Guest guest Posted May 30, 2012 Report Share Posted May 30, 2012 Hi Leisha and Dorothy - Thank you both for the information - I guess I didn't think speech pathologist when worrying about the food issues. I will certainly look for one to guide us now. God bless, Judy > ** > > > Hi Judy, > > Was the puree diet recommended by a speech pathologist that evaluated her? > If so I’d ask for another visit and evaluation for where she is at this > point. If not, I would be sure to have her evaluated by a qualified SP for > her swallowing abilities. A mechanical soft diet might be easier for her > to manage than total puree. There are many mechanisms involved that have > to work properly together to effect a swallow and often it’s a matter of > getting the right consistency that fits where the person is. If she can’t > swallow puree she might do better with a modified soft diet or something > else entirely. I would recommend seeing a qualified speech pathologist who > has some experience with Parkinson’s swallowing issues and have an > evaluation done and enough visits following up that your mother’s > swallowing > issues are addressed as much as possible and everyone who has anything to > do > with her feeding is properly “trained” and educated. We had to do this > three times with my mil and all three times it worked wonderfully. Insist > on a in person visit – not some phone consultation. It also helped with my > mil that we prepared food that was tasty and matched what she had liked as > much as could be possibly done. For instance she liked cooked sticky rice > but couldn’t manage it anymore so we did the cauliflower puree to make a > sauce, twice cooked the rice so it was much softer and easy to eat and > added > a little of the cauliflower puree so it acted as a soft binding agent to > hold it together so she could chew and swallow. I made batches of > cauliflower puree and kept a jar in the fridge and the rest in the freezer. > I melted cheese in it to put with her mashed potato which she enjoyed a > lot. > I still have a video we made of one of the part time caregivers feeding my > mil – with the SP explaining the steps. We made it as a guideline for other > caregivers that came. I used it many times. > > Once you have a good evaluation from a speech pathologist they should > provide you with detailed guidelines of what kind of diet to have her on > and > suggestions of types of foods and methods to prepare them. They can also > refer you to a registered dietician who will help make sure she gets proper > nutritional support with the change of diet. > > We were cautioned against changing to puree diet by her doctor without this > consult and very glad we followed his advice. > > The speech pathologist my mil had was wonderful – she explained everything > about how a swallow happens etc. She also had us sing with her because it > strengthens the muscles that are needed for swallowing. My mil was able to > chew just a little but swallow a soft diet (not pureed or liquid) up until > she stopped eating and passed peacefully. > > Good luck, I hope you are able to get a good SP to help! J > > -Dorothy > > From: LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', > 'LBDcaregivers%40yahoogroups.com');> [mailto:LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'LBDcaregivers%40yahoogroups.com');> > ] > On Behalf Of care12345 > Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2012 7:02 AM > To: LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', > 'LBDcaregivers%40yahoogroups.com');> > Subject: Keeping food in the mouth > > Hi friends, > My mom has started to keep food in her mouth for quite a while before > swallowing. She can no longer feed herself and is on a purée diet. > Is this a prelude to swallowing issues ? > Any guidance or thoughts are appreciated. > Thanks, > Judy > > -- > Sent from Gmail Mobile > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 31, 2012 Report Share Posted May 31, 2012 Judy, I'm glad you are looking for a speech pathologist. Dorothy's advice is great. (Haven't read Leisha's yet.) I do want to add one thing. Mom was sometimes on a mechanical soft diet and sometimes on a regular diet. While in the nursing home, the SP tested her on a regular basis and when I requested it after noticing what I considered a problem. Mom liked the mechanical soft diet, as did a couple of her dinner companions. As all of the food was still separated (instead of blended as some might do) they still had the pleasure of the taste of each of the foods but didn't have to struggle to swallow. Mom would " pocket " her food in her cheeks, looking for all the world like a squirrel. I was there for many of her dinner times and when I saw that she was starting to do this, I would encourage her to drink more, often by just handing her the glass. It's hard (but not impossible) to keep food in your cheek when you are drinking. The nursing home did like to have people on regular diets as much as possible, so when it appeared that Mom could handle it, she got her food whole. And in a few days started to have trouble again, requiring me to ask for another evaluation and then back on mechanical soft. And overcooked vegetables. Al dente is harder to swallow. Hope this helps! Kate > Hi Leisha and Dorothy - > Thank you both for the information - I guess I didn't think speech > pathologist when worrying about the food issues. > I will certainly look for one to guide us now. > God bless, > Judy > > > > > ** > > > > > > Hi Judy, > > > > Was the puree diet recommended by a speech pathologist that evaluated > her? > > If so I’d ask for another visit and evaluation for where she is at this > > point. If not, I would be sure to have her evaluated by a qualified SP > for > > her swallowing abilities. A mechanical soft diet might be easier for her > > to manage than total puree. There are many mechanisms involved that have > > to work properly together to effect a swallow and often it’s a matter of > > getting the right consistency that fits where the person is. If she can’t > > swallow puree she might do better with a modified soft diet or something > > else entirely. I would recommend seeing a qualified speech pathologist > who > > has some experience with Parkinson’s swallowing issues and have an > > evaluation done and enough visits following up that your mother’s > > swallowing > > issues are addressed as much as possible and everyone who has anything to > > do > > with her feeding is properly “trained” and educated. We had to do this > > three times with my mil and all three times it worked wonderfully. Insist > > on a in person visit – not some phone consultation. It also helped with > my > > mil that we prepared food that was tasty and matched what she had liked > as > > much as could be possibly done. For instance she liked cooked sticky rice > > but couldn’t manage it anymore so we did the cauliflower puree to make a > > sauce, twice cooked the rice so it was much softer and easy to eat and > > added > > a little of the cauliflower puree so it acted as a soft binding agent to > > hold it together so she could chew and swallow. I made batches of > > cauliflower puree and kept a jar in the fridge and the rest in the > freezer. > > I melted cheese in it to put with her mashed potato which she enjoyed a > > lot. > > I still have a video we made of one of the part time caregivers feeding > my > > mil – with the SP explaining the steps. We made it as a guideline for > other > > caregivers that came. I used it many times. > > > > Once you have a good evaluation from a speech pathologist they should > > provide you with detailed guidelines of what kind of diet to have her on > > and > > suggestions of types of foods and methods to prepare them. They can also > > refer you to a registered dietician who will help make sure she gets > proper > > nutritional support with the change of diet. > > > > We were cautioned against changing to puree diet by her doctor without > this > > consult and very glad we followed his advice. > > > > The speech pathologist my mil had was wonderful – she explained > everything > > about how a swallow happens etc. She also had us sing with her because it > > strengthens the muscles that are needed for swallowing. My mil was able > to > > chew just a little but swallow a soft diet (not pureed or liquid) up > until > > she stopped eating and passed peacefully. > > > > Good luck, I hope you are able to get a good SP to help! J > > > > -Dorothy > > > > From: LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', > > 'LBDcaregivers%40yahoogroups.com');> [mailto: > LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', 'LBDcaregivers% > 40yahoogroups.com');> > > ] > > On Behalf Of care12345 > > Sent: Wednesday, May 30, 2012 7:02 AM > > To: LBDcaregivers <javascript:_e({}, 'cvml', > > 'LBDcaregivers%40yahoogroups.com');> > > Subject: Keeping food in the mouth > > > > Hi friends, > > My mom has started to keep food in her mouth for quite a while before > > swallowing. She can no longer feed herself and is on a purée diet. > > Is this a prelude to swallowing issues ? > > Any guidance or thoughts are appreciated. > > Thanks, > > Judy > > > > -- > > Sent from Gmail Mobile > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You are posting as a guest. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.