Active discussions

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Children's health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

Why would 6 year old vomit once a month at 6am and then be totally fine?

39 replies

parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 10:27

The first few times it happened a few times with 7-10 day gaps. now it has been about a month since last one and here we are again.

It has happened on Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays - she's missed nice activities that she was looking forward to because of it. Today she's devastated that she'll miss a party at school and is begging me to let her go in.

She has one bout of vomiting then fine within an hour (but misses two days of school).

The first time it happened there was a bug going round school and her little pals got it too.

GP said maybe it was a UTI - eh??? really?

DH thinks it's because she's eating too many clementines.

I'm wondering if she's not washing her hands properly (or at all) after using the loo and just keeps picking up bugs.

Do any of you have any experience or theories on what could be going on please? If it was too much of a food, wouldn't she be sick almost immediately rather than 14 hours later?

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
differentnameforthis · 20/05/2019 11:24

Anything happening at school, home? Anxiety, nerves?

BusterGonad · 20/05/2019 11:27

I too would suggest she's too excited about the activities that are planned, my husband said as a child he was always sick on Christmas Day due to being too excited.

Isitmybathtimeyet · 20/05/2019 11:27

Does she just vomit or are there any other symptoms?

Miltonj · 20/05/2019 11:43

Google Cyclical vomiting syndrome.... not suggesting it is that but something to consider or mention to a doctor if you think it fits with DD's symptoms x

sheettent · 20/05/2019 11:46

My DS has CVS and vomited once first thing in the morning every 5-6 weeks for years.

Same pattern every time.

INeedNewShoes · 20/05/2019 11:47

My DD (2) does one off vomits then is absolutely fine when she has come into contact with egg (which she's allergic to). It tends to be about 4 hours after exposure, dispelling the myth that allergic reactions are immediate.

When she's had a bug it's always more than one vomit.

Every single episode of one off vom, I've managed to relate back to egg eaten for the previous meal.

It might be worth keeping a food diary just in case it's food related.

Citrus can be very irritating to the gut so the Clementine theory isn't that wacky!

sheettent · 20/05/2019 11:50

His triggers were not enough sleep, excitement and not eating enough the day before. We also started to suspect chocolate but nobody could tell if that was a cause or a sign/craving as they suspect now that migraine sufferers crave chocolate before an attack rather than it triggering it.

CVS is a stomach migraine. It's genetic, DH also had it until he was 7-8. We started giving ds good kid's probiotics and that seemed to help too.

MummyBear2352 · 20/05/2019 11:51

My dd has something similar and it was anxiety! She would wake up be sick, therefore I wouldn’t send her to school and she would be fine for the rest of the day, it turned out after a fortnight off that the little soul was worried about something at school.

Original poster
parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 11:56

Nothing out of the ordinary at home.

She's not an anxious child (or if she is she hides it extraordinarily well).

Could be excitement.., previously has missed going to choir, swimming, Rainbows. All things that she looks forward to.

She's ticking a lot of boxes for cyclical vomiting. Particularly the sane time of day thing - always between 6-7am and with weeks in between.

Oh balls. She can't have two days off school once a month can she? I'll take her back to GP.

OP posts:
Original poster
parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 12:01

I'll keep an eye out for any signs of anxiety.

OP posts:
sheettent · 20/05/2019 12:05

They say CVS is triggered by stress or excitement but with ds it was always stress (and late nights).

We basically missed 4 years of Christmas, birthdays, Halloween's etc as the excitement would bring it on for the actual day.

We learned to not hype anything up and be really strict with the same bedtime. And making sure he ate before bed if he hadn't had a decent dinner, even a piece of toast.

We lost SO much nursery and school but as soon as we found it what it was the school were fine with him going in the next day.

He'd vomit then feel horrific until 11am when he'd fall asleep. He'd sleep for an hour, wake up absolutely STARVING. Eat for a solid hour (always craving things like chicken or eggs.) Then he's have more energy than he'd had in ages and be crazy until 10pm!

Exactly this same pattern every single time for years!

There are some really helpful Facebook groups I joined.

sheettent · 20/05/2019 12:06

Sorry with ds it was always excitement.

ginyogarepeat · 20/05/2019 12:10

CVS or perhaps a drop in blood sugar first thing in the morning? Does she get nauseous too?

Original poster
parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 12:25

No other symptoms the last couple of times.

The first few times she had loose poos.

It started this morning with tummy ache at 6.10 and vom at 7.

OP posts:
Original poster
parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 12:25

How would I know if it's blood sugar, is there something I should look out for?

OP posts:
redhotchill · 20/05/2019 12:27

"they suspect now that migraine sufferers crave chocolate before an attack rather than it triggering it"

That just can't be true. I never ever crave chocolate. I don't even like it. Once someone bought me a tiny little slab of fancy chocolate and I ate 3 bites out of politeness. Within an hour I had the worst of only 3 migraines I have ever had in my life.

whoami24601 · 20/05/2019 12:48

I used to teach a boy who used to vomit before every school trip, resulting in him being sent homeHmm and missing them all ! When he got to year 6 and wanted to go on the residential I had a meeting with his mum and assured them both that I understood it was nerves/ excitement and therefore would not be sending him home (I had a special sick bucket just for him!) I think he'd probably been ill once on a trip day when he was small and then every time subconsciously that kicked off an anxiety based bout of sickness. Being sent him every time reinforced the connection. Anyway, on the day, because I'd promised not to send him home, he was never even sick! We broke the cycle. Could there be something subconsciously that she associates with being sick, thus making her sick?

Sparkletastic · 20/05/2019 12:52

Please take her to the doctor. I know someone who's child had this as their only symptom. Turned out to be something very serious. Not saying this is the case in your DD's case of course but get it checked out ASAP.

Original poster
parpsqueak · 20/05/2019 13:06

to be clear, she has been to GP once already - they suggested UTI but there were no other symptoms and the test was clear.

She's got an another appointment for Wednesday.

Thanks for all suggestions. I'm going to start a food/activity diary to look for any patterns.

OP posts:
sheettent · 20/05/2019 13:19

We went to five Paediatricians (one of whom was meant to be one of the best in New England) and not one picked up ds's CVS.

I picked it up by googling then got in touch with a Pediatric Gastroenterologist who confirmed it and we went from there.

Your dd could have something totally different obviously but don't expect a gp to pick up on it if it is.

Deafdonkey · 20/05/2019 13:34

My son vomits like your dd, although usually about 10.30pm, he wakes feeling sick and hot/flushed and after about 20/30mins he is violently sick for about 10 mins and then is fine. He still goes to school activities after this as we know it is not a illnesses and it can not be transmitted. Like a pp he is often sick whilst away from home, school are happy to keep him on school trip as they know he suffers. He knows the different feeling now between his normal sickness and actually being ill. Junk food def triggers it he avoids anything highly coloured. However can also be after a change in routine, if he is over tired or excited.

Deadringer · 20/05/2019 13:39

My dds used to get this and so did some of my friends dds, just the girls for some reason. We called it the sickie in the night. They would be sick, then fine, no long term effects they seemed to just grow out of it. Not very scientific sorry, just my experience.

UpToonGirl · 20/05/2019 13:53

This is really interesting, I'd never heard of CVS. DS1 (7) often gets ill and vomits before something exciting (xmas party,trips,holidays). He usually is fine then all of a sudden will become pale, maybe a headache then a vomiting episode. He is usually fine after vomiting but by that point he misses out of the activity he was looking forward to.

I didn't really link it with excitement, even though he just had an episode last week and actually suggested to me it was excitement - I told him he probably needed to drink more water...

Seaandsand83 · 20/05/2019 13:57

I had cyclical vomiting when I was a child from about age 6 - 12. I'd be sick just once every few weeks and then it would sometimes be followed by bad headache.

Swipe left for the next trending thread