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.

Largely unrelated, but can anyone recommend a good book to help me get my head round the fact that I'm gonna be a mum?! I don't know if it's cos I've only just started feeling human again that I'm suddenly panicking, or if this is the normal part of pregnancy to be panicking. I realised today when we were looking at prams in John lewis that I haven't got the first clue what being a mum means! I know a book isn't gonna give me all the answers, but I'm an academically minded person and think that a book (or several) might help me start to settle my mind. We only went to order the pram that we'd picked, and I freaked out!

Ealli - what I've been told, is that if you're freaking out about being a mum, you're gunna be a good one. My friend gave me a pile of baby magazines, they seem useful, but no one has recommended a book yet.
Chintaria - I feel so sorry for you. I'm at 19w with ondansetron. The earlier you get medication and start taking it, the better. Nothing helps completely but it takes the edge off and helps you get enough food and water in to prevent dehydration. You should get ketostix to test your pee for dehydration levels too. And the best advice is to rest. Even now, if I push myself too far, it can throw me back for a couple of days.
Waves to all!

ems I hope you're recovered! definitely agree ask to be tested for iron levels.

chintara welcome, I hope the Belgian doctors are better at handling HG than the Dutch ones. Couldn't be worse, at least. Agreed if you can, get ondansetron and get it now. There's some evidence that taking meds early help prevent you getting as low as you would have otherwise and given your record of hospital admissions there must be a very strong case for you taking it.

Are you in Flemish or French part? If you speak Flemish, there's a Dutch site www.steunpunthg.nl/wordpress/ which is good, they have a Facebook page too. But if it comes down to the worst, the Preg Sickness Support people are excellent and the doctor there was willing to send Ondansetron out to me after two phone chats.

Wishing everyone a peaceful night, one day closer to the end of it all....

thank you for the flowers Mother Hen. I reckon you're downright wonderful.

Thanks everyone and congrats on your pregnancies!

Ealli I haven't heard of a book like that, but agree that if you're worrying about being a mum now that you'll be a fab one! It is such a huge change but a wonderful one. I remember freaking out when I was about 14 weeks with ds - was on the phone to my mum & started sobbing I think it's just a normal part of your head starting to accept what's going on

That's great to hear you all think Ondansetron is good, I actually feel a bit excited about it now! My goodness, it would be amazing if I could somehow manage to keep functioning through this pregnancy!
I forgot to mention earlier that I'm still breastfeeding dd. I know that I'm probably going to have to stop, as I won't have enough reserves, but it makes me feel a bit sad. I also don't want any medication going to her through my milk...

Meerka I'm in the french part of Belgium. They haven't been great so far here, in fact the replacement gp I saw y'day told me he'd never heard of anyone getting HG as badly as me. I'm pretty surprised by that tbh. I just hope my gp will prescribe Ondansetron for me!

Anyway, off to bed now so night all

Chin I'm so glad I've been able to think of something, anyway . I'm still troubled about the childcare issue; not sure what provisions they have in Belgium?
Meerka 'Thanks so much for kind words.
eallsion I have heard, vaguely, that this book on baby care is meant to be good, but for baby's first six months they are probably all much of a muchness . A good idea to get one for OH too; I think there's lots of ones for new father's these days...
www.amazon.co.uk/First-Time-Parent-honest-brilliantly-staying/dp/0007269447/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1433061962&sr=8-1&keywords=Baby+care+new+mothers
What a long link, but didn't want to truncate it. I think it's later on they diverge over toddler discipline.
I hope Penguin Hello ems Hello Original and everyone is coping.

Ah,and I meant to say lilac how are things where you are?

that looks a really good book

The book is now on my kindle. I'll let you know, thanks lucinda!

Bad day today. Had to run out of church after doing the reading... There was a moment when I thought I might actually hurl on the priest. Then had a steady stream of children's liturgy people offering me either water or a hot drink. I managed not to swear at any of them, though my polite no thank you did become "there's no point, I'll just bring it back up".

Really hoping this is just another blip. Perhaps a reaction to my panicking. Not the start of it going to crap again.

Hope everyone else is Ok today.

ealisson Oh dear, poor you, that sounds dismal. Hopefully a hormonal surge is to blame. I've heard that book is good, the ones I had at when daughter was born are probably out of print, Meerka, I meant to ask you, how old is Wilhelm now?

Hello I'm new to this chat thing, so hope I'm doing it right. I must be crazy because I am now 5 and half weeks on my 3rd pregnancy with Hyperemisis. I have two little boys. I have been feeling bad the last few days. I'm desperately doing all the things I remember that work. Only 8 months to go! I'm really hoping that maybe my body should be used to hormones by now so I might not be so bad? My first was my worst I was hospitalised twice. Anyone else out there on 3rd pregnancy?

Hi kayme, congratulations on your pregnancy This will also be dc3 for us (am 4+5). How old are your boys? We have ds who's 8 and dd who's 16 months so won't understand what's going on. She's very clingy at the best of times so a bit worried about how we'll manage.
Are you already being sick? Good luck, and let's hope it doesn't get so bad this time around...

Poor you ealli, hope tomorrow is a better day. I have always found that even a little bit of tiredness makes a huge impact on sickness levels. Hope you get a bit of rest and feel better soon.

I've had a better day today, but seem to recall a bit of a reprieve around this stage in previous pregnancies. I want it to get worse again so I can feel less panicked about things going wrong - crazy hey! I actually managed to stomach a piece of chocolate this evening (putting on weight while I can )
Hope everyone's okay this evening.

Sorry to see new joiners Chintaria and Kayme. As HG veterans, as Lucinda says, you won't need any advice but it's so helfpul chatting to those who know what's it's really like ie sufferers past and present. This thread got me through my HG pregnancy in 2011. Apart from DS who is now 3, I have a DD aged 7. In that pregnancy I was never diagnosed with HG and did not take meds, but had pretty dreadful morning sickness. Currently TTC and really wondering if I'm crazy! Like Chintaria, I swore not to have another. Although I guess one 'benefit' of having done it before is being prepared...
Sorry to hear about your bad day Ealli. It is frustrating when well meaning people try to help, when they really don't understand. Hopefully nobody mentioned the G word? (Ginger )
Hope everyone else has had a tolerable day. Belated thanks to Lucinda for the flowers, and waves to Meerka, Elizmum and everyone.

kayme Welcome, I think like Chintaria and MotherofPearl, you are brave,not crazy. I wish I had been too. Are you on pre-emptive meds? As you will know, they can make sure things don't spiral out of control as least; but as others say, you're the expert. I've known people on this thread who've only had nasty ms within normal limits after two Hyperemesis pregnancies, so don't give up hope yet.
any I hope you are not still struggling on at work with such unsympathetic colleagues?
MotherofPearl The flowers were fully deserved.

Ah, and that 'only' is bad enough and deserves sympathy, but they could cope.
MotherofPearl That made me think, there seems to be a grey area between bad ms and Hyperemesis, with one sometimes going over into the other, and it's bad that you didn't have any treatment the first time.

Lucinda, I guess there is a grey area. I was sick every day during that first pregnancy, but never to the point of dehydration or not being able to keep fluids down, unlike the second time. But as it was my first, I was unsure about what was normal. I also sometimes wonder whether I coped a lot better the first time and was never hospitalised simply because I had no other DC so could rest a LOT. My DP still teases me about how much I slept during that PG, including falling asleep in a restaurant on one occasion! I think we all know that rest and sleep are the best treatment for HG, apart from meds.
Hope everyone having a good start to the week.

Hi everyone and welcome to new ladies.

Eallison and Ems hope you're having a better day!

I finally had some good days! (Still vomited 2-3x day but felt great in between and when sickness did strike it was manageable) I'm getting more confident going out. My mum stayed for weekend, managed a trip to art gallery and restaurant. First time I've dared go to a restaurant since HG started so this is a big step forward!! We chose a quiet airy place with easy access to loo, and DH ordered for me so I didn't have to look at menu. Found I couldn't eat much due to queasiness but so nice being out of house doing 'normal' things again!! DH is delighted. I've been living like a recluse for months but now we're planning more outings and meals out. Key seems to be keeping outings short and not getting too tired.
My mum's very supportive and understanding. Apparently she had bad nausea all way through both her pregnancies (not HG and only occasional vomiting but nausea didn't improve after first trimester) so she understands how draining it is. Like me she could only drink tiny amounts and couldn't tolerate certain foods or hot drinks as they made her sick. Happily she said nausea disappeared as soon as she gave birth!
Still having back and hip pain but not as bad, I've been following Hello's advice about SPD, sleeping with pillow between legs really helps... and have delegated all hoovering and floor-mopping to DH!

I remember when I started going out to restaurants again : it felt such a victory. I found that starters were the way forward, and yes, hubby ordering (he has a better handle on what I can/can't eat anyway!).

Another difficult day today. At work, but gonna go hone early. Hoping it's just a brief hormonal surge and things will settle again soon.

lilac I'm so pleased some of the SPD tips are working, I've had so much great advice and support from this thread that it feels so good to be able to give some back!

Hi I have two boys age 3 and 6. I have not been sick yet. Feeling really sick constantly on the verge but determined not to start. I have been constantly snacking to ward it off. I've been to doctors but only on cycilzine omeprazole and metaclopramide. I'm in UK are you all? I found it really hard to get prescribed anything else. The tablets dint do much.
Nice to meet everyone. Chintaria were you ill with your other two pregnancies? My mother in law told me recently I would be mad if I thought about having another child as I was so Ill.

Just to say hello to everyone and to Chintaria and Kayme! I've had a tough few days and just trying to sit and sleep it out. got signed off for 2 more weeks today and it's increasingly hard to keep only a few people in the know. Would rather wait until the scan is done but I've admitted defeat and have told work and going to tell more friends and family too. Feels a bit unsafe doing this but I can't keep this up.
Just wanted to add my thanks to Lucinda Meerka and Motherofpearl and others who are not currently vomiting and feeling sorry for themselves but are on here giving help and advice based on your experiences.
It has helped me feel a bit more in control of this thing.
Amy haven't seen you on here for a little while, hope you are feeling ok.

daffodilunfortunately it seems a lot of us find that one of the 'side effects' of HG us that we tell more people about being pregnant that we would otherwise. I was exactly the same;told work at 7 weeks (had to ring and explain I wouldn't be in work cos had been admitted to hospital) and hubs family at 7 weeks too (hadn't intended on telling til 12 wks). Close friends knew by 9 weeks and slightly less close friends worked it out by the time we told them at 12 weeks.

At least if people know they can be more sympathetic and hopefully more helpful.

From my previous experience I know you just have to take it a day at a time. Slowly the good days get more frequent. Once the baby is born you just don't feel sick it's amazing! I'm going to try and get some Ondansetron has anyone tried that, did it help?

hi kayme

Can you look up the NICE guidelines that Mother Hen posted above? the link doesnt work but if you copy-paste it it should be ok. It tells you what meds are considered okay. See if you can get cyclizine now (send your husband to get a 100 pack and don't let on you are preg!) and start taking them.

Also have a look at the Goals in the NICE guidelines. Is your doctor helpful at all? if he or she is, it's worth going in asap and planning how to handle the HG meds wise. There's some evidence that starting meds early helps prevent it getting as bad as it could.

lilac ... pleased to hear that you're having the odd good day now! isn't it so much better when you can get out now and then.

Chintara stuff all the choc down yourself that you can :D

daffodil glad you got signed off. Try not to let work worry you; it really is the best thing to rest as much as you can. Like lots of people I had to tell people early too, and scurry round arranging afterschool care and PIL help with looking after teh children. Thanks for the kind words; it actually helps make sense a bit of the pregnancy to be able to pass on a bit of what I learned.

Chintaria I was told lots of time the high hormone levels mean it's a really healthy pregnancy. I'm not sure if they were just trying to make me feel better. At least you know your body is responding to the baby. Take it day by day. It's the worst thing ever but worth it in the end. My first pregnancy I was so bad the doctor said I had to be admitted to hospital. I felt so much better on a drip with anti sickness meds. I managed to eat, I got a little worse when I got home but it certainly got me out of my worst cycle of sickness. You get so dehydrated without realising. The drip made me feel so much better. If I got that bad again I would ask to be admitted.

kayme ondansetron was the only thing that helped me and although it didn't stop sockness completely it reduced it to a manageable level. Beware of the side effects though as I had horrendous headaches and constipation whilst taking it, a few other posters have also experienced that. It's a good idea to take lactulose alongside it to help ease the constipation