to Kara

[Guest guest]

Dear Kara,

What you will learn to do that works best is to just take one day at a

time. I realize that with your education and semester commitments you

have to take a required amount within a particular timeframe, but from

now on, take only those classes that you feel won't overload you, or

combine the easy with the hard so that you aren't totally wiped out

each semester.

It's been a very, very long time since I was in college, so maybe some

of what I'm advising may not be possible, but I think you know what I

mean, and can adjust your next semester's schedule so that it's more

suitable for your needs. Go for the minimum number of credits per

semester other than the max. It may take you longer to get your

degree, but then you'll not be overloaded and stressed out trying to

keep up, and getting sick and losing time in class as a result.

Remember that stress can bring on a pancreatitis attack - so avoid it

at all costs!

Go back and talk to whoever's responsible for your having that great

part time job, explain your health situation, and beg for it back.

You'll find that once you're under good treatment, on the right diet

and meds to help with the pain, that your reliability for 15 hours a

week will be possible.

As for knowing what you need to know about how to care for yourself

with CP in regard to your diet, what you need to remember is low fat.

If you click on the " Files " section on the PAI yahoo website main

page, it will take you to another page where close to the bottom is a

file called, " Nutrition " . Click on " Nutrition " , and it will take you

to a folder called " Diet Tips " or something like that. It's a full

page of diet advice and cooking tips that I wrote that will tell you

all you need to know at this time about what to eat and how to fix it.

You'll probably find better advice and help there than you would from

a doctor. Keep your daily intake below 25 grams of fat and I doubt

that you'll have many problems. Don't eat three large meals a day,

try several smaller snacks or mini-meals, several times a day, with no

more than 6 fat grams per meal, and you'll find that it greatly

reduces your pain levels.

As for the ADD and dealing with your morning responsibilities at home

with your son, MAKE A LIST of everything that needs to be done, or

that you need to remind your son to do each morning, and post it by

your exit door. Take the time before you open the door to leave, to

look at that list and check off everything on it. I have to do this

myself now. I used to be the most organized person, storing

everything I needed to do in my head, and then just doing it. There's

no way I can do that now, if I don't have THE LIST, I'll forget half

of what was on it!!

Kara, dealing with CP can be very hard and frustrating at time, not to

mention the pain, nausea, problems eating, problems not eating, etc.

And as it progresses, new problems crop up. The progression is so

very different in each of us, that it's difficult to put any kind of

timeframe that one would use to expect what will happen, and when. I

hate to use myself as any kind of an example, because I went from " A "

to " Z " in such a record breaking amount of time that my case was no

way near the norm. Yet you will find that changes will come along the

way, and it will be your own inner strength that will make the biggest

difference it how you handle it, what you learn from it, and what you

learn that will help you deal with the next change. You'll get advice

from family and friends all along the way, and you'll find tremendous

help and support from within this support group, but in the end, it

will really be all up to your inner strength and your attitude as to

how you let it affect your life.

Truthfully, this last post showed me an entirely different side of you

that I didn't see in your earlier post, and it's shown me that you DO

have the strength and level headedness that it's going to take. You

were calm and determined, not frazzled and despondent like before. I

know you'll manage to do what you need to, and I hope that the doctor

you're seeing at the end of the month will be one that can make

everything better for you.

In the meantime, keep us updated with what you're doing, and how

you're feeling, and please let us know what more we can do to help.

Even though it's raining here, I know that somewhere else, the sun

shines brightly! You go, girl!

With love, hope and prayers,

Heidi

Heidi H. Griffeth

www.pancassociation.org/anthology#Heidi.html

Bluffton, SC

SC State & SE Regional Representative

Pancreatitis Association, International

Note: All comments or advice are personal opinion only, and should

not be substituted for professional medical consultation.