to Marivic

[Guest guest]

Hi Marivic,

Yes, I have a Groshong. I am on 12 hours; off 12 hours. I have

never done this before. I am glad that it might settle the pancreas

down.

I flush before hooking up and after taking it down.

Without prying, why have you been on TPN for 10 months? I don't

know how long I will be on it. Lugging that backpack around when it

is filled is heavy.

Would like to hear more about your experience with the TPN.

I am so hoping that this settles Mrs. P down.

Pat

[Guest guest]

Hi Pat,

I had the same problem as you. Anything I put in my mouth would sent me to the

hospital, even water. Nothing was working including the oxycodone and fentanyl

patches. So the doctors finally decided to put the catheter after one of my cp

attacks.I was on 24 hour TPN for about 3-4 weeks. It was heaven since I had no

pain...sometimes there would be a few twitches here and there but nothing

major.If I had my choice, I would rather not eat anymore. They slowly started to

shorten the hours ( 22,18,12 and then 10) and asked me to start with a liquid

diet. Again the cp attacks came so we really had to do everything slowly...a

teaspoon of liquid, then after 15 minutes, another teaspoon. Then it graduated

to 2 teaspoons...and so on. Right now, I still have the catheter and half of my

original TPN. Once in a while, I can eat some real food with the help of Kadian

and morphine sulfate. After 10 months the only thing that bothers me the most is

the smell. I bought a camel pack ( backpacks used by

cyclists for their water) and the TPN bag fits perfectly. Do you put

multivitamins and Famotidine in your TPN? The famotidine lowers the acid made by

the stomach even if you are not eating. Just remember to start eating slowly or

else you will end in step one again. Also, flush in between the 12 hours you

don't have your TPN to keep the line work perfectly Do you also use a hydration

bag? Since I don't drink that much because of the pain, I also infuse 1000 ml of

sodium chloride in the red connector. All I need is to gain weight and I can

have this discontinued. I know it is quite a hassle to be connected but it

really helps.

There are some tricks I have learned dealing with the catheter and hope you can

use it. Instead of a sock that has been cut off at the ends, just get a wrist

band from a sport store. I got the ones used for tennis and it prevents the

connectors from flopping around and they look pretty too. I was also able to get

a cast cover for the arm so I can shower with no problem.

Anyway, hope I made things easier for you.

Marivic

pmgerman2003 wrote:

Hi Marivic,

Yes, I have a Groshong. I am on 12 hours; off 12 hours. I have

never done this before. I am glad that it might settle the pancreas

down.

I flush before hooking up and after taking it down.

Without prying, why have you been on TPN for 10 months? I don't

know how long I will be on it. Lugging that backpack around when it

is filled is heavy.

Would like to hear more about your experience with the TPN.

I am so hoping that this settles Mrs. P down.

Pat