Tubie Friends for kids on Feeding Tubes

A hard fact of life for a child in need of an organ transplant is that many of them will need a feeding tube at some point during their illness. The illness often causes the children to lose their appetites and they are no longer able to eat or drink enough on their own. Optimum nutrition is important for the children so they can properly cope with their disease and stay hydrated. It's also necessary to keep their nutrition in the best shape prior to transplantation. Receiving an organ is a serious surgery and the children's body needs as much nutrition as possible to be able to handle the surgery and to be able to heal well afterwards.

So what happens when your child can no longer eat or drink enough on their own? This is when most doctors will order a feeding tube. Your doctor will decide which one is best for your child. It is important to work closely with your child's doctor as each child is different and responds to their illnesses differently. 

Once it is decided your child will need a feeding tube, depending on their age, they might find this to be a trying and scary time. As infants they may not understand what is happening to them. As children get older they may feel self conscious. Whatever your child may be going through at the moment, I came across a great website that may take some of the anxiety and stress out of this situation. 

I stumbled across Tubie Friends. This is a great website where they will get a Tubie Friends Surgeon to gather information and help create a stuffed animal with a feeding tube made especially for your child. It is definitely something to look into if you have a child who needs a feeding tube. I always like to find a way to ease the stresses our kids have to deal with. Check them out at http://www.tubiefriends.com/ 

The Transplant Games of America

It's that time of year again. The 2012 Summer Olympics has the world on the edge of their seats. We've already seen several Golds won by the US. It is a wonderful compilation of all the athletes' hard work, paying off in the great city of London. Congrats to all the Olympic Athletes for jobs well done!

Meanwhile, in the Grand Rapids in Michigan another set of games is going on. The Transplant Games of America. Taken from the official Transplant Games of 
America website, the games are a " a multi-sport festival event for athletes who have undergone life-­saving transplant surgeries and living donors. Competition is open to anyone who has received a solid organ transplant or bone marrow donation. 


Visit their website website to learn more about them and the heroic athletes and families that are there this summer: http://www.transplantgamesofamerica.org 

Stay tuned in days to come as I try to get some of the athletes to stop by the blog for an interview.

If you participated in the Transplant Games, contact me on my Facebook Page http://www.facebook.com/AngelDonorBook ! 

                          HAPPY TRANSPLANT GAMES!