Having Gastroparesis - by Guest Blogger Diana Schaffer

Having Gastroparesis (GP) makes you change everything you do. It makes you think twice about everything. Will this meal cause too much pain? Will the bloating get so bad I can’t move? Will this outing use up too much of the precious energy I have?

I’ve had GP for nine years, at least, and have seen most of the phases with the exception of the feeding tubes. My weight has gone up (baffling my docs) and down, swinging each way by about 50 lbs each time.

Gone from solid foods, to pureed, to liquids, and started the whole cycle over.

The past couple of weeks have seen a return of worsening symptoms. Being unable to eat thanks to the nausea worsening and the return of the pain, I lost 15 lbs in one week and another 5 in a little over a week. Now, while you may be thinking that’s great, just think about not being able to eat, being nauseated all the time, being in serious pain every time you eat anything.

There are some bright points to this condition and how my body deals with it. The fact that my body tends to gain instead of lose weight unlike so many others with it is like my own little insurance policy. I call it my “jiggle” room against needing interventions like a feeding tube or IV nutrition. Plus, I’ve met some AMAZING people over the course of the 3 yeas since being diagnosed.