Here are some personal hints and tips that G collected in dealing with her illness.
Eating & Nutrition
One of the biggest problems that cirrhosis patients face is malnutrition. Fatigue, nausea, pressure from ascites and the general decline that cirrhosis patients face make getting the proper nutrition difficult.
Here's what I do:
Watermelon: A small bite of cold watermelon seems to help settle my stomach.
Ensure, Boost and Glucerna (for diabetics) help replace nutrients. Freeze for a frozen yogurt texture.
Try several very small meals per day.
Try to eat low fat foods, fat is harder to digest, I am not a vegetarian but I do try to increase my fresh fruit and vegetables.
Remember to prevent or reduce ascites you must follow a low sodium diet 2,000 mg per day.
The Mayo clinic has some pretty good recipes. (See the "Links" section.)
When I first started I put 1 tsp of salt in a small container, when it was empty I was done.
1 Tsp of salt averages 2,300mg of sodium.
Itching
_ The itching associated with liver disease can be maddening!
"The etiology of pruritus associated with liver diseases is unclear and often nonresponsive to conventional therapies with agents such as bile-acid sequestering resins. Grapefruits contain flavonoids which have been shown to inhibit cytochrome P-450 enzymes. Furthermore, various beneficial effects of grapefruits for individuals with chronic liver disease have been found. Patients with pruritus due cholestasis, poorly responsive to other therapies, were given 600 mL grapefruit juice daily. All patients noted relief of pruritis within 24-48 hours of ingestion, however, symptoms returned after discontinuation of grapefruit juice administration. This finding suggests that grapefruit juice may have prurigenic properties that may be useful in the treatment of cholestasis- induced pruritus, although further studies will need to be conducted to confirm this intriguing finding."
Check your meds first. Some have warnings about grapefruit juice.
Keep Information Handy
_ Keep copies of ALL test results. You have a legal right to them but the facility can charge you for copies. These are important. Liver disease is a long road and you may see many different doctors and make several different hospital trips. Having copies of test results help prevent delays and can be life saving.The results also help when applying for disability.
Here's what I do: I keep 2 binders
The first one is "My medical records" In this I keep copies of every thing I have ever had done. I keep them in order from most recent to the oldest. I take this with me every time I see a doctor If they wish copies of anything I let them make copies but I keep the originals.
The second one Is for emergencies I keep copies of recent labs, all medications, contact information for my doctors, allergy information and such in this one. There is also a section that says what I do not want done, especially without contact with my hepatologist. My family just has to grab it if I have to go to the hospital.
I also chart my labs on a table where I can watch for trends.