Nausea, Digestion & Food Aversions

The great thing about nausea is that it passes. I haven't met anyone who has dealt with nausea for the entire duration of their medication. Mine was the most difficult during months 3-9, but I suspect my lack of protein knowledge was a large part of that. When you're not eating enough — or not eating the right things — the nausea hits harder.

My doctor prescribed Zofran when it got really bad, but the real key was eating. I know that sounds counterintuitive — you feel like you're going to be sick and someone tells you to eat. But it worked. Broth, Greek yogurt, and smoothies were lifesavers during those stretches. They went down easy and kept protein coming in when nothing else would.

The nausea was usually the hardest 24-72 hours after the shot. It wouldn't last the full 72, but that was the window where it would show up and hit the strongest. I learned to plan around it — stock the gentle stuff for those days and save the real meals for when my stomach cooperated.

I just kept reminding myself: the nausea doesn't last forever. Drink plenty of water, do your best to eat when it's at its worst, and know that it gets better. For most people, it does.

It was day 8 of no bowel movement and day 3 of our family Disney trip. I'm not sure if it was multiple 30k-step days or the wonderful Disney food, but instead of riding Tron with everyone, I was sweating, swearing, and passing what felt like a fossilized rock. This all could have been prevented with magnesium and fiber. I learned the hard way.

After that trip, I added daily magnesium in the morning and night, as well as fiber for when I couldn't get it properly in my diet. Those two additions have made life so much better.

Have you ever spent hours planning and preparing a spectacular, family-favorite dinner, just to find out your kid's favorite dish from last week is now deemed as disgusting and doesn't want to touch it? No? Well, get ready to know that feeling, because that fickle child is now your stomach. With the newly acquired temperament of a 7-year-old, your stomach's love or hatred for a dish or food item can change from the time it leaves the stove to when it hits the table. You don't know when the aversions will hit, or what they'll hit with, but it's real and it's a big challenge.

For me, the foods that lost their appeal were mostly foods that lacked protein and were probably foods I shouldn't have been eating anyway — I took it as a gift. The foods I actually needed to eat is where I started looking for substitutes and alternatives, and I didn't limit myself to items on the extreme end of the protein scale.