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.

Ah Penguin sorry you're having a bad day :( Did they say if it could be down to the metoclopramide?

Lilac Pleased you managed to enjoy a hot choc, but not good about the water! :( I also need to ask about SPD today as my hips and lower back are very painful, especially my left hip. They also click very often and its sore when they click!

Goodness, Penguin and any just hurrying on to symapthise.
Penguin I'm sure if the drug reduced movements to the point of it being worrying, they'd have suggested putting you on something else, so I'm confused, though I have heard that there is one drug that reduces movements a bit, I stupidly forgot which; can you get some advice from the consultant about your drug worries as you don't want to try and struggle on without meds. It's a dismal situation.Ah, I see I have just echoed lilac's commnents...
any I am, like others, outraged at the insensitivity of that boss. I bet he thinks its the end of the world if he has a violent stomach bug for one day.
Really sorry. I think men who make such jokes deserve their shoes to be vomited on.
Sunshine As below, Mother Hen thinks you shouldn't try and soldier on without meds, particularly as you have to work, and this seems a very Hyperemesis like form of morning sickness. Which country did you say you are in?
lilac Sorry about water, isn't that ironic; anything healthy the body as often as not rejects...
Apologies to anyone rudely ignored. Melleeand everyone I hope coping today.

I wouldn't expect him to come to the toilets and rub my back but yes... very insensitive! Luckily I leave in 10 minutes for my appointment and won't make it back today, so I can go home and get some rest! I feel better than earlier on and no more vomit since... but just feel generally run down and knackered today.

My Dr has just kept represcribing the tablets without seeing me. I don't think my consultant knows I'm on them. I went for an early scan at 6 weeks and they asked what medication I was on. Even though I stopped them all 2 weeks later, on all my scans etc it comes up with that medication. So when I saw my consultant last week and he looked at my scan results, the meds I'm taking now wouldn't be on there, if you see what I mean?

I meant to mention it to ask if it was safe etc and then we got side tracked by how big the baby is and what that might mean for the next few weeks etc.

I've mentioned I'm on them to the midwifes when I've been in for reduced movements, but they haven't seem interested/said anything about it. I wouldn't trust them too though, as the care I've had there has been awful so just because they haven't said anything, doesn't make me feel that they're not the problem.

Only 8 and 1/2 weeks to go (fingers crossed). Mentally it's easier counting down then it was in the first trimester when I was counting up!

Penguin I think the doctor 024 7638 2020 might be the best to advise as it doesn't look as though you're getting a lot of advice about your concerns? It is a horrible dillemma; enough to make anyone feel tearful.
lilac Sorry, I meant to express sympathy over spd - as with Hello I do so hope you have an easy birth as some form of compensation...
any I hope feeling better.
Watch me cross post with someone...

sunshine welcome. What meds did the obstetrician put you on? We do tend to soldier on and try to minimize things but I'm not sure it does us any favours in the long run!

penguin very pleased to hear the baby's movements have picked up! I coudlnt find any info on reduce movements and metoclopramide but as lucinda says, the doctor on the number she gave would be the one to ask. If you leave a message he will get back to you. I know what you mean about loosing faith in the midwives.

amyy i reckon next time you need to time a vomit when yoru boss is standing next to you. Just turn your head to talk to him ...

lilac rest as much as you can! the water incident sounds horrid. Do take care.

I was on metaclopramide for two previous pregnancy's I took it all the way through. I've just been prescribed it again this time. The doctor said there has been some links with mobility in the person taking it if you take it too long but not very common.
If you are having to take tablets to keep you going then you have to. It's easy to feel guilty but we also have to look after ourselves.

kayme most women are fine on it but if you are one of the ones who gets twitchy, stop it immediately as the effects can be permanent. You're not supposed to take it longer than 12 weeks at a stretch actually because of that, though the rule change is fairly recent.

but on principle, yes, it's often much more sensible for someone with severe nausea and / or vomitting to take appropriate meds so that they can 1) not run the risk of dehydration and 2) be in a good enough shape that they keep their life going.

Hi Meerka and Lucinda, I'm in Belgium and the Dr Gave me two things to try, the first was just concentrated ginger as I was keen to avoid meds if possible as I was only being sick in the morning at that point (no real change noticed whilst taking that). The second was metoclopramide. This didn't stop the vomiting or nausea either, in fact it worsened a bit and I started getting evening nausea again too, so after the week trial I opted to stop taking. Since then, with no meds whilst waiting for my next appointment things have been fairly steady, but worse than a few weeks ago, so now the new pattern is vomiting in the morning and nausea and occasional vomiting in the day/evening, with no days Sickness free days for a couple of weeks.

Amyy can definitely sympathise with your bad day...Having one of my worst in ages today, sick 5 times this morning already, hopefully just a blip...

Sorry for the moan, just wishing I could go back a few weeks and have a sickness free day once in a while!

Haha Meerka I certainly felt like it!!

I must have just been having a bad day... on top of being very sick, we had MW app and she point blank refused to listen to HB even when I got upset and then told me that all my symptoms of SPD couldn't possibly be SPD as I am only 17 weeks and to book GP appointment as must be something else, then we picked our pooch up from groomer and the groomer had cut a chunk out of the inside flap of her ear, poor thing. Plus a shitty day at work so I'm pleased to say I am a million times better today! I haven't been sick at all, although had a very very nauseous moment but it passed.

Sunshine sorry you are having a rough time Hope it eases up for you!

Great advice Kayme from Meerka as always.
any So glad you feel a bit better after a day like that.
Sunshine Mother Hen flaps and urges you to watch out for the ketones, with so much puking.
Back soon.

Hi all. Been a bit quiet for a while as pretty much keeping my head down,getting thru the work day, getting home and sleeping. I too have been having problems with my back (I wonder if perhaps there's a connection with all the vomiting? Im fairly sure my back problems started when I pulled a muscle at the bottom of my back at 7 weeks pregnant). Went to see the doc yday and am being referred for urgent obstetric physio - hopefully the referral will come thru whilst I'm still pregnant!

I'm exhausted all the time. I think this is particularly bad at the moment cos I'm sleeping so badly. I'm waking up pretty much hourly with back ache. I can get myself comfy, but wake up in the same position in pain. I have a similar problem during the day, but going for short wanders and rearranging myself on my chair fixes it. Obviously when I'm asleep I can't make the changes every 15 mins or so, so as a result it gets to be unbearable and wakes me up. Oh well, only temporary! As with Al things HG; this too shall pass!

I'm reminded of a famous saying by Sister Julian of Norwich (a christian hermit living a few hundred years ago) "all shall be well, all shall be well and all manner of things shall be well". The perhaps it's easy for her to say, she was never pregnant!

Hope others are doing okay. amyy I second the advice to vomit (preferably loudly and in a projectile manner on your boss next time. Then sweetly apologise for being pregnant and offer him a tissue.

Ealli - I think more intense joint pain does go hand in hand with HG. I read an article about how the baby drains your body of nutrients, including calcium from the bones. This is no doubt worse for us poor sufferers who have little say in what we can eat and keep down. Now I'm going to go and get a milkshake because my back has been giving me strange twinges the last couple of days.
Hope everyone is surviving!

Amyy - I would definitely vomit in the vicinity of your boss. We all have triggers, so it's not too hard to schedule a vomit session. My boss goes pale at me even mentioning puke, but my midwife seems to think I'm doing better than I am, and I'm soooo tempted to have a heaving session in her bathroom next week. Would only need to eat a couple of mouthfuls too much for breakfast and voila!

Baby (or at least bump) has grown significantly over the last 4 or 5 days. Vomiting is worse. Particularly at night when everything feels incredibly tight, unpleasant and trapped windy. Last few nights I've had a massive vomit session at bedtime, completely emptying my stomach. Then everything feels more comfortable and bearable and then I can sleep. Surely this isn't gonna be the case for the next 16 weeks?! And surely it's not gonna get worse as baby/bump gets bigger!?

Woo hoo... feels like normal service has resumed. Ate breakfast (the same thing I've been eating successful for about 5 weeks) and then chucked it all up. So my body seems to have reverted to rejecting all food again. Deep joy. The first sign of vomiting at work and I'm going home.

eallison Really sorry to hear that vomiting is so bad again.While it may be just a blip, if it goes on, did you say you'd largely reduced meds and might be an idea to go back on them? But I had to smile at your 'normal service is resumed' quip,oh dear.
Mellee If your boss is unsympathetic, whyever not? Much sympathy for everyone having back and joint pain.
Chintaria and others I did ask the Pregnancy Sickness Support co-ordinator about if there were any volunteers who did childcare support, etc and she emailed back this rather unsatisfactory reply:

*Yes this is something that has been coming up through the helpline especially when sufferers are new to the area/have moved away from existing support networks.

Unfortunately this kind of role is outside that of our peer supporting role although some volunteers are happy to help where they can, this however very much depends on capacity and therefore isn’t expected.

Having had a look online signposting to charities such as; Home Start, British Red Cross and Carers Trust or organisations like www.ukhca.co.uk/findcare/

Sufferers could also contact their local church, nursing home or hospital to see if they have any volunteers that could help at home as well as asking their children’s school/ nursery to see if any parents could help with additional childcare etc.

Sufferers can also request an Adult Social Care needs assessment from their local council to get a support plan and also to enable their partners/carer to receive support. www.nhs.uk/Conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/Pages/assessment-care-needs.aspx

There are companies that offer homecare (at a cost) a list can be found here: www.nhs.uk/Conditions/social-care-and-support-guide/Pages/national-homecare-providers.aspx

Cost can be a huge factor and therefore this option isn’t available for everyone.'*

It's about time, what with several new people, dopey Mother Hen updated the due dates list. I'll be back with the old one asap.

Oh no eallison sorry to hear that :( hope its just a blip x

Loving all the vomiting suggestions! I wish I had the balls to do it haha

Hope everyone is doing as well as can be x

sunshine another Belgian person =) chintaria is also there! I'm over the border northwards in the NL

Do you have anyone from the UK who could send you some Cyclizine? you can get it from boots in a pack of 100, it's about 20 quid. (are you on any other meds than Metoclopramide?) It's an antihistamine and can make you sleepy but it helps a lot of people. It's usually the first line of defense with HG as if it helps, it's pretty good. It's also considered completely safe for the baby and mum. You can take it at the same time as Meto.

The only use for ginger in HG is unmentionable in polite company.

amyy sounds like you had a horrible day, no wonder the HG was worse! one of the problems is how alone you are with it :(

regarding bones - I believe that the nutrients are drained first from your teeth before your main bones. You might want to check with your dentist after it's all over (lets face it, being unable to clean your teeth can't help either, nor the effect of the upchuck on the enamel!)

ealli ... thinking of you and hoping your hormones go back to a reasonable level. take good care ... have you got a quiet weekend planned?

lilac and penguin and kayme and hello and ems and chintara and mellee and everyone how are you today?

Oh man, I woke up feeling good this morning, no vomit before leaving the house. Then driving to work some idiot was speeding down the middle of the road and swerved last second missing me by an inch!! It shook me up and must have awoken the HG and now vomiting at work :( had just taken my cyclizine as well!

any I meant to say, is that generally the case with spd, then,that it doesn't manisfest until later? But very frustrating for the midwife not to credit it; I wonder if Hyperemesis, besides triggering it, might not also make it come on earlier if only due to the bed rest you have no choice but to go in for, or something?
Lol about vomiting suggestions. I wish I had vomited on the shoes of my GP. Women with this are too polite about it.

Been to gp this morning. More ondansetron for me to get back in control of the sickness. Change of ranitidine to omeprazole. Sent me home for the day.

Quiet weekend apart from a gig tonight... 45 mins drive away.Gonna see how I feel after a day of sleep. Hubby's uncle lives near the gig, so I reckon if necessary we can get a bed there. It's not a big gig. Probably only a couple hundred people. But one of our favourite artists so I wanna try if I can. Bad timing!!!

Lucinda I think it was just my midwife couldn't be bothered to do anything at that appointment. She told me I would not have gained anything to cause any pressure... I will upload a pic of my bump from yesterday!! To be fair I have lost a lot of weight thanks to HG but still... my body won't be used to this bump being there. My friend was with the midwives the next area over to me and its surprising just how different they are. The problem is that hospital is a little further away and I have never used it so stuck with my usual hospital. She had SPD from 16 weeks and was sent straight to physio. I will book a GP app at some point, and currently following advice from the internet, but just annoyed she didn't have the time of day for me.

Still vomiting at work, gutted :( Ploughing on with my work as too busy to leave.

eallison hope you manage to make it to the gig and have a good time x

Eallison sorry you're suffering again. I totally get the thing about growing bump reducing space for food! My bump's suddenly grown too, everything feels tight and my ribs/internal organs feel squashed. And baby seems to have a fondness for somersaults!! I can only eat tiny portions or it all comes back up, scary to think bump is going to get a lot bigger! If I drink more than a few sips of liquid I vomit instantly. This morning I drank half a cup of cold tea too soon after cereal, lost the whole lot few mins later! Do you find it helps to avoid liquid with food? I try to stick to yogurt-drinks with food then wait at least an hour before having sips of water or juice.

I'm sure SPD is linked to HG in some way. I started getting low back pain around 14-15 weeks, jarred when vomiting/retching and hurt climbing stairs. Repeatedly crouching and bending over loo in awkward positions probably doesn't help! Pain gradually moved to right hip as well as back, then spread round between legs to pelvic bones, now it's a constant ache worse when moving. I also have weird sensation like my upper thighs are being forced apart, too painful to bring knees together or stand on one leg (bit like the saddlesore/bow-legged feeling after riding a horse all day!) Sleeping with pillow between legs at night helps, but every time I get up to go to loo it's excruciating as everything stiffens up while asleep, hurts to put weight through right leg so end up hobbling to bathroom clinging onto furniture. DH keeps laughing at my 'pregnancy waddle' though he redeems himself by offering unlimited massage!
Amy do ask your GP or obstetrician to check for SPD. My midwife kept saying my back/hip pain sounded 'like normal pregnancy aches' but this week obstetrician examined me and diagnosed SPD at once. He said it 'won't get better until after the birth' and is likely to get worse but that physio will teach me ways to cope with it and can take codeine when bad. It's so frustrating!! Daily life is already limited by vomiting, now it's painful too.