Today Nadia received another platelet transfusion. Thank You Donors!
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I started making smoothies for Nadia just after she was diagnosed. We knew she needed a BMT and I wanted a way to fatten her up before transplants as I knew there was a high probability that she would not be eating throughout it and probably have a feeding tube. Thankfully she has been eating like a champ and has maintained her weight so far.
This is not the norm for BMT patients. Most patients heading into a BMT have had months if not years of chemo and their mucus membranes are raw and sore and riddled with sores, so eating and swallowing are painful.
Everyday we are thankful Nadia has had none of these issues.
Nadia’s smoothies usually consist of frozen fruit, juice, and the fattest plain greek yogurt I can find. Well when you are going thru a BMT there are HUGE food restrictions and preparations are HUGE, to the point of exhausting, and we haven’t even left the hospital yet. Nadia’s poor fruit smoothie has morphed into something that isn’t what it use to be.
I have to microwave the frozen fruits so that it is heated thru, to ensure I kill all if any bacteria or fungus. I then have to place the freshly warmed fruit back into the freezer to cool down. And before I do all of this, I have to wash down the counter top and anything I am using with special kill-all wipes, I have to wear gloves when I use these suckers or eventually my skin will melt away (ok that MAY be an exaggeration, but i do have to wear gloves) after this i place everything in the blender, making sure I have measured out everything so that it is correctly recorded onto her nutrition sheet so the dietician can calculate her calories to make sure she is getting enough. We write down every morsel of food on these things to ensure that it is all counted so that we can keep the NG tube away. ‘A morsel a day keeps the NG away’ we always say. HA!
anyhow, after preparing all of this, something that used to take, 5 min, now has expanded to 20 min, and keep in mind, Nadia has to consume things within 2 hrs of it being prepared/opened or out it goes.
So I present Nadia with these smoothies like a crowning motherhood achievement, usually super excited that this is the most meal preparation I have done for her since checking into Hotel BCCH, and she rewards me with a few sips out of the giant mixture I made her, and in true 2 yr old fashion puts it down and doesn’t go back to it! BHAAAAA! I then spend the next 2 hr time limit trying to force feed it to her. But she drank 3 sips of it.
Fortunately today she drank it all!
Take that NG tube! Hy-ya!
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