I had such a shock...disbelief actually...when some bright spark in the hospital told me I was suffering from malnutrition and was rapidly fading away...so she sent for the dietician and before the poor girl had a chance to sit herself down I asked would she ever go on a hunt for a footstool 'cos my legs were swelling up and I was terrified the Doctor wouldn't let me home with fat legs...
She found one in a cupboard, she said and so I said thank you ever so much and she perched on the edge of my bed and put her feets on my footstool...I thought that was a bit rude, but I didn't say so...I had to edge my feets over a bit to make room for hers...she had an enormous sheaf of papers about what to eat when you haven't any appetite.
Scones with lashings of butter and jam...rice pudding with dried milk stirred in...yo-gerts with a spoonful of cream...well...I thought that was quite silly. What about all that fat I said? Never mind the fat she said...you're underweight and need to plump up...like a pillow, I said brightly. She gave me a withering look and heaved a heavy sigh...
I pointed out the hospital food was foul and virtually inedible and where would I be getting scones with lashings of butter and jam while I was at the mercy of the kitchens...the old lady in the next bed piped up and said...'she's right you know...that stew was all lumps and it was cold' then she closed her eyes and went back to sleep again...
What's your favourite food she asked...Pasta, I said...pasta might be difficult for the kitchens she replied...so I said I'd wait until I went home and then I'd eat...
I didn't tell her Himself was bringing me those ready to eat pasta pots from Tesco when he came in...the cold ones,with olives and tuna and such like.
Now Francis...the chef...he wore a tall white chefs hat...he was an absolute dote, but he couldn't quite grasp that I didn't eat meat and he was forever concocting something he thought I'd eat...his piece de résistance was a vegetarian lasagne which looked like nothing on earth...a sort of splodge in the middle of the plate...it did taste better than it looked actually and I made the grave mistake of telling him it was lovely...even though I'd only eaten a little bit. So he produced that the following evening...and the one after that...'it was easier to make than I thought' he said 'and you said you enjoyed it so I didn't think you'd mind having the same tonight'
Poor Francis...I wondered what his previous job had been...a meter reader perhaps? a porter maybe? But he used to give me extra packets of sugar to have with my cups of tea and he'd wait until the nurses were doing the changeover and bring me and another lady hot toast...sidling into the ward sideways and looking decidedly shifty...he left the plates on our lockers...then he'd come back with an extra cup of tea. The other patients were either fast asleep or quite ga-ga so they never knew about our extra treats.
I did follow the five small meals or snacks a day for quite a while until I slipped back into not bothering...I'd honestly thought that giving up smoking and sitting about all day would have piled the pounds on...but not so...I'm still having to hitch my trousers up 'cos they're loose and can't wear my finger rings because they just fall off...
If you also suffer from a loss of appetite, how do you cope with it? Have you had advice from a dietician...and if you have...was it worthwhile do you think...
When you are under weight all the rules go out of the door.
Any liquid food, soups, stews pot noodles, even tea and coffee, fortify with full cream dried milk, a couple of large spoonfuls.
Another one mentioned was eat the rainbow, different coloured veg.
Good excuse for cream cakes and chocolate .
Just rember to cut back as your weight improves.
Oh vashti you must eat and put some weight on please. We can't have our ace story teller suffering from malnutrition you know!
The trouble with not eating enough is that your stomach shrinks and it is difficult to force yourself to eat when you are not hungry. But you must make yourself otherwise your health could be in danger and you won't be able to fight off infection. Having 5 small meals a day is a good idea as you must increase the size of your stomach. If it's too much trouble how about one of those high calorie drinks like Complan or Ensure? You can just sip those throughout the day. You should be able to get them on prescription. My mother, though a lot older than you of course, had the same problem but she did like the Ensure and there are lots of flavours. I tried them and they are quite nice. But please do something vashti. xx
The will to live and attitude of mind me may have an effect on appetite?
We all need goals and to look ahead for good times. Also appreciate what we have
And who we are and what we stand for.
I for one am having a life of fighting a law system where my x partner and his greedy lawyer will happily lie through their teeth just to get their way. I am unable to attend the court and I had a choc teapot for a solicitor who did not want a solution but to continue
The arguements. There is no moral fibre anymore. I am cutting my losses hoping that my X has warts on the end of his nose. Paying the Solicitors. I am a 'cash flow' to them so why should the Lawyers seek law and order. Let's hope the reporting of this particular crooked Solicitor gets his full comeuppance!
Hopefully this year a resolve....but I am exercising my body, mind and soul and shall keep positive. Wish everyone on here a very Happy New year and hope 2015 will be kind to you!
Please make the effort to eat, even if it's only small amounts throughout the day. I'm a bit concerned though because I'm not sure whether you are writing about a past event or whether you are actually in hospital now? If you are, it's even more important that you eat as much as possible so you can get home to "proper" food as soon as possible. Please take lots of care of yourself. xx
Oh dear Vashti, have you tried those build up drinks? Vanilla's my favourite, they are really good for putting on weight and have all the vitamins and nutriants we need, just a thought! Love Kin Xx
Morning Vashti, I found your post very worrying,does this mean you are now in hospital,or something that happened in the past, I do hope it's the later and that you have overcome the problem of not having any appetite, your posts are so entertaining,it's difficult to be sure if you are always being serious, Please let us all know. Very concerned about you and himself, Bulipt
Read your story Vashti, recall my mum saying once she said she like something she got it everyday. Seriously though you must get into a good habit of eating, little and often is the best way till your weight goes back up. Being underweight is just as bad as being overweight, so you need to reach a happy medium if possible. High protein is probably good but it's difficult if you are a none meat eater. I understand as my granddaughter and a friend or two are vegetarian. When I was on a low fat diet I was told to drink extra milk to keep my weight level, skimmed of course. Do you eat pulses? they are high in protein. Can they not prescribe you Fortisip till you regain some weight. ? Nuts are high in protein as is cheese.Hot warming soups are good for moral and can be made with any ingredients, soooooo easy to digest too. Hope the weight improves soon xx
I am not underweight but have had a big weight loss recently. Like you, following on from PR, I eat small snack type meals. I was sent to the dietician and told to get onto full fat cheese, cream and "super" Milk....which is full fat milk with two heaped spoonfulls of dried milk added....They have got to be joking. After all these years of living off reduced fat foods and fully skimmed milk, I just chuck up at the very thought of their super piggin milk. What gets my appetite back? Nothing really. I eat what I want, when I want....not too many vegs now and I find modern fruit tasteless and boring, unless I make a fruit cocktail and put a jug of it covered in Pymms No1 with lemonade in the fridge. I tend to eat something that I have always said no to...ready meals. The portion sizes are just enough...too much sometimes....I use the info on the box and if todays is slightly high in salt, I make sure that tomorrows isn't...that sort of thing. The one thing I have really started to enjoy is fresh fish. It looks expensive but the cost for a decent portion for two is low, there is no waste, it's never tough or fatty like meat can be...yes, fish it is. Nothing with it though. A small cod steak, rolled in breadcrumbs, cooked to perfection and eaten with a slice of bread and butter. The reason it's cooked to perfection is because you aren't waiting to serve up spuds, peas, etc....just in the pan, gently fried in One Cal, turned once and onto the plate...about £2.50 a portion.
Hi vashti. I went through a similar thing when I was in hospital in 2013 after my oesphadectomy I didn't want to eat no appetite at all. I was a skinny Minnie to begin with, all I wanted was coca cola
Anyway this pompous 18 year old dietician kept berating me about drinking coke and not eating the rubbery hospital food, but soon as got home my appetite slowly came back (soups, milkshakes etc) it will for you too, by the way I'm still a bit of skinny minny, I eat well now and so will you vashti all blessings,
I started loosing weight quickly earlier this year and was sent to see a Dietician (why are they always young and slim) she told me to eat lots of cheese, full fat milk, chocolates, biscuits, bread in fact anything that you would not eat if you were dieting, (cheese gives me indigestion, full fat milk makes me feel sick and I don't like sweet things). She also gave me fortisip drinks which were horrible I tried every flavour and in every way they made it, it made me feel sick and tasted of iron.
Then I had pseudomonas and lost even more weight 3stone in all, couldn't eat a thing I went down to 7st and it has took me about 3 months to get my appetite anything like normal. I do enjoy my meals now but can't eat to excess so I just eat what I want when I want.
I have not put any weight back on or lost any more , there are days when I am too tired to cook at all and just have a bag of crisps and some bread and butter but I am not worrying about it because I am feeling much better in myself now.
Just take it slowly have what you want, try not to worry.
Polly
Hi Vashti,
I so love your stories and I am sorry that with so little appetite you have been subjected in addition to. hospital grot. I have read all of the advice from other members, which is all very good but unfortunately there are some of us for whom none of it works. I amnot a vegetarianbut my vegie closefriend constantly struggles to keep her weight down. I eat little and often, force myself to cook, eat full fat everything, have had numerous energy drinks, been given special drinks and food grown and made by my dear Jamaican friends, eat cakes, boxed meals - aarrrgggh. None of it works and I have to face snide comments about my skinnyness, or concerned observations that I have lost weight again. Having bronchiectasis rather than COPD I have no access to dietitians etc, which is probably no loss. If you find the answer please let me know, meanwhile, cheer yourself up with the silly thought that you are the envy of all of those fatties who hoover foodup their noses at a rate of knots and when you see something you fancy, eat it! Much love and Happy New Year.
So sorry to hear you are in hospital! Hope you survive the lack of food!
I lost weight when I had cancer and did not put any on until recently when I have been forced by my COPD to be less active. Unfortunately it is all going on the wrong place....my abdomen/tummy. I cannot do any tummy reducing exercises that I know of. Maybe a bit of research on you tube will bring results.
During my only hospitalisation for an exacerbation, which was in UK and for eight days, I survived on the odd sandwich and some biscuits. Next time (in Spring/Summer) when we go over to the UK I will have oxygen and a rescue pack with me, so here's hoping!
When I had a stay in ICU for 32 days I was fed for most of that with a tube up my nose into my stomach! it was not until I was near to leaving ICU I noticed I did not have any food on a plate given me? I managed to ask a nurse why don't I have any food like the rest? and she pointed up to the many bottles and boxes with tubes going in and out of me and said that box is you Lunch I will be coming with dinner later? I was a pro-biotic fluid. As a result I lost 3.5 stone in a little over a month. My first meal when I had the trachi removed with all the other tubes was double Bacon, Sausages, Beans and tomatoes ( As I wrote this the taste sensation just flooded back) I was given a high calorie diet that would of kept a sportsman happy but did put the weight back on and on and on I am afraid! When You get to ideal it is best to stop?
I may be able to offer some advice? May I ask are you able to walk up a flight of stairs? And do your ankles swell? Finally please list what you currently eat and drink through an average day?
it is still my biggest problem...eating,some days could not even take my tabs,one day it took all day to try and eat a small roll,gave up in the end ...and eat a bag of chocs.
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