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What decisions did you make
make about feeding
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We wanted to hold off
having a PEG as long as possible
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and to carry on feeding
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Isabella orally.
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However, that got brought
forward by
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probably about three or
four months earlier
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than what we wanted to happen.
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But, at the time, it couldn't
have come quick enough.
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Feeding was becoming a really
desperate situation,
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and really hard work for Isabella.
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So, there was no choice in
the matter.
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She had to have a PEG, or that
would be the end of her life.
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With Amelie's feeding
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we were lucky
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and at the time we felt
unlucky.
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We went in for a routine
videofluoroscopy,
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just to check out her swallow.
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And this was on the dreaded
Friday afternoon for that procedure,
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and the next thing we know, we're
being told we can't take her home
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she needs to have feeding
intervention,
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we're going to be putting an NG tube
in because she is at risk of aspiration.
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At the time it was awful.
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But looking back it was probably one
of the best decisions
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that happened for us
and for her,
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because we never had that worry
with her feeding.
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At the time she was slow at
chewing,
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but she never really ever had
an issues with swallowing too much.
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She was never, really, aspiring when
she ate, it was more
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the risk of why they wanted to
intervene now, so we could
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maintain her chest integrity.
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Which, touch wood, has been fine, and she
doesn't particularly get bad
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chest infections. She gets the odd
cold or flu.
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But I think because we intervened
that early with her feeding
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she didn't have any of those
other issues.
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Also, it meant she was also getting
the right calorie amount,
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she continued to grow, no failure
to thrive issues which some
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of the kids get because they take
so long to feed,
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or spending three hours at dinner.
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We never had those problems, one of
those added stressors that
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other families go through.
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So at the time we thought it was
very early, but looking back
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it was probably the best thing
that happened.
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With the NG tube, we then
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were very lucky to get her to have
a PEG very quickly.
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Probably in about a month
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that she had a PEG, which has
probably been the best
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decision as well.
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It's very easy to administer all
the medications,
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and to make sure she
gets the feed.
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With the ketogenic diet we need
to make sure that all of her
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medication is sugar free.
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There are all these other
complications, which would
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have been very difficult if we
were feeding her orally.
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Or even by the NG tube,
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because it is much more
labour intensive.
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We fed Ruby by mouth
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for as long as we could.
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Probably longer than the
doctors like us to.
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But I liked to feed her by mouth
because she could taste things,
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and that was one sense that
she did have quite strongly.
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We continued to do that,
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and even after she got her g-tube
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in her tummy
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we continued to feed her tasters
by mouth.
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Not large volumes, that went through
her tube, but we still continued
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to give her tasters when it
was safe, around secretions
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and airways.
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He ate up to
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three years old.
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It was very hard for me to
give him an g-tube.
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I was crying, and I hated the doctors who
told me that he
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had to have it.
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But now it's wonderful.
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I spoke to a lot of parents about
the PEG
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and most of them say it's the
most horrific decision they
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had to make.
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Although it is very difficult, I didn't
feel that way.
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When, Amelie had the videofluoroscopy she
was eating well.
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I think she had a meat stew the night
before.
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But, she did cough after she fed, and
that was because she started
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to not be able to direct
her food where she should,
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and the doctor said something
to us that was very important.
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It's not comfortable for her what
she is doing.
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In fact, we did do that.
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We did eat and cough after every
mouthful.
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It is extremely uncomfortable and
I thought actually
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I'd rather she keeps a memory
of what it is to eat nicely than go
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through feeding and not enjoying it
and coughing all the time, and not
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having that good memory, of
something that is so nice and
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that she enjoyed so much.
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Obviously, the safety behind it.
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In the long term, this was the best
for her, in terms of keeping
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her comfortable and making sure
we were giving her
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the best possible way to keeping
her healthy and not having
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to deal with chest infections as
much.
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I think that was for us, really
important.
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I was sad, but I did not think
it was the worst
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thing that could happen
to her.
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Actually, it made a huge difference
in the long run, for Amelie.
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I'm going with Hope.
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I pushed for a PEG as soon as
I found out about Tay-Sachs.
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Inevitability, she was going to need
this, so, lets do it
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while she was well enough to
withstand an operation
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and to use it as and when needed.
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First of all starting with medication,
and then introducing food
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at a later date, as her swallowing
got weaker.