I think there are more people on it for medical reasons than you realize, because until I went on it I had no idea.
I won’t go into all my boring medical problems, but I am under medical care with pretty decent doctors. I have terminal cancer, no hope of a cure, and no ability to eat solid food. The last time I ate what I consider food was May or so. It’s Ensure and Boost that will see me to the end, but when my hospice nurse told me how many of her patients are surviving on this stuff, some for years, I was amazed. I can get broth down, maybe yogurt, and up to a couple of weeks ago even watery oatmeal, but when I got below 98 pounds I had to up the Ensure to get the calories and now I’m back over 110. The end is coming, but I’m in no hurry to rush it.
So although the medical advice I’m getting is to drink the stuff, I don’t think it’s what a doctor is thrilled to be saying to the patient.
FoieGrasIsEvil, the only person I knew well with cirrhosis couldn’t get herself to kick the alcohol, with predictable results. I am so happy you’re quitting. It’s a horrible thing for a family to live through when a person can’t or won’t quit. I hate to say won’t because I can’t imagine how difficult it must be physically and mentally to just stop, but this person definitely made some, “I am not going to stop drinking” decisions during the rest of her life even as she was saying, “I’m trying to quit.”
I have a vegan friend who swears by the “power of green” or chlorophyll, and he’s recommended that I make smoothies with kale, swiss chard or other similar green leafy plants with just enough fruit (bananas, apples, etc) to counter the bitterness to make it palatable. I have some of that stuff now and plan to try it tonight or tomorrow. Thoughts?
Also, I got some tramadol today (cheap with no insurance) to see about helping my chronic back pain, and also some Avtavis 700mg 5% Lidocaine patches…and with no insurance, they were $177 for THIRTY! Why in the world are they so expensive?
I think that’s fantastic if what you need is vitamins and fiber. If what you need is calories, add a spoonful of peanut butter and a splash of olive or coconut oil and a hefty squeeze of honey.
I know, peanuts and greens sounds gross, but a million Thai people can’t be wrong.
Exactly. Ensure is better than death. But we’re not crazy about it, which is why I’m a homemade smoothie pusher, for those with the ability to make them.
My uncle was diagnosed with cirrhosis over 14 years ago, after about 25 years of very heavy drinking/smoking/overeating. His diagnosis hit him like a ton of bricks, so he was motivated to change. I don’t know if he went cold turkey or tapered off alcohol or what, but he was off it within a week -but continued to smoke for a while, but eventually gave that up too-he said giving up smoking was harder than giving up alcohol. A year later, he looked like a completely different person. He’d lost a ton of weight because he became obsessed with his diet (and was no longer consuming so many calories drinking)
-He completely gave up all fast food, which had been his main staple
-Gave up seafood, ham & red meat (he also had heart disease)
-Developed a hobby of cooking and studying recipes
Do you have a religion, support group (AA), family or friends to help? I think that makes all the difference. Get your boys involved in the recipe hunting/cooking process.
FoieGrasIsEvil, if it’s legal in your state, ask your doctor about marijuana. Many people find out an effective pain killer, and it works via a different pathway than other painkillers.
It might be disrecommended for alcoholics due to its “high”, though, I don’t know.
I’m new. I came across your post and thought I’d give you my 2 cents.
My mom was diagnosed with cirrhosis over a year ago. She had Fatty Liver disease for years and now cirrhosis secondary to NASH. Couple things I have learned through this and forgive me if anyone has already mentioned these.
There are 2 types of cirrhosis. Compensated and Decompensated. Compensated cirrhosis can be managed. Lifestyle/diet changes, regular appointments, etc. It has a way better prognosis than Decompensated. However, all Compensated cirrhosis will eventually go to Decompansated. It just about slowing it down.
READ YOUR LABS! Most places have patient portals. I suggest you get access to them if you haven’t already done so. Pay attention to your ALP (alkaline phosphatase), AST, ALT, INR, Protime, ALbumin, Sodium, Bilirubin and GFR. The first 3 are mostly liver enzymes. They will rise as cirrhosis gets worse. Your INR/Protime tells you about how your blood coagulates. Very important if you have portal hypertension. Albumin will go down and Sodium will rise as your liver gets worse. Bilirubin can rise also (this is what makes jaundice) and finally GFR. GFR is a measurement of your kidney function. Liver, kidneys and heart issues can all go hand and hand. The worse your liver is, the lower your GFR can go. Renal impairment is a classic complication. GFR should be 60+ in healthy individuals.
MELD and CP score-If the doctors don’t give you these you can find them yourself if you are armed with the above lab information. They are prognosis markers. They are not 100% so don’t read too much into them as cirrhosis has a very uneven trajectory.
Liver cancer-Very common in cirrhosis. Make sure you are being screened for possible tumors. Another lab value called CEA can detect cancer however I believe it is more common in colon cancer screenings than liver.
I’m sure I have more information in my brain and if you have questions, I may be able to answer them. My mom is getting worse each day and I’ve done extensive research into her conditions. She has colon cancer, diabetes, cirrhosis, CKD, heart failure, MS…the list is extensive however it looks like the liver is what will give out first.
I"m wondering if, like many other medical things, they are much cheaper overseas and you can order them and have them shipped.
FWIW, if you’re willing to use 4% lidocaine patches, they are much cheaper on amazon and other stores. They go for $1-2 a patch there. I’m wondering if lidocaine goes from OTC to Rx at 5%. I believe the salonpas contain 560mg lidocaine per patch, compared to 700mg per patch for the 5% (which makes sense).
On the topic of lidocaine cream, walmart generic 4% is $5 for a 76g bottle. So you’d assume that is about 3040mg lidocaine per bottle. You’d need to apply a ton of that shit to get relief (a quarter of the bottle to equal a single 5% patch), and its really not much cheaper than the 4% salonpas patches which offer 560mg lidocaine per $1.20 patch.
I wonder if a person can apply 4% lidocaine cream, and then a 4% lidocaine patch. I have no idea if that works or not or if thats a bad idea.
Penzey’s sells a lot of salt-free spices. You can see them here. Just click on the “Salt Free” tag.
In my experience, starchy foods are hard to make palatable without salt. Things like potatoes, pasta, beans, etc. taste really flat. I generally avoid them most of the time.
Emmental (a type of Swiss cheese) and high-moisture mozzarella are relatively low in sodium. Most other cheeses are pretty high. Cottage cheese is surprisingly high in sodium.
Of course, you’ll have to read nutrition facts labels. It’s the best way to know how much sodium is in various foods. It can hide in a lot of things; for example, a lot of frozen seafood has salt added to it (why is beyond me). Almost everything canned has a lot of salt.
It’s pretty easy to find canned tomatoes without salt, but again, you’ll have to read the labels. Pomi is one of my favorite brands (their products are boxed, not canned). The ingredients list on many Pomi products consists of one word: “Tomatoes.”
Trader Joe’s sells a marinara sauce with no added salt. Some of their salsas are fairly low in sodium, although you’ll have to read the nutrition facts labels to find them. They have a frozen mixed vegetables with butter sauce product that’s also fairly low.
About pain killers: be careful with ibuprofen, especially if you’re taking high doses or are on a blood pressure medication. My dad suffered kidney damage from taking 600 mg of ibuprofen for hip pain along with what I think was lisinopril for blood pressure. All NSAIDs can be hard on the kidneys, and you don’t need kidney problems along with your liver problems.