Chocolate Pudding...Yummy!

Hunter is eating....chocolate pudding, that is!

This comes after much effort and fighting to overcome his oral aversion. I think I'm learning the trick to feeding him and getting him to eat. So, my tricks are this...

First, Messy play with his hungry monkey. He responds well to putting food on his toy and allowing "him" to introduce the food to "his" mouth. If "I" try to spoon feed him right away, it scares him and almost too agressive at this point.



Second, Repetition . I feed him one thing over and over again. I make it something good, like chocolate pudding. His occupational therapist told me that it takes 30 times of tasting a flavor for the brain to register it and decide if its good.

Third, Perseverance and Patience. Despite our obstacles, discouraging and difficult days, I'm not giving up. I won't stop. He makes a hundred yucky faces and gags. I still put food on his toy monkey and allow him the messy play. He is now getting familiar and comfortable with chocolate pudding.



Fourth, I make feeding time fun for him. I love chocolate pudding all over the walls and floor. It shows how much effort goes into feeding him and how I will stop at nothing. I have such a mess to clean up when he is done…including him!



Finally, It really helps to have encouragement from others that understand the true meaning of both failure and success.

We still have a long road before the g-tube comes out. In the last couple days, Hunter has been eating chocolate pudding by the spoonful. This is progress and I'm so excited. My next plan of attack is to try different flavors. I plan on slowly introducing different foods, a couple times a day. He will soon try apple sauce, different pudding flavors, oatmeal, and speggatos. I'm not concerned about him eating healthy at this point. He is getting all the vitamins and nutrients from his tube feeds. My goal is to create a positive oral experience. I have run this through the doctors and therapists. They believe this to be a great plan.

They will be doing another swallow study next month on Hunter. The last swallow study showed that he aspirated thin and nectar thick liquids. The aspiration was caused by premature and underdeveloped swallow muscles. As with everything, these muscles develop with time. So, we are going to try again to see if it has improved.