Advice for a first timer re morning sickness pls!

[BellaCB]

Hi all,

I'm 11 wks into my first pg and just after some advice about how bad or not bad my morning sickness is. I've only just seen my GP for my first appt (he was pleasant he just brushed me off with an "oh, yes, it's horrible, isn't it?") so I don't know yet when I'm going to see a mw or how to contact them etc - or even whether I really should!

I was expecting some sickness but this has taken me by complete surprise! For the past week I have been throwing up 6-8 times a day. The nausea is constant from the moment I wake up until about 8, 9 in the evening (the only blessing at the mo, as I am sleeping through). I am trying to drink all the time and eat as much as I can - crisps and toast and bananas, mainly! - but I am actually throwing something up, not just bile, most times. I feel light-headed quite often too. I never paid much attention to my weight before I got pg so I don't know if I am starting to loose any weight. I'm trying to snack frequently and have read all the threads and advice on here - it's not making a huge amount of difference to the sickness but at least I suppose I am getting something inside me!

I don't know many people who have been pg and none who have had any real sickness so I haven't got anyone to compare myself with and am getting worried now whether I am actually being quite sick or just a bit of a wimp ...Basically, I just want some advice about whether this is a reasonably normal level of sickness, or whether this is something I should be pushing my mw and GP about?

Thanks!

[scepticalexpat]

This sounds pretty bad to me. I'm sure you will be able to find someone with a worse experience, but at this level of sickness it seems to me you're totally justified going to see your doctor or midwife and asking for anti-emetics or any other help they can give. Don't worry about the weight thing, though - the baby will be absolutely fine.

[roz1982]

you are not being a wimp at all! that is bad morning sickness by anyones standards - im 16 weeks today and have been suffering terrible sickness right up until this week - the most ive been sick in a day is 7 times and its absolutely horrendous! i repeat you are NOT being a wimp!!!

i went to the docs and got signed off for two weeks but they dont like to give u anyhting unless you really cant bear it anymore or if you can't keep anything down - this is my first preg too and I so wasn't prepared for how ill I would feel!! The unfortunate thing is, when you are actually being sick there is not much you can do until you stop!!

I really do sympathise/empathise - it totally ruins your life and I have had some very dark moments! It DOES get better, but if you are really struggling, get back to docs.

[FRowlands]

I had sickness in first three months bit not as bad as that. I found it hard to eat and too felt lightheaded. I tried drinking things like black tea (milk made me ill!!) with a teaspoon of sugar in or Ginger and lemon tea with some sugar. Just wanted to make sure I was hydrated and sugar helped with light headed feeling. I also found some fizzy drinks helped settle my stomach. Apart from that I just ate what I felt like, when I took the notion. Don't know how much help this will be. I got better after 12w so fingers crossed it'll get better for u soon too good luck.

[bluebobbin]

That level of sickness is quite bad, yes. There are worse cases, but I wouldn't say that yours is "normal morning sickness", it is worse. You need to go to the GP and get a sicknote as I found it better to rest and stay still. I had hyperemesis and I was in a terrible state - signed off for 3 months. If you can keep some food down, there is no need for you to take anti sickness medication, it is more a question of resting.

[candr]

I feel for you, yours sounds like mine was and I had a few emotional break downs about ' you have to help me eat' to DH who said if I didn't know what I wanted to eat he couldn't help. Went off most food except salty crisps. I was very worried about being so unhealthy just as you should be at your healthiest but baby is fine an I still have the relife of being able to enjoy food again. It stopped at 14 weeks for me but I still have flash backs at how awful I felt. I really hope yours ends soon and don't stress the baby will grow just fine. I am sure your Dr will be more helpful than mine.

[Coppernoddle]

I suffer hypremesis with every pregnancy I've had, always ending up in hospital on drips which are the best thing ever!!
Grazing constantly!!! Eat all the time, don't let yourself go hungry ( even though you never feel hunger it's just sick!). Don't eat big meals, eat through the night if you have too, find the foods that suit you best and lots of fluids! You'll be surprised on what you do actually keep down! Usually, straight after Ive been sick I eat and manage to keep it down! You just have to battle through it, rest as much as you can! Rushing around doesn't help! It's horrible, there's nothing worse in the world! Hope it subsides soon and definitely go to your gp as they can give you some drugs and test your urine for keytones, you may have to have a drip to rehydrated you which will make you feel heaps better!! X x x

[nitnatnaboo]

Hi Bella sorry you are suffering. 6-8 times a day is a lot. Another Hyperemesis sufferer here. There is a support thread on Mumsnet - see the "Hyperemesis support" thread in Pregnancy. You will find directions to other sources of info there (including safe drugs) as well as sympathetic people!
Don't worry about nutrition. Whatever you can eat is fine but you need to try to keep rehydrated if possible and to rest as much as possible.
10 weeks is the peak time for it so you may be past the worst soon. It may linger on to 16-20 weeks, albeit not as intensely, seeing as how you have been so sick already.

[Dualta]

Hi Bella, that is a lot of sickness and is not the norm, I had the same (am now 24 weeks) but found that it did get better gradually until by about week 18 -20 it was only very intermittent and easier to cope with. The doctor can prescribe medication so don't let them brush you off. There are lots of threads on mumsnet. i found it helped to eat straight after being sick when there was a small window of feeling not nauseous. Eat whatever you crave, don't worry too much about nutrition, the baby will be fine. Get loads of rest and have a constant supply of crackers. If you can stomach it at all, protein is said to keep the nausea at bay more effectively than carbs. It is caused by reactions to hcg in the blood, I found it reassuring to google the decline in hcg after 10-12 weeks when it peaks, but i can't say it goes overnight. Things get much better though!

[H007]

I had the ae between 6-11 weeks I thought it pretty much was the norm to be honest. I lived on cadbury's chocolate eclairs and water for that time really and went off many foods to the point I still can't eat them now at 15+6! It reduced greatly at 12 weeks as now I am only sick if I get really tired.

I continued to work and my work was really supportive regarding if I was late or if I left early. I also started getting the train to work so I could sleep and be by a toilet at all times and I carried a black bin bag around stuffed with paper towel for emergencies!

I know it doesn't feel like it but it does get better.

[BikeRunSki]

Hi Bella, Another hyperemisis sufferer here too, in both pgs, although passed at 14 weeks both times (now 20 wks pg with DC2). It is dreadful and put me off having another DC for 3 years. Helps if you have a sympathetic GP. In first pg mine prescribed me anti-sickness drugs, but I still ended up in hospital 4 times; in this pg I just went straight to hospital via A&E and different GP would not prescribe drugs after my discharge.

If you loose weight and/or get very dehydrated (dark wee, headaches) you need to get admitted, to be rehydrated by drip. If you leave it, then there are all sorts of other things aassociated with it -ketosis, UTI. When I have hyperemisis, going to hospital is like a complete surrender, and it gives me the chance to sleep through the worst.

[Hormoneoverload]

This is probably advice for milder sickness but I found boiled sweets, fox's fruits or similar really helped. As soon as o wasn't eating I felt sick again.

[BellaCB]

Thanks loads everyone.

I'm still waiting on my mw appt so I think I'll try and wait until then, but if that's not for a while then I think I'll have to talk to the Dr. Have bought travel sickness bands to see if they help, but tbh at the moment the constant motion sickness and the extreme lightheadedness are proving far more difficult to deal with. It's hugely tiring and I feel soooo exhausted and down at the moment (anyone else find it impossible to be excited about the baby when you feel so awful?) so its such a relief to hear that I'm not overreacting...

[aethelfleda]

Bella, head to your GP, don't wait for a MW appointment. Being sick more than 3 times in a day can dehydrate you and it may be worth discussing antisickness meds with the GP even if you only need them for a few weeks. Some people with sickness this bad (esp if you feel dizzy) need to be in hospital for a drip (only briefly) to get their fluids back to normal. So have a chat with your GP or if you feel really bad over the weekend and can't keep anything down you could go to a&e as they can check if you're dehydrated. Good luck and hope it gets better soon!

[Lizziefinch]

Hi ladies,

You all have my total sympathy, and BellaCB, yes I'm only just starting to be able to be excited about the baby after 4 months of feeling awful, really just surviving each day. I'm 17 weeks and just starting to feel better, AT LAST!!! :)

I vividly remember around week 5 contemplating the possibility that it might go on until week 12 and having no idea how I could bear it... thank goodness I didn't know it would get WORSE at 12 weeks and only start to go at 17...

Anyway this is probably massively unhelpful to anyone who's less than 17 weeks so probably time for me to shut up! Just wanted to be sympathetic I hope you all feel loads better soon.

Rest loads and eat whatever you can. I found I couldn't go in the kitchen so DH had to make me random meals without asking me in advance what I wanted, as I couldn't think about it. Some would stay down, most wouldn't!

[Badgerwife]

Bella it does sound bad, like aethel says you really shouldn't wait for your mw appointment, but should see your GP asap. The dehydration/lack of food is not good for you. The baby will probably be fine but you really won't, and you don't want to faint whilst in the shower as a result (as nearly happened to me). I wasn't sick in the early days but I felt nauseous 24/7 for a month. I lost half a stone.

[BellaCB]

Huge thanks to everyone who replied - have just got off the phone with the emergency GP who thankfully was really sympathetic and has prescribed some cyclizine for me. And after I had spent all night practising my speech to some imaginary evil dr who just told me to drink more! Though tbh the fact that I as sobbing down the phone might have had something to do with his sympathy - so pregnancy hormones do have their uses . Thanks again to everyone, really appreciated all the advice and support

[BikeRunSki]

BellaCB, thnk goodness you got a sympathetic doctor. I took cyclizine in both pgs and DS is fine. DC2 not born yet! Hope you feel better on the cyclizine.

[BellaCB]

BikeRunSki - between the cyclizine for my stomach and travel bands for motion sickness I haven't been sick in twenty four hours, which is just incredible and while I'm still nauseous and struggling to eat I think I might be almost rehydrated again. Finally getting a sympathetic dr did make me realise how much I had been shrugged off by my GP and nurse (my mum couldn't believe they hadn't wanted to talk to me about it). Feeling very happy now that people here encouraged me to talk to the dr!

[SianRJ]

I had really bad sickness with both pregnancys. I went to the doctors and he gave me 'Avomine' tablets that i took with the last pregnancy and am taking them again with this pregnancy. They are amazing! I was being sick most of the day and sometimes waking in the night with it but as soon as i took the first tablet it stopped the sickness straight away! You take one at night and one in the morning if its really bad or just one at night if its not that bad. i really recommend these! Good luck with everything :)

[BikeRunSki]

Oh Goodness Sian. Avomine just made my hyperemisis worse. Or it could be, that by the time I tried them I could not stomach the water I took them with.

Bella If you are having trouble keeping enough water down to stay hydrated, then try sucking ice cubes. Lemon ice lollies worked for me too.