I have bilateral TN and chronic migraines. My migraines have settled down with Botox treatments, but we can't find a treatment for the TN. My jaw especially has become insanely painful and within the last week, I got to the point that I can't chew anything. I am just down to eating smoothies and soups. Does anyone have any suggestions for good (as decent as they can be) meal replacement drinks? I have already lost over 30 lbs in the last 3 months due to depression, meds, and being scared to eat because it may have a migraine trigger in it. Any help you have is appreciated!
Sometimes chewing is a trigger for me - I don't know until I try to take a bite. I tend to drink a lot of liquid diet drinks.
I like Ensure - the plus version is 350 calories per 8oz bottle. They provide about 25% of the daily vitamin requirements, but if that is your only food, possibly you might need 5 or 6 a day for the calories, carbs, etc.. They come in Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry, although I have not found the Strawberry in the Plus version. The taste can be a bit boring after a while, but I don't have a pain problem, particularly if I use a straw.
I've also tried Boost - it tastes OK, but I prefer the Ensure because the bottles are much easier to open. I typically buy the Ensure at Sams Club by the case.
Of course, if you can eat other things as well that would be a good idea. Certainly a balanced diet is preferable.
I also cook and purée fruit, adding water if I need to sip it through a straw. On good days I can manage to have the puréed fruit as is without watering it down.
I would think the ensure or sustagen hospital would both be good options.
Another thing i do with my smoothies is to add some spinach, raw nuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, protein powder and some sort of cooked legumes to improve the nutrient content.
I like mashed potatoes with feta cheese (it can also be edam, gouda or any cheese that you like) and kefir which makes the final texture liquidy. Soft boiled eggs are also good. I also enjoy soft cooked oats (I use about 1 cup of oats and about the same amout of water and let them boil until the water is gone), you can add yoghurt or honey or maple syrup and it makes a nutritious meal. You can mash most foods, vegetables, meat etc. and make them liquid by adding broth...I know we don't want to eat baby food, but you definitely need good nutrients; I know that my overall well-being has improved with more balanced diet.
There's a site for people with TMJ disorder (www.tmjhope.org) and they often put up recipies for people who are not able to eat hard foods on their Facebook wall.
I couldn't eat recently and what i looked forward to was mashed potatoes with butter, milk, salt and rosemary added. Some gravy on top too for extra flavour.
It tastes good, it has some fat and some salt and it gives you some energy. At the time this was the only thing i enjoyed, i was sick of very healthy puree food, its good for you of course but i hear you on the suddenly dropping weight thing.
If you dont want potatoes alone then you can slow cook some lamb stew in the oven for a few hours. It gets so soft your fork will break the meat apart for you into little shreds easily and you can have it with some plain mash on the side.
Just look for meat and vegetable stews that should be slow cooked online and mash up with a fork thoroughly what you can..even if you cannot chew, your food does not need to be overly puree, your stomach can do some work too.
You can also buy chocolate mouse from the store just take it out of the fridge 5 minutes before you eat it.
Sorry if this all sounds too fattening but suddenly only eating super healthy puree food killed me...i craved these sorts of food i mentioned above.
I too have terribel pain with eating and chewing! I drink 2 visalus shakes a day. They have all of the nutrients you need including protein and taste the best of any I have tried. There is a website you can go to and order. They will send it monthly if you want. The website is http://rhyanhoward.myvi.net/
I have been on a liquid diet for 8 days now. I can only painlessly sip through a straw. I have of course been using Ensure type drinks. I have had great success using a Cuisinart hand blender to smash stuff up. I use that thing about twice a day. I took some bean soup and blended it and that gave me a welcome change. I have been making a lot of fruit smoothie with protein whey, yogurt or milk. I have been drinking V8 vegetable juice. Any ideas. I see some baby cereal like cream of wheat which Scott mentioned above. I am not sure how long I am going to be on a liquid diet. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.
What works well for me is making a Shakeology shake with warm water and sipping it with a straw nearly half way down my throat… Pretty much the only thing I can get down when having an attack. Since I’ve been on meds, I haven’t had a flare up, just not being able to chew on my right side since being reduced to 1 medication now. I bought a super soft heating pad and that provided a lot of relief too, figured I’d share.