{"id":730,"date":"2024-08-27T20:15:19","date_gmt":"2024-08-27T20:15:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nutritioncarestage.com\/maw\/?post_type=success-story&p=730"},"modified":"2025-01-31T19:59:35","modified_gmt":"2025-01-31T19:59:35","slug":"thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse","status":"publish","type":"success-story","link":"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/success-story\/thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse\/","title":{"rendered":"Thriving on Parenteral Nutrition and Working as a Registered Nurse"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n

By Rebekah Urbonya<\/em>
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"Rebekah\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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I have severe gastroparesis and intestinal dysmotility. In early 2014, I was given my first feeding tube, a nasojejunal (NJ) tube. My medical team and I had a difficult time finding a formula that I could tolerate. When we finally did, a gastrostomy-jejunostomy (G-J) tube was surgically placed in my abdomen. But soon after, my gastroparesis and intestinal dysmotility worsened, and despite many interventions, I stopped tolerating tube feedings. I had signs and symptoms of malabsorption, was unable to eat or drink fluids at all and became drastically underweight. Dehydration and malnutrition became urgent issues and prompted a 2-month stay in the hospital. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That summer, after seemingly exhausting all options, I was started on parenteral nutrition (PN) to deliver nutrients intravenously through a central line. The adjustment to PN was overwhelming. There is a big learning curve in transitioning to IV nutrition and managing care for a central venous catheter in the home setting. My support system—patient advocates, friends, family, and a team of health professionals, has been essential in helping me cope with long-term home parenteral nutrition (HPN) and the medical complications that may arise. But not only had PN help me regain some health stability, it also saved my life.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eventually, I resumed my part-time position as a clinical research coordinator. To help me keep moving forward, I remained involved in meaningful activities and set realistic goals. One of my early goals was to attend a yoga class once per week—and I accomplished that! Obtaining a nursing degree was a long-term goal that I set prior to the significant decline in my health, and I still wanted to fulfill that dream. I took college courses to meet the prerequisites for the program, and when the acceptance offer came, I went for it! I conquered many health obstacles throughout school, including a hospitalization from sepsis due to a crack in my central line. However, I remained resilient and graduated at the top of my nursing class.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today, I work as a registered nurse on an adult inpatient general medicine unit. Due to my 20-hour PN cycle, I infuse while at work. I use a fanny pack to carry my infusion pump and PN bag. I find it works better than a backpack. I infuse IV fluids for hydration before and\/or after work, in addition to pushing oral hydration through my G-J tube as much as tolerable. Nutrition support is literally the fuel providing 100% of my nutritional needs and makes it possible to carry out my passion for nursing. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Managing long-term HPN is very much a team effort, and my gratitude goes out to the providers and staff—“Team PN”—who make these medical therapies possible. As a complex patient, my personal experiences strengthen my ability to professionally advocate for patients’ needs and, alongside a team of knowledgeable clinicians, help me provide patient education on interventions, including nutrition support. Our collective efforts share the common goal of promoting positive patient outcomes. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"_searchwp_excluded":"","inline_featured_image":false},"topic":[],"class_list":["post-730","success-story","type-success-story","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThriving on Parenteral Nutrition and Working as a Registered Nurse - Malnutrition Awareness Week<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Meet Rebekah, a registered nurse with gastroparesis and intestinal dysmotility on a 20-hour parenteral nutrition cycle.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/success-story\/thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Thriving on Parenteral Nutrition and Working as a Registered Nurse\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Meet Rebekah, a registered nurse with gastroparesis and intestinal dysmotility on a 20-hour parenteral nutrition cycle.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/success-story\/thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Malnutrition Awareness Week\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-01-31T19:59:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2024\/12\/Rebekah-Urbonya_4.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/success-story\/thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/nutritioncare.org\/maw\/success-story\/thriving-on-parenteral-nutrition-and-working-as-a-registered-nurse\/\",\"name\":\"Thriving on Parenteral Nutrition and Working as a Registered Nurse - 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