Leah Smith, a 29-year-old from Benfleet, Essex, relies on Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) delivered directly into her bloodstream through a Hickman line in her chest after developing gastroparesis, a severe form of stomach paralysis that affects just 14 in every 100,000 people in the UK, according to the digestive system charity Guts UK. According to reports from SWNS and the Herald-Palladium, her condition caused the nerves telling her stomach to empty to fail, leaving her unable to move food into her intestines and forcing her to medically retire from her job as an NHS A&E receptionist.
Symptoms, Misdiagnosis, and the Path to Diagnosis
Before receiving her diagnosis from a private gastroenterologist in August 2023, Smith suffered for a year with severe bloating, abdominal swelling that made her look pregnant, and vomiting undigested food days after eating. According to her accounts, she lost roughly six stone in 10 weeks and was repeatedly admitted to hospital with severe malnutrition and starvation ketosis. During this period, she experienced dismissals from medical professionals who suggested her symptoms were psychological or linked to autism.
According to the reports, Smith cycled through multiple unsuccessful nutritional interventions, including a nasogastric (NG) tube and a nasojejunal (NJ) tube, requiring approximately 17 feeding tube replacements over the course of a year. A private gastroenterologist ultimately suspected gastroparesis linked to Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and ordered a gastric-emptying study. The test confirmed that after three and a half hours, full stomach contents remained sitting undigested, leading to her admission to a hospital specialist intestinal failure team in November 2024.
Managing Life with Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN)
Smith’s daily routine now revolves around a Micrel pump carried in a blackout rucksack, which infuses TPN directly into her bloodstream for 12 hours a day, five days a week. Experts at Guts UK note that TPN feeding for gastroparesis is extremely rare due to high risks of complications, including infection, and is reserved for cases with evidence of small bowel intestinal failure. There is no cure for the condition, leaving patients to manage symptoms through dietary adjustments, medications, or tube feeding.
While the condition has restricted her mobility—requiring wheelchair and walking aid use during her physical decline—Smith maintains social connections by attending family meals and carrying her portable TPN setup in a backpack. A YouGov poll commissioned by Guts UK indicates that 28 percent of adults experiencing digestive symptoms feel embarrassed by them, prompting Smith to share her story to encourage others to speak up about gut health problems.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is gastroparesis?
Gastroparesis, or stomach paralysis, occurs when the nerves controlling stomach emptying fail to function properly, causing food to move too slowly through the digestive tract, according to Guts UK.
How is severe gastroparesis treated?
In severe cases where patients cannot process food normally, treatments like Total Parenteral Nutrition (TPN) deliver complete nutrition directly into the bloodstream, bypassing the digestive system entirely.
What are the common symptoms of stomach paralysis?
Symptoms include severe bloating, abdominal swelling, pain, vomiting undigested food, feeling full after a small bite, and rapid weight loss due to malnutrition.
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