Staying hydrated while in treatment: What are your tips?

Hello,  and yes I did have a lot of trouble keeping hydrated, especially when I was doing both the chemo and the radiation.  I learned to view beverages as treats.  There were good ones to help the bad ones go down.   Both hot and cold beverages have their drawbacks, so I tried to remain in the neutral lukewarm temperature range.  

I drank things that I did not before such as exotic teas and fruit drinks.  I tried mixing the flavors and adding things to enhance what I was drinking such as whipped cream, fruit slices, cookies and sometimes even candies that I like such as gummy bears, sweet and sour gels and more.  Sparkling water like strawberry flavored and so many more, I would add the actual fruit, and that was pretty good.  Tea drinking was new to me and by the time I finished my treatment routine, I found that I had a pretty good ability to mix different teas and some came out very tasty!  

Experimenting with flavors, fruit and mixes was a good positive pastime as well.  I was treating myself with a new beverage flavor every few days.  I had a few recipes where the base was the same, changed only by an addition of a new flavor on top of the baseline I liked and garnish.  Rewarding myself by drinking my creation was just more cream on top of the "cream".  It is a good hobby that goes a long way! 

Incredible Paws!

Yes,struggled  with this!  Since my stomach was removed, I could. Not have anything but water at first, but later could  add some tea with a little honey.  Water gets very  boring! Hope everyone hangs in there.  Best I have found is sparkling waters, but you must  be able to handle the carbonation and  I could not so had to give up.  Try the brand called Sparkling Ice!  Great flavors and zero calories!

Thanks for sharing the drink tips.  I will try some sparkling ice!

Pam

Hi everyone, I’ve had difficulty staying hydrated during treatment. I found that I love almond milk and will drink that more than anything. Also big water bottles intimidate me so I drink capris on or juicy juice. Gatorade is another one of my go to drinks. I keep them around so I can remind myself to drink. Another trick I use is drinking during commercials. I hope that helps. I have balance issues when I am dehydrated. I ran the car off the road recently so I hydrate before driving now. It scared me even though I didn’t do any damage to my car. 

Thanks for your response.  I like flavored fruit water, I never liked white milk so almond milk does not bring joy to my heart, unless its chocolate maybe.  I too have noticed some balance issues on occasion but I did not put them together with hydration.  I will now, and thank you.

Pam

Thank you all for sharing these tips, my wife has a hard time with this when in treatment, so I'm writing these all down for her to try. I'm thinking about freezing some of those Gatorade drinks to make ice cubes. Sometimes her taste goes a little dull with the treatment and some of those fruity things pack a punch so they're easier to drink.

That's a great idea, to freeze the Gatorade, I will try that too!  Thank you Jerry

I have problems staying hydrated with my most recent chemo.  After the first infusion I was dizzy for 3 days. My chemo nurses said if it happened again I should come in for some IV hydration.  It was amazing how much better I felt after a liter of saline!  I began to experiment and discovered I needed to drink way more than I felt thirsty for, and at least half of what I drank had to have some electrolytes in it.  I started with Gatorade and discovered it was better if I made Gatorade ice cubes to pour it over -- regular ice cubes watered it down!  I also discovered a sports drink called Body Armor that is a little more expensive than Gatorade, but I find it tastes better and comes in several flavors so I don't get tired of it as easily!