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, phone them on:
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.
On my image of a pink castle: that is an image I use because when I was little, my family had a Snakes and Ladders board with an image on the last square of a pink castle in the clouds. As Hyperemesis is so like a grotesque version of Snakes and Ladders - eat a meal, go up a ladder, first thing in the morning bile run, down a snake - I have used the image of that pink castle on the last square of that Snakes and Ladders board as a metaphor for the happy end of Hyperemesis.

13w4 today and nothing has changed. I had a good day yesterday and wasn't sick at all, just had bouts of nausea but back to normal today. I'm so fed up and worried I'm not going to be able to leave the house on Christmas day or Boxing day, which is my birthday. I've been given Promethazine as cyclizine and metoclopramide didn't help. The new stuff knocks me out and leaves me feeling really groggy, it helped with the insomnia for a couple of nights but last night I was back to insomnia and nausea. I had my scan on Thursday and everything was good with baby but I threw up 6 times that day and it took 3 different midwives to get my bloods as a result. I was reassured that no one seemed concerned though.

I really hope everyone starts to feel better soon, this is miserable and I wouldn't wish it on anyone. I've found crackerbread is really good by the way, it's just about the only food I've eaten over the last 8 weeks that I've consistently kept down.

I think I am just over four weeks pregnant for my positive test on Saturday and got really bad nausea and tonight I'm just bringing up bile as haven't managed to eat much just drink water.

It's been awhile since I've had this but had it with both pregnancies DD1 and DD2 has a MC on 4th Oct and don't have any sickness/nausea with that so hoping this is a positive sign.

Any advice to ease it? Going book to see GP as evenings are worst for me xx

evusch Welcome. That is a lot of weight to lose. I so agree with others, you need medication. There is a lot of ignorance about this condition. Do invest in some kesostix to check for the early stages of dehydration, as it is possible to become dehydrated even without excessive vomtiing. they take these measurments seriously at A and E if you should get so bad that you need IV fluids. Some fluids that might help: ice lollies, ice cubes, the juice of tinned fruit, flat full sugar coke, Elderflower water, soda water, Iron Bru, Dr Pepper, Elderflower cordial with tonic water, fizzy water, lemonade, fizzy orange, orange squash, orange juice (if not too acid), sips of chocolate milkshake (maybe soya), Robinson's fruit drinks and Lucoazade. For foods of a sort, cuppa soup, tinned fruit, baked potatoes,cheap ice cream, slices of melon and mango, nibbles of crisps and chips and now a recommendation of crackerbread.
rachyrach300 Welcome. Sorry about your mcs. I so agree with others, if you find stemetil to be no good, do ask for alternatives.
OctoberGirl Welcome. As you are a veteran, you don't need my spiel above about kesostix etc. The best thing is pre-emptive meds. If you have suffered twice before, they are surely unlikely to refuse.
SassehMonsta I am so glad that things are improving, but jugglng that GD diet seems very difficult. Do keep us informed.
eallison Good advice. That is so dismal about the facial hair and spots. I am glad at least you didn't have spots as a teenager!
Reastie Congratulatons on reaching 13 weeks. Time is passing, really! That's good to hear that a GP is supposed to do a referral if not prepared to prescribe meds.
KSjourney I hope strawberry toothpaste and kids mouthwash helps.
Hurrray for good days.
Olivecake Wise words.
beanhunter I do hope the lactulose others recommend might help.
Perhaps Pregnancy Sickness Support can advise on juggling these meds? It must be so diffiucult.
WeeBean I am glad you have found that crackerbread is bearable, anyway.
MauisLeftNipple Good advice.
Apologies to anyone rudely overlooked.
Watch me cross post.

So thought as I'm seeing improvements I could drop a tablet..... it was a stupid idea! Back up tomorrow and I'm not messing with it till after Christmas dinner!!

Ksjourney I'm struggling with dropping tablets too. Down to 4mg ondansetron per day, which seemed to be ok. Stopped cyclizine altogether (by accident actually as forgot to take it 2 days in a row). I'm usually ok in the morning then get to lunchtime and start feeling nauseous. It gets worse as the day goes on. I think I will start it again as struggled to drink at all yesterday afternoon, and dinner was also very challenging.

Officially 13+1 today. I thought all this business was supposed to stop now?

Good morning everyone (and thank you LucindaE for the welcome).

I had my first few tablets of cyclizine and it's been a life saver! Still not feeling like a normal person but at least the constant nausea is gone and I slept through the night too (normally I would wake up in the middle of the night feeling sick as well). So I hope it continues to improve. How did you decide to start lowering the dosage though? I'm terrified of it being bad again so I think I will never want to stop taking it!

I thought I would share some things that work for me. Definitely a coke, otherwise just water, and camomile tea sometimes (but at other times I could just smell it and knew it was a no go). I wish I could have some juice or smoothie, but no chance. For food, I've been living off crackerbreads and multigrain crackers (which I'm now getting quite sick of as well but it's the only thing I can consistently eat). Otherwise the only slightly more nutritious food would be soups - homemade, very plain and unseasoned. I would alternate red lentils+potatoes soup (well basically just that cooked in water with a bit of salt) or very plain chicken noodle with some bits of chicken and carrots in it. Takes me about an hour to spoon-feed myself a plate, but usually it makes me temporarily better. What a joy.

I hope everyone is having an ok day today

Exactly the same for me. Morning seem to be manageable then come 11am and lunch it starts to go down hill.

This all suddenly stopped around 16 weeks with DD. I am 16 weeks tomorrow...... got to be any day now surely!!!

Just read this - I didn't realise the cost would be so high...
www.google.co.uk/amp/s/news.sky.com/story/amp/nausea-in-early-pregnancy-costing-nhs-60m-a-year-11584561

Mauis we are almost exactly the same timing, I’m 13 weeks today!

Had a better day yesterday, thought I might have turned the corner, was feeling so happy but today feeling back to normal stuck on the sofa. Not even thinking about lowering medication! Only feel vaguely ok when I’m eating, if I can.

Evu I’m so glad cyclizine is helping, that’s great. I remember with me it was the difference between I coukd not cope or take one further minute and it’s still really bad but I think I can cope, which may seem small but it made the difference to me.

KS interesting article. Glad it mentions the mental struggle. I wish GPs were better educated on medication. It’s such a regular thing they must deal with.

I remember last time starting to leave the house to get maternity clothes etc around 15/16 weeks as it was better than it was (still there though) but that’s only a couple of weeks away and I can’t see it getting better that soon. I hope it does. Counting the days.......I can do this......

I haven't dry heaved in several days. I am so pleased! Even getting in the car no longer creates a knee-jerk vomit reaction - thank goodness!

In also positive news, I can eat again. This is good news for growing a baby but bad news that our food bill will be going up again - it has significantly dropped since mid-Sept's bfp. Diabetes diet is ok, though I ran out of test strips and didn't think to check the ones I got on prescription fitted my machine - they don't. Back to the drs later on to sort it all out!

I am glad to hear some of you are more stable, and saddened to see more have joined us - though this is the place to get that important info to keep you healthy. xx

Hi guys, how’s everyone doing? I’ve got a phone appointment with the gp today. Sick note has run out and I’m supposed to be going back to work on a phased return on Thursday. Totally not ready, nausea has gone through the roof again. Could it be anxiety related or is it a hormone surge at 20 weeks? Constipation has really eased but I’m getting a lot of stomach pain (not severe just uncomfortable) and dizzy spells (everything is checking out, blood pressure etc ok) so I’m going to ask the gp to give me longer then ring work and tell them the outcome. I feel really nervous x

Forever I remember getting nervous every time about extending my sick note but there was never a problem onnthat side with getting another and my worry was always for nothing. Hope you get it sorted quickly to stop the worry. FWIW I found worry and anxiety and stress made my nausea much much worse, it was a vicious cycle and one that I never truly managed to break whilst pg. in my case I just had to avoid triggers as much as possible to be able to cope.

Sass yeah to eating! Our food bill has been so expensive and wasteful as what I can manage changes by the day but I tend to have one or two things o can eat nothing but, so I order in loads of then but then I can’t eat them any more and they sit in the cupboard or fridge whilst I move onto the next random food.

Sick notes: I hated requesting an extension every time in my first pregnancy and again thus time. so nervous! However, I've not once had an issue with a GP renewing or work accepting them.

I think I've inadvertently eaten something with cows milk in. I feel really sick. Keep being a little bit sick in my mouth. I cannot work out what I could have eaten tho, as other than party sausages and homemade chutney (and the makers sure no butter or anything) everything i've eaten today is stuff I've bought and eaten successfully for at least the last 2 weeks. I've not felt this awful for weeks. I did drop one dose of cyclizine yesterday (as in, now taking 2 x 50mg/day rather than 3), so that's potentially the culprit... but I was absolutely fine yesterday, and I've never really been convincedthe cyclizine actually helped. Don't know whether to reintroduce that 3rd dose again tomorrow..

Everyone, I have one of my stupid migraines today and as ill luck would have it, had to have the first filling at the dentist's in 20 years. The dentist tried to get me to go without anasthetic - I had that once and never again. I hope everyone is coping today.

Hi everyone

Can I join in? Not sure I fit the HG criteria just yet. I'm 6 weeks today and have been in bed since Thursday with extreme nausea and vomiting the last two days. Twice yesterday and once today but very severely. I can keep fluid down I'm constantly sipping lemonade and some food stays down others not so much. I'm absolutely exhausted and feel sick the minute I wake up until I go to sleep at night. My boss has told me I need a sick note from the GP as will have been off for a week this Thursday. Can they give me this over the phone? DP can collect it for me.

Oh @LucindaE that sounds traumatic. Couldn't imagine having the dentist messing about while having a migraine. Hopefully it has settled now and you are feeling better.

Canonly poor you. I think it depends on the gp. Last pg I had a strict gp who insisted o forced myself into see her initially (but then renewed it over the phone) but this time a lovely gp was happy to do it without seeing me after speaking to me. Sorry that doesn’t help but ring them and see what they say. Hope it doesn’t last long for you.

Lucinda poor you, what a day. Migraines are awful and dental work is grim at the best of times. Hope you feel better tomorrow.

Hope you feel better soon Lucinda
I've read that migraine sufferers are more likely to get hyperemesis so there must be some link between them

lucinda that sounds awful, I hope your migraine has settled overnight.

canonly I suspect a GP will need to see you at least initially for a sick note. It's also probably worth seeing hin/her to get some meds to try to get the nausea/puking under control. Cyclizine is often the first med prescribed. Many find it helpful and it's widely considered safe for mum and baby.

I hope you are feeling better today Lucinda. Why on earth would a dentist offer a painful procedure without anaesthetic? Surely thats against NICE guidelines or something?

Really hope you're feeling better today Lucinda!! I know how horrible migraines can be, the last thing you need is a trip to the dentist!

I've just had to extend my sick line, takes me up to 16 weeks by which time I really really hope this has stopped because I'm so done with the whole thing!

Hi all, I’m new to this thread, but just looking to say hello to others in the same boat, as it’s starting to get me down a bit. I was diagnosed with HG after a 3 day hospital stay on an IV drip and meds last week. Spent since about 7 weeks pregnant throwing up 10-12 times most days and not keeping any food or drink down for 24-48 hours at a time. Took a hospital admission and very high ketones to be taken seriously by my GP after they’d tried me on cyclizine which didn’t work for me. I’m now on ondansetron and prochlorperazine to try and settle things, is anyone else on either of those? It’s the only way I can just about get through the day (though I am off work and my day is on the sofa at the moment) but I do feel worried about baby and all the meds! I’m currently 11 weeks. I’m still struggling massively at the thought of any food, cooking or even being in the kitchen (the smells from my husband’s cooking sends me over the edge!) but Im trying to keep small bits of food down (mostly white bread and plain pasta) as I’ve lost over a stone in the last two weeks. HG is such a horrible and sometimes isolating thing to have, but great that there’s a place for us all to share and support each other.

Hi Mrs b, I’m sorry you’re here but I’m glad you’ve got medication, hopefully it’ll make a real difference to you. I’m 13 weeks and I’m on cyclizine, ondansetron and take prochlorperazine on top as and when needed. Mentally it’s so tough isn’t it. Days go so slowly and it feels like it’ll never get better. It’s so isolating. I’ve been bed/sofa bound most of the last couple of months and spend most of my days trying to find what I can manage to eat. Ondansetron can cause bad constipation so if you haven’t already got something for it then do.

Weebean fingers crossed you’ll be good to go at 16 weeks.

Eal do you think you’ll be back to work as normal in January? I know we both work in schools. I have little hope of a January return for me as I can’t do anything without getting flair up in symptoms. I know my body and I know illmneed to build up my stamina again before I can manage teaching (I’m running around my room all day every day, no sitting at the desk doing quiet written work for me!) and I have to get to a point where I can manage to think about and talk about food and actually cook.

Silver interesting about mingrained linked to hG. I never had a migraine in my life until after I had dd, maybe it mucked me up to cause them!

Had another really bad evening/night yesterday. The type where I can’t cope anymore and wish everything would go away and why am I doing this. I know once it’s over it’ll seem like it was all worth it but my goodness I hate this.

mrsb if at all possible, swap the white bread for wholemeal, or at least 50/50. Ondansetron causes horrid constipation, and white bread will exacerbate it. Also, get some lactulose prescribed as it's pretty essential.

reastie I intend to try to go back in January, but phased gradual return. Aiming for 2 hours a day initially (I work 3 days a week) and we'll go from there.

Reastie - thank you, it does seem to be helping, or at least making me feel a bit more human! It’s really gutting to be ill at Christmas, I normally adore food and particularly Christmas dinner! are you finding the medication helps you? Thanks re constipation, im really struggling with it and my GP has prescribed Laxido. I’m on day two of that but it’s not helped yet. It is isolating and sometimes I have questioned if I can cope with it, but I’m just trying to be strong and push on through. It seriously wears you down though doesn’t it?

Eallison88 - I’ll try the swap, thanks for the advice. As long as I can tolerate it! My list of food I can stomach is ridiculously small at the moment! I’ve been prescribed Laxido sachets, but it’s not making much progress yet.

Mrsb yes it really gets you down. I’m a huge Christmas person but this year I won’t manage Christmas lunch and won’t even manage to sit with my family because of the cooking smells . The medication definitely makes a difference but I still struggle. Atm m coping mentally much better than last time and that’s down to having more medication which has generally helped. It still gets bad and I feel I can’t cope but I know when I need to take more medication as I can feel myself always feeling worse the hour leading up to it.