Weight

 Jim always works at staying fit. Anyone who knows him personally, knows this. His running. His health regiment of supplements and vitamins ( Specific brand, of course😁). His breakfast shake of protein and sugar stabilizers. Cottage cheese out of the container can be lunch. He's maintained his weight at 180, give or take two pounds ever since college. He wears the same size pants, and takes pride in that... although we have had discussions about just because they fit, doesn't mean they should be worn.🙄 Save those outdated and retro beauties for the musical theater, thank you very much.

So, as a result of the incident and traumatic brain injury that resulted, my tall and fit man is now my tall and very thin man. Almost 60 pounds down. Certainly not something he can afford, and dangerously low. So the g tube again provides protein at night to give him more intake over longer periods of time. That helps to supplement three daily meals. I have asked, but have not gotten the updated daily weight. Tomorrow, I'll ask again, but I can usually look and get an idea. I think he's gained a few, maybe five. 

He requires a lot of assistance with meals. Getting food on a fork is tough with the right eye injury and detached lens. Perspective is difficult, so rather than lose a lot of food off the plate or the fork, it's best to assist. Calories. Nutrition. Build back muscle. That's the goal. And, a meal can take an hour easily to an hour and a half for Jim to eat. 

Jim is not, never has been, food motivated. He enjoys a good meal, but he doesn't plan a day around eating. "What's for dinner, honey?" is not something I usually hear. And, if he is focused on something, he often forgets to eat, until he hears his own stomach grumbling about it.

In the situation he is now, eating is a big deal. And days are planned around food intake along with the therapies. I'm now permitted to make his favorite protein shakes to add to the Ensure that they want him to take. I bring cottage cheese, watermelon, mandarin oranges and snack bars for between meals along with his sports drink, full of electrolytes. He sucks that down. That helps hydrate the muscles, and I can see evidence of firmer fuller muscles in his legs and arms and a little more firmness in his face.

The strength he needs to build back those muscles... To sit straight... Stand... Walk a few steps... Stay balanced... Drains him very quickly. So there are lots of naps to take. Involuntarily. The body is so beautifully made, so smart, so in rhythm that it knows it needs rest. And, so it shuts down. Resets and rests for how ever long it needs. Then, it winds back up. With half open lids, slurred speech, and mixed up words, he sorts through the demands his body is making and revs back up to another round of energy expressed.

And, each time he winds down, and then winds backup. I'm always anxious to see what comes back with him. He has amazed me with phrases, and numbers, observations, and humor, too. So a pound at a time, he's coming back. It takes more than this to defeat Superman.