food? He can't stand up, and his hands are shaking uncontrollably (on Lexipro, which seems to have made this worse, but it started soon after the c diff diagnosis).

Christina
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Postby Christina » Thu Jun 21, 2007 8:18 am

It definitely could be the Flagyl. It has done the same to most of us. It can make you feel very sick and is hard to tolerate. All I could eat while on Flagyl was Ensure and Ritz crackers, literally.
The weakness could be contributed by everything. The lack of food, the Flagyl, and the C-diff. I spent most of my 17 months of C-diff laying in bed and sleeping. It does eventually get better but it can take a very long time to get to that point.
I would be persistent to get answers about his liquid diet. They must have some reason but you should be allowed to know why. One thing I have learned through C-diff is to be persistent and ask a lot of questions no matter who you annoy.

puremess
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Postby puremess » Thu Jun 21, 2007 9:57 am

flagyl kills appetite completely. I was never hungry while on it. I had to make myself eat. Plus I am sure c-diff has some kind of effect on appetite.

Nancy1
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Postby Nancy1 » Thu Jun 21, 2007 11:18 am

I don't know if your father's docs would be open to this, but Primadophilus reuteri helped me get my appetite back. Before taking it, I had no appetite on Flagyl (and had nausea) and then very little on vanco (even with no nausea). I had to force myself to eat, and could only eat small amounts. After taking it for a few days, I started to be able to eat larger amounts.

You and your dad have been through so much. He is lucky to have you. Good luck.

poltroon
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Postby poltroon » Tue Jun 26, 2007 7:46 pm

When I had c diff I had to force myself to eat a chocolate chip cookie, because I needed the calories. I remember staring at the cookie, forcing myself to put it in my mouth and chew it and swallow it. I got no pleasure out of eating it.

Today I find it impossible to believe that ever happened. :D I cannot understand it, and yet I remember it.

This would've happened when I was on vanco, not even accounting for flagyl, which I cannot tolerate - it makes me nauseous and absolutely unable to eat.

I found that while I did not want to eat and could not make decisions about what to eat, if I was instructed to eat a particular food I usually could. Moist foods were better - applesauce, fish, smoothies, etc. I got enormous help from a dietician who not only chose good foods for a c diff nursing mother, but also helped enormously by the simple act of making menus for me. I could cook just fine, I just couldn't decide what to cook.

Understand that your father is also experiencing malnutrition/hunger, because the damaged intestine is unable to properly extract nutrients from the food he is eating. So even if technically he is getting plenty of nutrients, they may not be entering his bloodstream. I was B-12 deficient, to the surprise of the doctor who was sure such a thing was impossible unless I was a vegan. I could barely stand, and sitting in a car or a noisy room exhausted me. Deciding what to wear in the morning was impossible.

I am not particularly a fan of Ensure because of its use of 'cheap' fortification and HFCS and other highly manufactured ingredients. With a damaged intestine, all vitamins need to be in their most absorbable form. However, they are mostly palatable and the basic idea of a drinkable meal is very helpful. I drank a lot of tofu-based fruit smoothies and took powdered supplements in applesauce (and pear sauce, and peach sauce, etc).

BintasGirl
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Postby BintasGirl » Tue Jun 26, 2007 10:58 pm

Thanks so much to all of you for your help. It's very hard to imagine such a complete lack of appetite, but you helped me understand what it must be like. I've got some good ideas too, and believe me, I'm going to try all of them. I'm sure vitamin deficiency is a good part of the problem with so little food going down. Alas, the dietician at the hospital doesn't seem to understand any of it. On his plate every day is pasta, pasta, pasta. He can't stand the sight of it. I've been demanding fruit, and he gets Boast pudding. I've also asked for Ensure, and hopefully he'll get that too. Wish me luck!


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