Eating is one of the simple pleasures of life, and that I like. Although there are some foods I would not, I have my favorites, and the thought of a good steak or a bowl apricot curry chicken begins my mouth watering. Eating for me, however, is not only on taste.
I get a lot of pleasure to feel the texture of various foods in my mouth and juices that result when I chew. My ability to chew and swallow any type of food is something I took for granted ?? but not more.
My husband, Brian, had a difficult time swallowing food due to mesothelioma complications. A tumor developed in his neck and pressed against his esophagus, narrowing of the opening and making it impossible for him to swallow anything but liquids.
Making Brian received the nutrition he needed was important to me. I accomplished this by providing a combination of pureed meat and vegetables every day.
Mashed Foods
After processing the food that way, it does not look nearly as appetizing as it was once, but Brian kept his sense humor throughout the ordeal.
I remember that I had cooked a big pot of ground beef and spaghetti and mashed part for him. As I handed over, I said, "Well, it's spag bog for you tonight," and he laughs. Later, we agreed that there was not much else he could have done under the circumstances, and laughter was better than crying.
Since pureed soups were more pleasing to the palette of Brian, I took advantage of this by a variety of cooking them and freeze portions for convenience. One of his favorites was a hearty concoction of ham (off the stem), split peas, potatoes, carrots and onions. Another was a lighter mixture of sweet chicken and corn.
Although I knew that these soups contained a lot of meat and vegetables, they do not include all the vitamins and minerals that Brian needed. I made sure he received through the regular intake of Ensure, a liquid meal replacement doctor recommended.
The supplement has the consistency of a milkshake and contains vitamins, minerals, proteins, carbohydrates and lipids necessary requirements for injury recovery and prevention of malnutrition. It comes in chocolate and vanilla. You can mix the other ingredients to vary the flavor.
sneaking into a Taste of Solid Food
One day he came to me that I could help Brian to experience the pleasure of tasting and chewing his favorite foods again. After all, there was nothing wrong with his mouth or teeth. The problem swallowing.
In this spirit, I cooked a piece of medium rare steak ?? just the way he liked it.
I asked him to take a bite, but not to swallow it. I then suggested that savor its taste and texture before chewing. After driving around his mouth for a bit, he began to chew.
It was clear that he enjoyed this delightful piece, and I tried not to worry that he might accidentally swallow. Fortunately, he did not. He managed to enjoy all the steak without incident.
Brian told me later how he had felt the taste and chew food again together, and how much he had enjoyed the flavors flowed down his throat.
I was so happy that he had found it fun.
