Havent eaten in 2 years

[Avamay]

My boyfriend has not eaten a single thing in over 2 years. He used to be a heavy drinker, and he developed some issues with the lining of his stomach. He stopped drinking, and his nerves seemed to take over. He would try to eat, but have trouble swallowing anything and usually end up choking badly. He tried soft foods etc but nothing worked. He simply gave up eating. This was over 2 years ago, and he hasn't had anything at all to eat since. He has been surviving on drinks such as Ensure, protein shakes etc. Im really worried about him, and I know he wants to get better, but he is scared of going to the doctor again because they told him if he had surgery they wouldnt put him to sleep fully. Im wondering if stress could have caused this? Ive tried looking for information online, but I don't have a clue what to look for since I have never heard of this before. Any ideas on what to do to help him get better would be great. Or possible treatments?

[Mythrus]

Firstly,

Get him onto a Multivitamin STAT!! Man cannot live on ensure alone!

Please urge him to seek medical help - fear of surgery is common but it can be conquered. Just get him to a doctor, this is not normal and definately treatable!

[jo929]

he really needs to see a dr some people are scared to see dr and also of surgery but he should be grown up enough to understand the serious things that might happen if he does not go to dr. and get the surgery i have had 4 surgeries and i am-way way older than him it is natural to be afraid but i had a good nap each time i had surgery. tell him it wont get any better. until somthing is done. i wish you both lots of luck  jo

[jnlx]

The drinks do cause problems of their own and are only a temporary stopgap. Google to find out the problems --like fatty liver, omega oils imbalance...


It could be a lot of things like esophageal spasms he's afraid of feeling again, past traumatic experience w the throat, valve prob....lots of things..............careful observation and listening to the whys might provide clues..............


To try to overcome Aversion one might gradually increase exposure.  Smell and sight are important components to appetite...try moving up to yogurts..nut butters, baby foods,,,,things that slide down easy,esp when well mixed w saliva, smell good and what were once favorite foods --like applesauce. Heated, it smells good, start small w a tablespoon full.Then two tomorrow.  Same thing w favorrite veggies..babyfood...use aroma to stimulate appetite and cognitive information to understand how he cannot continue w only the drinks....force doesn't work, but these other workarounds might. The next step to begin with textured things might be the baby food sausages, then a move up to Vienna sausages....spam and so on. luck to you, jn

[jnlx]

The drinks do cause problems of their own and are only a temporary stopgap. Google to find out the problems --like fatty liver, omega oils imbalance...


It could be a lot of things like esophageal spasms he's afraid of feeling again, past traumatic experience w the throat, valve prob....lots of things..............careful observation and listening to the whys might provide clues..............


To try to overcome Aversion one might gradually increase exposure.  Smell and sight are important components to appetite...try moving up to yogurts..nut butters, baby foods,,,,things that slide down easy,esp when well mixed w saliva, smell good and what were once favorite foods --like applesauce. Heated, it smells good, start small w a tablespoon full.Then two tomorrow.  Same thing w favorrite veggies..babyfood...use aroma to stimulate appetite and cognitive information to understand how he cannot continue w only the drinks....force doesn't work, but these other workarounds might. The next step to begin with textured things might be the baby food sausages, then a move up to Vienna sausages....spam and so on. luck to you, jn