Should I over exaggerate sickness to get help from GP sooner?

[SenoraSurf]

I've felt atrocious since week 5 (now 9+4). Ive had a total of 5 days off work (they don't know I'm pregnant yet) and had to countdown to the Christmas holidays so I could get through.

I go back to school on Monday and have spent most of the Christmas break in bed battling debilitating nausea. I have been sick probably 5 times per week on average but mainly because I'm not eating enough. I'm dry heaving much more regularly and it's hurting. I'm getting horrid headaches because I'm not drinking enough but when I do drink, it comes back up.
I haven't been able to take paraceatamol and haven't kept my folic acid down for the last 2 weeks (despite taking it at varying times and with food/without).

Yes, I've tried ginger, phenergan, motion sickness bands, eating biscuits in bed, ice lollies, crackers, crisps and sugary drinks- all to no avail.

I finally have a GP appointment this afternoon. Should I be completely honest and risk being shrugged off? Or do I over exaggerate and say I am being sick more often to encourage some help?

I'm anxious about returning to work as I've only coped this Christmas break by staying in bed till lunch time ( despite not actually stomaching anything) and then lounging on the sofa. I also worry about taking any more time off work, my classes are missing out already by my low mood and absences, I would hate for my new employer to think I'm not invested in my job (started there in september).

I have lost weight and I (and family) have noticed my face is more gaunt. Though, I have weighed myself and my mid section feels huge). I'm a size 6/8.

Any advice welcomed. Feeling very sorry for myself.

Sorry to hear you're suffering, I was in the same boat for weeks at the beginning.

What I would say is not to over exaggerate though, as the doctors will give you a dosage based on your symptoms, and if they have side effects then a higher dosage than you need could mean you suffer from these unnecessarily. If it's not working, you can always go back and say so and they'll up it.

Hold in there! It does get better for most of us in the second trimester. (I know You've probably heard this a million times and it feels a lifetime away, but honestly track your days until it and count down on an app or something to keep your spirits up)

All the best x

Also - I held a confidential meeting with my boss to inform him I was pregnant early on because of the toll it was taking, them being aware takes the stress off you worrying what they're thinking of your performance, and also they'll make appropriate adjustments to help. I'd advise talking to him/her but under confidential circumstances.

personally i think do what ur gut tells u feels right

I don’t think you need to over exaggerate. If you’re struggling to keep down fluids and you’ve lost weight- that should be a no-further-qs prescription. Some doctors are unfortunately still ignorant on this- go on the website ‘pregnancy sickness support’ and consider printing a page that supports this to take with you, or asking for a second opinion if the doctor you see is reluctant to help.
You have my sympathies. I am on my third pregnancy with awful sickness but I remember my first well. I was on my probation year as a teacher and just turned 22. I missed work too, and told my mentor very early on- she was wonderful, and so were my co workers. I remember locking my classroom door on a free period and curling under my desk to cry. But my peers were so helpful, and my good friend along the corridor would grab any notices for me from the office so I had even those extra few minutes in the morning to get to my class with less to worry about. You have my sympathies- it’s really hard. Hopefully some medication will help you quickly.

I don’t think you need to exaggerate at all. Just tell your GP what you’ve written here.

I think they will prescribe you anti sickness pills based on your symptoms described above, no questions asked. I had similar and my dr prescribed them no bother. It’s worrying that you can’t keep fluid down, suspect they will test your urine and if you have a high level of ketones you might get sent to hospital.

Congrats OP and sorry to hear you’re having a difficult time!

I had a very rough time with sickness, nausea and loosing weight. I’m a size 8/10 and lost almost 9 pounds in the space of 4 weeks so definately know what you mean about the gaunt look! (I looked so ill) The GP I spoke to gave me Ondansetron which I’m still using now (I’m 25 weeks) and it halted the sickness which has helped me eat and I’ve put 5 pounds on since pre pregnancy weight now. (Gained the 9 pounds too)

I was worried I wouldn’t be given any medication however, the GP can physically see how you are and provide the right medication. You may be given Cyclizine which is the first medication usually prescribed (I was sick anywhere between 3-5 times per day) I also tried Cyclizine and it didn’t work for me so don’t be alarmed if it doesn’t for you. Some ladies swear by it but do remain persistent in treatment, there are different medications to try. If not you may end up dehydrated and end up in A&E (again been there) or an emergency GP appt. I hope you speak to a understanding GP I’ve had quite a mixture but they should definately be giving you medication - do make it very clear you’ve tried all the natural remedies and it’s affecting your daily life.

There is a HG thread on here which is fab for support, not sure about your circumstances but all my friends/colleagues or family members really blossomed through pregnancy with little to no symptoms and I’ve been so ill and felt abit alone. That thread is brilliant. Hope you feel better soon x

It might be too late for your appointment now, but just in case it's helpful... I actually asked for nausea medication before I had any nausea because I have severe anxiety about it and wanted to have something safe in the house in case I needed it, and to my suprise my GP was happy to prescribe cyclizine straight away. She said the initial dose was always the same regardless of severity, and they build it up if that doesn't work well enough. Obviously, there is a lot of variation between doctors, and I would suggest start with honestly describing how you feel and if you're getting immediate shrugging, amp up the sob story... (sadly that seems to be the way to get help, sometimes!). Though it seems that doctors are starting to acknowledge the need to treat morning sickness a bit more now, so hopefully you will just get the drugs you need.
A while after I got the cyclizine, I came across a news article saying that Diclectin has just been approved for use during pregnancy in the UK under the name Xonvea. I asked about it and the GP was happy to order it for me. It's a combination of doxylamine (an antihistamine) and vitamine B6, and has been used in Canada and the US for decades. There are tons of studies about it and none have found any safety concerns. Cyclizine etc. are also very safe - there is no evidence that they cause any problems, but they have not been specifically tested and approved for pregnancy due to the difficulty of conducting studies on pregnant women, whereas this one has. So if you or the GP are worried about safety, Xonvea might be something to ask about.

Be honest but also tell your employer, why wouldn’t you?

Don't exaggerate, because if things get actually worse, you'll be up shit creek.

The nausea isn't great, but it doesn't sound like hyperemesis, so you don't want medication for something you don't have.

Trial and error got me through. I found a drink I could keep down and a couple of snacks too. I switched to liquid preggo vitamin drops too, as they were easier to keep down.

Thanks ladies for all the advice. I've been given promethazine to take twice daily so hopefully that'll take the edge off. I'm really worried about the tiredness side effects but hopefully it beats the sickness and nausea.

I didn't over exaggerate luckily (if anything, I probably didn't highlight the actual vomiting enough and explained more about how debilitating the nausea has been).

The GP was so lovely which was very nice. It's a new surgery and my old one wasn't very good so glad to feel understood and looked after.

All fingers crossed now. Thanks again X

If you tell your work, they can't hold pregnancy related illness against you on your sickness record. I told my manager st 4 weeks because of how nauseous I was.

You need ondansetron but its expensive

Glad to hear you were listened to and they’ve sent you away with something to try. If it doesn’t help or the side effects are strong, don’t be shy to go back! Hopefully first drug works tho and you can feel a bit more like yourself.

@Senorasurf, how have you been?

I would deffo tell work, if you need more time off then it will be marked down as pregnancy-related sickness so not subject to normal attendance monitoring procedures and won't count against you if they were ever to make redundancies or whatever, you're much better protected legally so I would really do that.

Hope the promethazine works for you. It is so grim, I had HG from week 6 which gradually got better over time, I was off work from then until about week 18 or so when i went back 50% of my time for about two weeks then back full time but on adjusted hours as I was still very poorly in the mornings. It was grim and if I had sick pay other than SSP I would have definitely taken longer off because with hindsight I was still very poorly for the first couple of months I was back at work for, vomiting on my walk to work, vomiting at work...bleurghh. So grim. I hope the meds help .

Hi all,

Promethazine has definitely taken the edge off. I still feel rough when I get up but as long as I get some ginger biscuits straight in me, I can cope.
Im nervous about going back to work tomorrow, as I've not managed to get up before 10am yet during the holidays.
Im going to tell my head of department this week to take the pressure off. I have my scan in a couple of weeks so saves making an excuse for that too.

Thanks for checking in and asking how I am. Hope you are all well.

X