13 year old DD with persistent morning nausea

[Hollysaura]

My 13 year old DD has been suffering with nausea every morning for the last week. She has not been sick. It normally goes by lunch time. Went to docs yesterday and no wee infection & def not pregnant! She hasn't started periods yet, not stressed or anxious about anything, and has been eating normally. We have tried lots of things....ginger, travel bands, eating regularly (when she can), getting up earlier and nothing has worked. Worried that she is missing school and I'm having to take time off work. Anyone got any advice/suggestions? Thanks

[RudolphLovesoftplay]

Are you absolutely 100% she isn't pregnant? The absence of periods isn't a sign they can't get pregnant.

[chickensaladagain]

Don't suppose she has hayfever does she?

My dd is like this due to post nasal drip which has been much worse in the last week due to the pollen count

[Hollysaura]

Yes. Doc did negative pregnancy test and I'm almost 100% sure she is not sexually active. She was mortified that doc would even question it!

[Hollysaura]

No, hasn't got hay fever. Lucky for her she doesn't suffer.

[Nagoo]

I'd ask the school rather than her if she's worried about anything.

I'd think it was to miss school tbh.

Quite worrying.

[WallaceWindsock]

I had this from the age of about 8 up until my late teens. Doctors could find no reason for it and it stopped once I was maybe 18? I think in my case it was a mixture of hormones and anxiety. I had a lot going on at home with my mum remarrying, moving schools etc. I also think it was hormone linked as I have had other hormone related issues in the past few years and I feel they could be linked.

Things that helped for me were brushing my teeth first thing as the mint helps, eating a very dry and light breakfast -brioche, toast and marmite etc - no cereal or porridge or bacon etc. I used to drink Ribera first thing as well as the sugar made me feel slightly better but it wasn't too acidic. Something like flat lucozade might also be good?

I don't know what to advise re treatment , as I've said above the doctor couldn't find a medical cause with me so nothing was done and so the best I could do was to find a way to cope with it. I hope things get better for your DD.

[Hollysaura]

She loves school and is mortified that she can't go. As soon as she starts to feel better she goes into school. So not that.

[WallaceWindsock]

Could also be blood sugar related, another hypothesis my DM floated. Does she often get shaken or feel a bit light headed etc if she's late to eat dinner or lunch? I still am like this. Also check she is drinking enough. If she is drinking significantly less than the daily recommended amount she will then become a bit dehydrated over night. I know I feel very sick if I'm dehydrated so again could be worth keeping an eye on fluid intake and making sure its the right fluids - not lots of caffeine or fizzy drinks, water and weak squash etc.

Sorry if these are things you've already ruled out, just trying to think back to possible causes we had to rule out with me!

[Hollysaura]

No, thank you. I welcome any advice because I feel so helpless! It could be blood sugar but when we have made adaptations to diet ie snack before bed, eating dry biscuit before she gets up it hasn't made any difference. I'm wondering if its hormone related but I'm not sure what doc can do about that. Maybe it will settle down when she gets her periods??

[RudolphLovesoftplay]

Fair enough

Is it anxiety related at all? Anything she is worried about? How old do they have exams, I only have a reception age child soon idea!!

Or could it be related to hunger? Is she actually sick?

[flamingtoaster]

Does she have a bowl of cereal or some toast last thing before bed? My daughter used to suffer from abdominal migraine which started about 4.00 am (in her case she got severe vomiting) until we made sure she ate just before going to bed. I agree with the low blood sugar hypothesis mentioned by WallaceWindsock - that was what was triggering my daughter. She doesn't get it any more but would still feel unwell in the morning if she hadn't eaten last thing. Hope you find a solution soon.

[ItsAllGoingToBeFine]

I she's not started her periods yet is it possible its some hormonal thing?

[Hollysaura]

Thank you, that is def worth a try. She is a good eater when she is not feeling sick. I'll try that tonight.

[Hollysaura]

Yes, hormone thing is possible but in not sure what I can do about it? She could go on like this for weeks I suppose...

[lollylaughs]

My dd suffered with morning pains and it was definitely due to stress. It did go on as so far as her being hospitalized with faecal impactment. Is she regular or constipated at all?

She went onto a different type of diet, eating 6 small meals instead of 3 larger ones which did help.

It didn't really improve completely until we dealt with the issue that was the cause of her stress.... finding it was the challenge!!

I hope you get to the bottom of this soon.

As she is 13 and not yet started her period, maybe it is signs that she is going to start soon. Is it a period type pain?

[MrsHoarder]

What does she have for breakfast? I realised in my late-teens that a nausea problem I had didn't start on a rare day when I was running late and ate a bread roll on the go instead of cereal with milk. After that I avoided lots of milk in the morning and suffered from nausea far less.

I'm not allergic to milk (been tested) but the very low-level intolerance I have was making me constantly nauseous when I had lots every morning.

[Hollysaura]

She's not constipated. That end is all fine. I'm pretty sure it's not stress. I know that teenagers don't tell their mums everything, but she is a very open girl and I would hope that I would see the signs if she didn't tell me. When she is not feeling sick she is a very happy girl.

[Viviennemary]

Sounds like stress related to me or something she eats that upsets her digestion. Hope you get it sorted.

[Hollysaura]

Breakfast has been off the menu for the last week due to the nausea, but usually is cereal (no milk-weird child!) or toast. Or if she's not hungry, some fruit. She hasn't changed her diet so I'm pretty sure it's not food intolerance.

[magimedi]

Does she have a cup of tea first thing in the morning on an empty stomach?

That can make you feel sick & can also exacerbate acid reflux.

[Hollysaura]

Yes, she was having a cup of tea but has stopped everything in the last week and nothing has changed.

[MrsHoarder]

She hasn't had a temperature has she? We had a nasty virus last week (3-4 days for each of us) which was causing 5-6 hour spells of "vertigo" and nausea.

With any luck it might be that and go away in the next day or two.

[ElephantsAndMiasmas]

Does she get pain as well as nausea? I had something like a sort of "shadow period" for a while before my actual periods started. It's like your body is practising the muscle movements or something. Not very nice but it does wear off and mild painkillers helped.

I have quite low iron levels, and low blood pressure (how's hers?) and I find that drinking as much water as possible as soon as I get up (i.e. sit on the side of the bed on your way out of bed, and down at least half a pint) really helps me to feel less sick and more "with it".

[Hollysaura]

No temperature so far. She has had a bit of pain. She explains it as like a 'blockage' in her tummy. Quite high up, not as low as period pain. But no indigestion or reflux symptoms.

[Hollysaura]

Don't know about iron levels or blood pressure. Doc didn't check, but I think I might make another appointment and insist on some tests.