Other Resource
  Home Button About Us Button Testimonials Button Volunteer Button Donate Button Contact Us Button

|  AVOID ILLNESS |  APPETITE LOSS |  DECREASE NAUSEA |  FOOD SMELL NAUSEA |
|  VOMITING |  MANAGE DIARRHEA |  SLEEPING |


  NOTE: if you have other illnesses (like high blood pressure or diabetes) as well as HIV or Cancer, review these 33 Tips with your doctor or nurse before you use them.


Spoons

Infection Chapter

  1. The most common way that infections, colds & the flu are transmitted is by the hands. Wash your hands frequently with soap and hot water. If soap and water is not available, use disposable wipes or a waterless hand cleaner like Purel.

Illness Chapter

  1. Avoid raw foods, especially seafood. Cook poultry/meats thoroughly. Wash fruits and vegetables.
  2. Keep kitchen counters and sinks clean. Mix a solution of 1 part chlorine bleach and 9 parts water in a spray bottle. Use it often on surfaces that come into contact with food or dishes.
  3. Wash utensils, sponges, dish rags and towels regularly.

Appetite Loss Chapter

  1. Ask your doctor about medications that will stimulate your appetite (the most common are
    Megace, Marinol and marijuana).
  2. Always have food nearby, so that you'll be able to eat something whenever you feel hungry.
  3. Forget about the old 'three square meals daily' routine if it doesn't work for you. Try 5 or 6 small meals, or snack throughout the day.
  4. If foods taste metallic, try sipping salty broth or cranberry juice between bites.
  5. If foods seem tasteless, try taking a multi-vitamin with minerals twice a day (it may take 1-2 weeks for your sense of taste to return.)
  6. If foods taste too bland - eat them warm or hot; if they taste too strong - eat them cold.
  7. To increase the amount of protein (and calories) in your diet, try adding nonfat dry milk to the foods you are eating. It's inexpensive, has lots of protein, and has little fat. It's almost tasteless when you add it to things like eggs, soups, sauces and potatoes. Protein powders and calorie supplements will do the same trick, but they cost more.

|  BACK TO THE TOP  |

Nausea Chapter

  1. Try to eat low-fat foods, carbohydrates and proteins - foods that are salty (rather than sweet) and bland (rather than spicy).
  2. Try wearing an acupressure travel bracelet during the day.
  3. Sip liquids frequently throughout the day and avoid caffeine and alcohol.
  4. Ask you doctor for anti-nausea medicine and/or seek acupuncture treatments.

Grocery Bag

Food Smells Chapter

  1. Experiment with eating cold foods - they have less aroma (smells often cause nausea).
  2. Serve foods in a covered cup (you'll smell them less).
  3. Remove all garbage from your home quickly, so that unpleasant smells aren't around.
  4. Ask a friend to cook you a meal. Store it in the refrigerator & microwave it when needed.

Vomiting Chapter(because you can't always control nausea)

  1. After vomiting, rinse out your mouth, brush your teeth, suck on an antacid.
  2. Suck on ice chips or sip clear liquids (ginger ale, etc.) until your stomach has settled.
  3. After vomiting, focus more on drinking liquids and less on eating solid food.
  4. Eat bland, low-fat foods for your first meal after throwing up (broth, saltines, etc.).
  5. Two way foods (that taste the same coming up as going down) sometimes offer some relief to people who are vomiting a lot. These foods include ginger ale, chocolate, and mashed potatoes.

ATTENTION: if your vomit ever looks like wet coffee grounds - this is blood.

CALL YOUR DOCTOR IMMEDIATELY!!!



|  BACK TO THE TOP  |

Diarrhea Chapter

  1. Drink plenty of liquids. Eat cooked vegetables and canned or frozen fruits. Other foods to include in your diet that help are: bananas, rice & rice milk, applesauce, jams & jellies, decaffeinated or herbal teas and toast.
  2. Avoid spicy foods, whole grains (bran, whole wheat, etc.) dried fruits (raisins, apricots, prunes) caffeine (in colas, coffee, tea) and alcohol.
  3. For sensitive skin caused by diarrhea (and to avoid skin infections later) apply a water-repellent barrier (to your behind) after going to the toilet. Common products include A & D Ointment or petroleum jelly.
  4. Ask your doctor to prescribe an anti-diarrhea medication.

Insomnia

Insomnia Chapter

  1. Try to get some exercise during the day and have a bedtime snack.
  2. If you watch TV, connect it to a timer so it turns off after you fall asleep.
  3. Keep a sliced raw onion in the refrigerator, in a glass jar. When going to bed, remove the jar lid and sniff the inside of the jar. (note: get a new onion when it starts to look like a science project.)
  4. Ask your doctor about medications that will help you sleep or about natural supplements like Melatonin or valerian.

<>

Other Tip Chapter

  1. To make an inexpensive warm pack, fill a clean white cotton sock with 1-2 pounds of dry (raw) brown rice. Knot the end and microwave for 2-3 minutes. Shake and knead the sock until the heat is distributed evenly. Test the heat, and then apply as directed by your medical provider. To make an inexpensive cold pack, wrap a small bag of frozen peas in a cloth and apply it as directed by your medical provider.


These 33 TIPS are a small part of the comprehensive 18-hour Home Care Skills Training program offered by Home Care Companions. Since 1988, HCC has provided FREE classes to more than 1,900 people living with a life-threatening illness - and their families, friends and partners. HCC helps other organizations throughout the world, through customized training, technical assistance and program development in home care training. For more information call HCC at 415.824.3269 or send email to:mailto:hcc1988@aol.com

 

©1999 by Home Care Companions. Call (415) 824-3269 for information about reprints.



|  BACK TO THE TOP  |

 
Pixel Gif Pixel Gif
  Home Button About Us Button Testimonials Button Volunteer Button Donate Button Contact Us Button
 
Texas Web Design | Tanzanite Rings| Dooney Bourke Handbags