Hyperemesis Support

[LucindaE]

I hope everyone suffering from the Horrors of Hyperemesis will find this thread useful as a source of support and information.

There's no TMI on here - can't be by definition - and nobody should feel ashamed of moaning as much as they feel the need to.

MOH's wonderful website is full of useful information on this illness:
sites.google.com/site/pregnancysicknesssos/
Another invaluable website is:
www.pregnancysicknesssupport.org.uk/
If you need help in obtaining medication, this phone number is
brilliant:
024 7638 2020

Lastly, the NICE guidelines on treatment are useful:
cks.nice.org.uk/nauseavomiting-in-pregnancy#!prescribinginfosub

I would like to thank Everyone who has given such invaluable support and advice on this and on previous threads.

Remember when you are at your worst, 'This Too Shall Pass'. It really will.
So many women on this thread have thought they couldn't get through this, but they did.

Can I add to that list? DurhamRed due 19th March 2015

Have woken up today feeling a little brighter and have managed to have a bowl of cereal and cup of tea (long may it last!!). I think the tablets were making me worse so didn't take my night time dose of ondansetron and ranitidine. I still feel nauseous but not as bad as yesterday, I know I've had good mornings like this before (usually followed by rotten afternoons) but will take the good days as they come :-)

Morning everyone, hope you're all feeling a bit better today.

Livingzuid that article made me really emotional, it's so honest! My supervisor knows I'm pregnant and the other day, after 4/5 weeks of this horror, I broke down in tears to her saying I hated being pregnant and didn't know how much more of this I could stand. I just couldn't quite say how many times I've thought it would almost be a relief if I miscarried. It feels awful even admitting that here, but I can't deny the thought has occurred, often.

I had DP here with me yesterday after he'd dropped DSD to her mum and he was really great. The cyclizine and metoclopramide they were giving me weren't working at all so, having FINALLY read up on it, DP asked the doctor to add Ondansetron to my list of drugs. As soon as they gave me that, the sickness vanished. They kept me in last night just to "see how it goes" but I've had another lot today and feel completely better. It was such a relief to eat a sandwich and not vomit 2 minutes later that I actually cried!

Have been feeling well enough to chat to the other ladies on the ward. I've not made small talk for weeks. I find it's like being in a miserable, antisocial cocoon!

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they prescribe Ondansetron when I leave - I've noticed the extreme reluctance and one nurse told me its the "champagne of antiemetics" because it's so expensive!

Well I spoke a little too soon, within 5 mins of my post I vomited up my breakfast, gah! Still I do feel a lot brighter today :-)

GetThe I'm so pleased you are feeling much better and are getting the meds that work for you. Like you there were many times that I had thought that a miscarriage would be a blessed relief, you get to a point where you just can't cope anymore. I understand also the relief to make small talk with people, the only person I see is my OH as I am stuck in the flat, even the act of talking to my/his parents on the phone can induce gagging/vomiting...like you say its like being in an antisocial, miserable cocoon.

Today is a good day for me as even though I'm still being sick I am able to have a conversation with my OH and sit on the sofa with him (its rare!). The one thing that is keeping me going is knowing I'll have a little bundle of joy at the end. My 12 week scan was amazing, just seeing our baby wriggling away gave me motivation to keep going on...that's not to deny that I have really bad days when I can barely cope, I just have to take each day as it comes.

I have my I fingers crossed that you are able to go home soon (with ondansetron!) :-)

GetTheRed glad the ondanestron has helped. I've also wished I would miscarry during this pregnancy and have at times really regretted getting pregnant. My pregnancy was planned following a MC in December so I feel really awful having those thoughts but they are natural when we feel so ill!

I haven't been sick yet today, first time in days I've had any relief. I was so hungry earlier I took DS out to Morrisons cafe and I had one of their all day breakfasts. It was wonderful! I may regret it later but it was worth every bite.

Hope everyone else is having a better day than yesterday x

Just popping in to offer some gentle back pats and support. So sorry to hear what a terrible time of it some of you are having at the moment. I can promise you it does get better (20 weeks for me, with resolution on the whole at 26 weeks) but I fully remember those days of thinking it would never end - keep talking on here and sipping whatever stays down big hugs

Thanks everyone!

Sorry posted too soon, anyway yes it's definitely worth it. I do feel better but was a bit groggy at first and haven't been allowed to eat much. Looking forward to getting back to normal. Feel wierd not being on the list anymore!

mrsnec how absolutely lovely =)

What a beautiful, beautiful result after the misery of all these months. Big congratulations!

bas glad to hear you are a little better today. hopefully it'll last til tomorrow ...

How are you doing fraggle ?

durham it doesnt help much at the time but in the end, all the suffering is for a constructive reason. You'd normally associate this level of illness with something very deeply wrong in the system and possibly life-threatening, certainly not something that at its end will have a life-enhancing result. Not sure im putting it well, but at least all this suffering has a purpose... even if we've just been so unlucky in reacting to the hormones so badly.

getthered is it feasible to buy the ondan on private prescription if they won't prescribe it due to cost? Some people have done that in the past. It really is the best drug and it's also the one that has been the most studied, except for the first line lighter anti-histamines.

Hi everyone! Think my little twins must have sensed Lucinda noticing my absence this morning! You're right I've had a fab few weeks of normality, been back at work and mostly non-nauseous, except a touch in the evenings. However. I tried to lower my dose of promethazine last night, took one tablet instead of two at bedtime, and my usual one this morning and had an awful day!! Crawled to bed at 7 feeling that horrid pressure in my chest. Managed not to vomit, phew. Just wondered what you ladies did over medication? I'm 16 weeks now and really felt that the tablets must be doing so little that I should start to withdraw them. I was obviously wrong! I just get a bit nervous as I get towards the end of the packet about going back to doc to ask for more. But they clearly probably are still doing something. Did anyone else have a period of feeling better and have this issue of stopping meds? Thanks for listening, I couldn't have got this far without you wonderful ladies. Big hugs to anyone suffering at the moment, it really is the most hideous thing to go through xxx

HG goes up and down, emsy. It's the hormones and they change from day to day. At 16 weeks you might be starting to improve overall but many people find it takes til 18 or 22 weeks. The promethazine might be stablizing or masking the symptoms for you and without it, they come back.

So for now I'd definitely stay on the promethazine for another 4 or 8 weeks.

To those of you suffering terribly in the early days who don't think they can cope it will not be like this throughout.

I've been unlucky enough to be sick throughout the 9 months but it has been nothing like as bad as that first trim.

So you just have to survive until it eases a bit after which it's still pretty miserable but it does become bearable.

Morning everyone. Can I ask how many of you were unable to work with hg and how long it took before you could return to work? I have been signed off work for 12 weeks now and it looks like I will be signed off again as my symptoms are not stabilising. I desperately would like to get back to work, not just because we need the money but for my own sanity!

Thanks Meerka, have called the doctor to ask for another prescription.

Durhamred I started to function a bit more normally at about 13 weeks, then felt almost normal at 14 weeks and went back to work but I only work 3 days. This after about 6 weeks of barely functioning at all, spent most of the summer in bed! Clearly the meds are still working for me at keeping the symptoms at bay so I'll carry on with those for now. I'm having twins however so my symptoms are probably more due to the higher level of hormones in the first trimester than traditional HG.

One thing I would say is that tiredness is the enemy, so going back to work if you do start feeling better might set you back again, it's a delicate balance! Do you work full time? xx

I do work full time and i'm now 15+4 weeks with seemingly no let up with vomiting even with ondansetron. I find my sickness is worse on movement and I can barely be a passenger in a car without vomiting within minutes let alone be behind the wheel (I drive to work and tried going back a month ago, I vomited in the car and only lasted 3 hours at works due to vomiting). I'm exhausted all the time and barely eating doesn't help this (what I do eat comes back up), so not sure how I'll manage at work.

mrsnec Lovely picture! A real boost for others suffering.
Emysmarie So glad you are a lot better, and as Meerka says, keep on with those meds, don't feel guilty, you may be able to come off them later but they'll be safe for those twins. You are so right about tiredness; that sets off the symptoms again and makes work very difficult for most and impossible for quite a few.

DurhamRed basgetti and GettheRedout. Don't feel guilty about those grim thoughts -and fully understandable. I had an mc too and I fully understand. Most women on here have felt the same. Usually that twelve week scan makes things a lot more real, though it can take until that impressive twenty week one.
Oklahoma You are brilliant, coming on to encourage others after suffering throughout.
Merka You couldn't have put it better, I think. Great advice as ever.
DurhamRed So glad your OH was so good about getting you . Ondansetron. Added you.
Waves to Booboosto and Fraggle and thanks so much for coming on to help others.
mrsb87 29 September
George by the Sea 6 October
Pickofthepops 7 October
Oklahoma 28 October
Mampam 17 November
Sassehmonsta 15 December
SomeSunnySunday 20 December
Basgeti 21 December
Fraggle 28 December
Sarah 29 December
HenriettaTurkey 23 January
Kalidasa 28 January
Frenetic 14 February
FloweryBoots 26 February
DurhamRed 19 March
Emysmarie TWINS! 21 March
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Durham I've been off for 6 months now. I tried phased returns a few times but it went horribly wrong each time. I work up in the city though so it isn't exactly a low stress job. I struggled for ages with the guilt and feeling useless but eventually conceded that I was sick and that feeling ok ish when at home doing nothing is not the same as being up to commuting into London and working.

It's really hard though when you're used to being busy and productive to have to accept that you just can't. And for such a long time.

hi all- great that you have seen improvement with ondansetron getthered

durham I had 10 weeks off sick in second hg pg. (between weeks 7-17 if memory is correct??) I know what you mean about needing to go back for your sanity but don't rush it. I would say you need at least 2 reasonably good weeks at home before considering it as managing ok athome and working are totally different and having to go off sick again can just set you back further iyswim. if poss phased return/later starts etc?

emsy I have had two hg pregnancies the second of which was twins. I suffered more extreme symptoms in the twin pg but they improved at atound 17 weeks- stayed on meds though until 28 weeks x

durham it really doesn't sound as if you are even remotely up to working yet. You'd need to be physically in a much better place to even feel normal, and then on top of that what okla says, you might not be able to do much at all outside the house.

is there any on line work you can do or any interests you usually have that you can get involved in forums or anythign?

Durham I had three weeks off sick, three weeks before than were I was on holiday and now I've been on a phased return for four weeks and I think I'm going back to full time next week.

My Ondansetron is still working really well but I think the doctor wants me off of it. I'm trying to reduce it but it's not going well and I end up sick again. So going to have to convince the doctor to keep it up.

Do not feel guilty for not being at work. You are Ill, very Ill and you can't work. Do not feel bad about that. Focus on yourself and your baby. Thinking about you.

Thank you everyone for your support. Will be going to doctors again this week to extend my time off and review medication. I think phased return would be a good idea for when I'm ready to go back to work. Ideally working from home would be good but unfortunately our company won't let me do that if I'm I'll.

Thanks elizabethsmum. I've spoken to doc and she's given me another prescription. Fortunately she has the same view that I ought to expect to be on the meds for a while longer as the sickness is almost to be expected with twins. What made you decide to stop the meds in the end, can you remember? Just feel a bit of a fraud taking tablets when I'm well but as meerka said they are clearly what is keeping me well. Had an awful couple of days now after reducing the dose so definitely still need it. Doctor just advised to try lowering it again at some point and see what happens so I guess that's the plan for now.
Durham you're doing the right thing staying off work. Honestly I think most of us suffering with this have probably never been so poorly, if we felt so rough when we weren't pregnant we wouldn't feel bad being off sick at all! Remember this isn't morning sickness you have, it is far more acute than that and not something you should feel pressured to work through. Having said all that I really hope things start to ease for you soon xx

Can't really remember exactly what made me decide to come off meds emsy. I just didn't dare for ages as my first hg preg (singleton) was plagued with relapsing throughout so I knew through experience that it was best to carry on. the meds are obviously working well but you clearly still need them as trying to reduced dosage showed! don't feel a fraud at all and don't worry about any ill effects on the babies- I have been highly medicated through both of my pregnancies and no harm done- as I the same for millions of others!

the effects of the meds are cumulative hence you are now feeling well but obviously pregnancy, particularly multiple pregnancy has an enormous strain on your body which will may give rise to other things cropping up also- I was anaemic from 22 weeks with twins- (as often happens earlier with multiples) so was then on iron, all hg meds plus daily aspirin due to previous severe pre-eclampsia. I was particularly concerned about being able to take the aspirin as it was for medical reasons hence staying on hg meds for so long after symptoms had improved x

mrsnec beautiful! Congratulations!

meerka I am doing ok thank you. 27 weeks now. Reached 6 weeks of no anti emetics now which I am very happy about and my nausea/sickness symptoms had resolved seemingly fully in the last week-two weeks which is really good. Am starting to feel a lot more like my usual self for the first time since I found out I was pregnant!

emsy I tried to come off my anti emetics at a similar time and found that it didn't work out well. So continued for another 5 weeks although not at the full dosing as was able to wean off some a little but but not completely. I don't really know how I knew to stop, that probably just sounds daft, I think I just tried a few times and eventually carried on when I was feeling ok. Really is trial and error

durhamred I was signed off from weeks 8-14 and then went back on phased return for two weeks. I continued to feel like crap for a further 6 weeks but it was nowhere near as bad and I was managing to get through the day just about at work so felt I should carry on. I continued to vomit, albeit nowhere near as frequently for those 6 weeks. In hindsight I had really underestimated the effect of going back to work (I'm a physio and on my feet all day at work with heavy patients and have a 60-80min commute each way also) and when I was tired it felt abit like torture. I probably could have done with another week to two weeks off but it was difficult to judge because at home I felt quite good as wasn't really doing much - plus I was going stir crazy in my house by myself all the time!!

I think we put a lot of pressure on ourselves to be at work when we have HG as we're 'only pregnant' as someone said to me once (could have boxed them from here to Kingdom come!) but if you were pregnant and you were being sick this frequent through d&v or some other bug then you wouldn't hesitate to be off work so why should HG be any different?

Oooh look at me at the top of the list! Thought I would come and give you all an update.
So I've been sick near on every day of this pregnancy, been on ondansatron since the beginning. Still having my morning bile runs! The nausea ramped up in the last couple of weeks.
Today I went for a sweep and I'm convinced things are kicking off for me as we speak! Cannot wait for this to be over

How lovely seeing the pic Mrsnec!

So, talk to me about how I'm supposed to deal with the ondansetron constipation? I'm 9 weeks and struggling on the full dose of ondansetron. I want to be able to reduce the dose as I know that will help the constipation. Any suggestions of what to take that I won't throw up? I think that the glycerol suppositories helped last time but I can't really remember anything helping that much when I was on full dose.

Also, having had reasonably bad HG last time, I'm getting anxious about weeks 10-12. They are always my worst and the nausea on full ondansetron is awful. I'm pretty much able to stomach soup and the odd bit of bland food. Am I just working myself up? Am I a bit odd to be anxious about the next few weeks? I feel a bit silly but I just feel so ill all the time.