Working with Eric's OT, we are moving to homemade blended formulas. This will help in many ways. We are trying to get Eric used to real food instead of formula and ease the transition for when he is able to take more by mouth. We have noticed that the more real food we put in his g-tube, the more tastes he is willing to try by mouth. He still doesn't want to eat yet, but he is not as adverse to the idea.

The trick with making your own formula is that you have to balance the nutritional and caloric needs with providing enough hydration. Eric isn't able to take too much at a time without throwing up so we are not able to easily feed him the amount that he needs. Right now he needs 1000 calories and 48 oz of fluid. It all has to pass through the feeding tube as well. We also have to try not to trigger the acid reflux. The last attempts caused him to wake up at night screaming from a reflux episode.

Now we are trying to give him most of his calories in the morning and doing a low acid blended formula before naps and bedtime. So far, it seems to be working much better. Another thing that seems to be working is giving him a couple of ounces of Ginger-Chamomile tea before feeding for extra hydration and tummy support.

The more Eric is able to tolerate the new formula blends, the more foods we can add in. I try to make each meal with its own flavor as opposed to making a formula with all of the nutrients in it. It gives Eric a chance to get a taste of different combinations instead of tasting the same thing at every feeding. We are still heavily reliant of the manufactured formula to make sure Eric is still getting what he needs. We will reevaluate that as time and Eric, progress.

So far so good. Eric did lose a teensy bit of weight, but he is also growing taller and walking more. He has become more energetic with the blended formulas and he acts and looks healthier.