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

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.

Thanks! Hey another drink I am finding quite good is sparkling water (which I normally can't stand) with lime cordial.

mrsm glad you are OK :-)

Just had some of that new lower sugar choc frij it's just not right, awful after taste and I feel a bit sicky now :-( 2nd day at work better than 1st though. I flipping love work. It makes me feel alive :-)

First day back at work today , went ok but felt rough all day, no actual pukes till I got home though so I'm having that as a win. Did dd bath for first time in weeks as dh working late. Had to do quite a lot of disguising my retching but otherwise survived it. Overall not as awful a day as I thought would be! Hope everyone else surviving x

Ooh I just had my second day back too! So good to be back around people isn't it? I feel much stronger for being out and about and not stuck in my own head all the time! I tried normal chocolate frijj yesterday and that went down pretty well.

Ooh sorry mirabal crossed posts, I had been replying to chops but we'll done for getting through today! I had a puke free day but then vommed after changing the bin in the bathroom tonight. Husband did every other bin and all the recycling and that one tiny bin made me sick! The bathroom is one of my biggest triggers - I've had to change my hand wash, shower gel and toothpaste as the old ones all made me sick!

So sorry I haven't been back for a while but things have been quite difficult. Not sure what was in my last post, but after spending almost two weeks in hospital and the doctors not being able to control the vomiting despite maximum meds, we ended up losing the baby. I've really struggled over the past few weeks, and have felt so sad, but am feeling a bit stronger now. I've managed to put back on 3 of the 9kg I lost while so sick, and am just enjoying being with ds & dd. We have been advised that my body just can't cope with pregnancy as the HG has got worse each time, so we won't be trying again as I was just too poorly
I wanted to say thank you to all of you that tried to give me support and advice, especially you Lucinda. Good luck to all of you still suffering, and I hope you feel better soon.

chintaria so sorry to hear of your loss x

I'm so sorry chintaria I can't imagine how painful this is x

Mrsm it is good to be out of the house and to be able to eat without the awful kitchen smells to contend with. Good to be around people who care about me at work too, everyone has guessed but I'm past caring

Chintaria, I'm so so sorry to hear about what happened to you. You must have been very seriously ill indeed to spend 2 weeks in hospital, and to lose so much weight, and then to lose the baby at the end of it - what a gruelling and awful time you've had. I used to naively think that HG was a good indicator that at least all was well with baby and that it 'protected' against miscarriage, but I see now (with your story and other recent miscarriages on the thread) that sadly that's not the case. Hope you're getting lots of support.
MrsM, Mirabal and Chops: so glad you're all coping at work and finding it a good distraction. I think we've all said before how the mental/emotional side of HG is in many ways the hardest (the loneliness and isolation especially), so if you have the right meds and you're well enough to work, I think that will be a big help. Chops, I'm curious to know what work you do! Seldom encountered such enthusiasm for a job before!
MrsM, your story about the bins and bathroom stuff made me smile. I found I could only use unscented toiletries and cosmetics when suffering. It's odd how even the sight (let alone the smell!) of certain things can trigger a vom. When I was suffering I remember a terrible kitchen-sink emergency vomit brought on by the the sight of a bottle of olive oil (was unpacking an online shop DP had ordered)!
Laura, glad to hear you're doing so much better and able to get some rest now the summer hols have kicked in.

chintaria I'm so sorry to hear that you've gone thru such a horrid, horrid time. Sending gentle thoughts your way.

mrsm I spent a good ten mins sat on the floor at tesco next to the men's deodorant section when I was bad. Partly cos I couldn't get up and partly cos I was smelling all the different roll ons to try to find one my husband could use that wouldn't make me retch! My teeth have survived cos of a child's fruity mouthwash - for an awfully long time brushing was impossible and this particular mouthwash was the only one I could use. I had a bottle everywhere - still have in car and both loos just in case. But at the peak I had one at work, MILs, bag, husbands bag if he had one with him...

Those enjoying being back at work; I totally get it!when I went back when I was actually well enough to be back, it was such a relief to talk to people, contribute something again, and to see the students. Saying that, I'm so, so glad it's the summer hols now -if it wasn't, I would have to start my mat leave soon - I'm exhausted!

Anyone struggling with spd/pgp... I can't totally recommend a chiropractic. I'm still in some pain, but after only 3 sessions (plus an assessment at the start) I am really feeling the benefit. I can walk without wincing, stairs don't make me cry, and my back isn't in constant pain. Still a long way to go -looking forward to being able to sit down in a comfortable position, but feel that might only be when I no longer have a bump attached to my front!

Wishing everyone a gentle day

So sorry for your awful loss chintaria

Ha pearl I actually work in a diagnostic lab in a hospital. It doesn't sound great or glam but I love it :-)

Feel crappy today, wish I was at home on the sofa. I am so tired :-(

Chops, are you back full-time? Or is it you who will be doing 4 days? Even if not full-time you are likely to feel tired. Just hope it doesn't set you back. Try to get as much rest as you can under the circs. Diagnostic lab sounds pretty glam to me (I'm an academic, so anything is glam compared to that!). :)

Chintaria so sorry for your loss.

Thanks for your concern everyone. I couldn't face posting yesterday. The doctor I saw was the same one I had spoken to the evening before. She asked if I'd tried natural remedies like ginger. She told me that I shouldn't be taking anything at all before being hospitalised due to needing rehydrating and that I didn't have hyperemesis as I'm not vomiting constantly. The fact I've lost 5lbs in a week due to not being able to eat and drink properly didn't matter. She then told me I was risking harming the baby by taking anything and to think carefully whether I was prepared to take that risk. Finally she did grudgingly prescribe me ondansetron, twice a day, with enough tablets for a week but refused to renew my cyclizine prescription alongside it. We go away on Saturday for our summer holiday and when I said I'd run out of tablets while we were away her answer was that I shouldn't because I shouldn't be taking them everyday anyway. I have felt so horrific all yesterday and today I don't know what to do.

Barmee, that's so frustrating. Ginger hit squad duly dispatched to deal with your idiotic GP.
Could you try ringing the Pregnancy Sickness Support number (see number above in Lucinda's opening post for the thread)? I know some sufferers have found it excellent in getting help, and getting the names of doctors in your area who are sympathetic and understanding of HG (and who know about how to prescribe the right meds). It really infuriates me, this GP ignorance about HG. Imagine saying that the meds risk harming the baby, when there is no evidence to substantiate this?! I sometimes think that the only way to get reasonable treatment is getting admitted and seeing hospital consultants in EPUs, who have a much better grasp of the whole thing. Really sorry you're feeling so bad and not getting the help you need - you have all my sympathy. Do try ringing the number.

Chintaria I'm so sorry for your loss. Hope you're taking good care of yourself. Thinking of you.

Barmee your doctor sounds terrible and very misinformed about HG! Sorry you had such an awful useless appointment. It makes me so angry when doctors give out bad advice and don't take sickness seriously!
I agree with MotherofPearl about ringing the Pregnancy Sickness Support number, a few people on this thread have had good results from this and found local specialists. There are so many safe meds, it's madness for a GP to tell you otherwise! Even the NICE guidelines recommend early treatment to prevent symptoms getting worse. If more GPs were better informed about meds, fewer women would end up in hospital being re-hydrated!
If I were you I'd avoid consulting this GP again. Are there other doctors in your practice who might be better? I had to see 3 different GPs and change to a new practice before I was taken seriously, and even then I only got proper help and stronger meds from the doctors on gynae ward and EPU.

Eallison really glad your SPD is easing up a bit!

About scented products, I had to change most of my products too, though I find some 'unscented' products now have a strange smell that was undetectable before I was pregnant. My Clinique moisturiser is fragrance free but smells 'musty' even though it's a new bottle! Funny how pregnancy hormones affect sense of smell. Strangely I love the scent of all DH's colognes now, even the ones I didn't like pre-pregnancy. It's as if I can smell lots of individual ingredients in them rather than one scent. I used to tell him to throw some out as they're years old and I was convinced they'd gone off. Now they all smell divine However I've had to ban him using certain other products... he had a lemongrass face-wash that made me feel nauseous, and I was convinced one of his aftershaves smelt like lettuce!

Barmee please please call the pregnancy sickness helpline, they were amazing for me and indignant on my behalf and reassured me I wasn't being ridiculous to push for better care. I cried when she called me back with the name of a hg knowledgeable doctor. Avoid your ridiculous gp like the plague, people like that have their minds made up already. Can you swap by to another or change surgery? I know it's an upheaval but you need expert care on this not dinosaurs with outdated views. Good luck x

chintaria I am so very sorry for your loss and ever thing you have been through. it seems that we have had such a run of sad news on the thread lately. please be gentle on yourself xxx

barmee your Dr sounds completely uninformed and in the totally mis-informed about hg. as others have said I would urge you to seek advice from the Dr at PSS.

Glad that work is going ok for those managing to make it back. when I was well enough I did actually enjoy the distraction of work as it is actually mentally tougher being at home I think- i especially found this after 10 weeks off sick- actually couldn't wait to get back!!

I will be away from Fri for a couple of weeks with fairly patchy Wi-Fi but will try and keep up with the thread as much as I can.

waves to everyone

I must be really annoyed about your Dr to call them both uninformed and mis-informed in the same sentence barmee

lilac I can't stand the smell
Of some things either. I made OH smell washing liquid to find the least offensive one as persil made me vomit ever time I smelt it in clothes. Just the sight of a bottle of it can get me going. Yuck!

Hope everyone is coping OK today? Barmee, how are you now?
Lilac, Laura and Eallison: all the smells stories really reminded me of the horror! I used to make my DP apply his deodorant at the opposite end of the house, far from our bedroom and bathroom, couldn't stand even the residual smell of it. I think it was poor Lucinda who was so sickened by the normal smell of her DH that she had to sleep with a lavender sachet on her nose!
ElizMum, enjoy your hols, hope you get plenty of relaxing done! :)
Waves to everyone.

Thanks everyone. I'd forgotten how amazing the support on this thread was. Elizabethsmum you did make me chuckle.

I went back and saw a different GP today-she's always been my favourite and she's even more so now. She was very diplomatic but has prescribed me cyclizine and ondansetron on repeat :) So I have enough to get through the holiday, both together. She's also said to go back if I want her to sign me off work for a while!

that's brilliant news barmee well done you!

I feel like a weight has lifted already Mirabel. Actually feel like I might be able to spend some quality time with the DCs this summer holiday rather than being a useless mess!

barmee that's brilliant news!