Wife struggling hyperemesis gravidarum

[keldog]

Morning Dads!

Expecting my first child in March 2022, wife is currently 11 weeks. She was suffering really badly with morning sickness and a few weeks ago was diagnosed with hyperemesis gravidarum. They took her into hospital for a few hours last week to put her on an IV drip, as she was dehydrated. They gave her an anti-sickness injection while she was in and she felt much better...for a day or two. The sickness came back and she is heading back towards the same state she was in last week, struggling to keep any food down and very little fluids. They wont take her into hospital again until she has ketones in her urine, which at the minute she only has trace amounts of.

It seems like there isn't really any help for her from the GP/midwife/hospital until she is a really bad way. The constant feeling that she is going to throw up at any moment, combined with actually throwing up as soon as anything hits her stomach is really getting her down, she has been crying on and off all morning and I feel like there is nothing I can do to help.

Any advice on what I can do to support her?

I wonder if you might benefit from a specialist opinion re the ondansetron and the cleft palate. It sounds as though you are nearly at the end of the first trimester anyway.
It's strange that he would prescribe the drug if you asked but advised against. Based on your symptoms, I don't know if that would have been a specialist's advice. It might be a question of increased risk but the actual risk might remain very low.
I was under obs care when I was taking it and had regular scans. I was halfway into the 2nd trimester when I started taking ondansetron. And obviously no issues at all with baby outcome and have very healthy and bright toddler now.
(Regular scans in themselves became an issue as it led to them predicting a very high birth weight and baby size, which I regretted as in reality baby was on 50th percentile but tall when she came out! But obviously I still don't regret taking ondansetron.)