Nausea is getting too much - medication?

[123456kent]

I’m 8+3 weeks with 2nd child. For the past few weeks I’ve had all day relentless nausea (no sickness) and it’s getting to the point where I can’t cope anymore. It’s there from the minute I open my eyes until I go to bed, food helps, while I am eating it, but once i’ve finished I feel terrible again. The entire day I feel lIke there’s a washing machine in my stomach. I haven’t been sick at all, sometimes I just wish I would be, if it gave me some respite. I had the same with my DD who is 23 months now, and it calmed down a lot by 12/13 weeks, returning towards the end but not as terribly. If I go to the doctor would he give me tablets? And from what I’ve read, all tablets are drowsy - something I really don’t need when already feeling exhausted! Are there any non drowsy options? And would they even prescribe for someone not being sick? I feel like all I do is count down the minutes til the day is over every single day, it’s making me miserable. I’m struggling at work, but also struggling at home, so taking time off work isn’t even an option.

You’ll find some doctors will & some who brush it off as ‘normal’. 🙄

How are you doing for eating & drinking? If the nausea is so bad that you are struggling to do either, then it’s a concern..

I have HG pregnancy no.2 and I’ve tried every med going. The first line drugs they may give you are drowsy but some people find they get a tolerance to it or being tired is a million times better than being sick/nauseous. There are non drowsy drugs but they are generally used for more severe sickness sadly..

I’m on 2x meds which stop the majority of my severe vomiting BUT don’t even touch the nausea And I am 100% on your side when you say the nausea is debilitating. It is. 24/7 feeling like you are about to throw up is frankly awful & soul destroying. There’s no respite, it never ends. It’s grim. I hate opening my eyes in the morning, I get an overwhelming sense of dread for the day ahead.

You say you can’t take time off sick? Any reason why? Sometimes you just need a breather and a rest. You could sleep and make the days pass quicker?! Is your child at nursery/school etc during the day?

I have been prescribed Phenergan tablets for constant nausea but no vomiting. I was struggling to eat more than a few mouthfuls before retching, could pretty much only lie down and it was waking me up in the night. The tablets have really helped but the drowsiness is bad but I've been signed off work so not too much of an issue. It does seem to wear off after about a week or so. I'm now wondering when/how to stop taking them. I'm not sure if my nausea has mostly stopped or if the tablets are working?!
I really sympathise as it's horrible x

Would you expect some poor soul suffering the effects of chemotherapy to go to work on their tough days? You might not be ill, but your suffering is real. Do see your GP, take time out, rest and be kind to yourself. Growing a whole other person can be a ghastly experience. X

Fortunately my eating really is fine, although that wouldn’t help my cause with a doctor I know. I am managing to eat big, good, healthy meals and it really is the best time of the day when I’m wolfing down a meal my DH has made in the evening. But about 30 mins later I’m back where I started.
I also have that sense of dread when I open my eyes in the morning.
I wouldn’t want to take time off work because of the guilt for colleagues, but also tbh the days I am off it really doesn’t do me any good. I’ve had today off and my parents took my DD for 4 hours and I slept - now I’m anxious that I won’t sleep tonight. I’m just sitting around thinking about how bad i feel. As hard as work is, it does stop me from thinking every waking minute ‘i feel ill i feel ill i feel ill’ - it’s a distraction. Last pregnancy I spent a lot of time sitting on the floor of the toilets, head in hands. This time I may upgrade myself to the first aid room at least!
I tried phenrgen tablets years ago (I can’t remember for) and they totally zonked me.
Sounds like all tablets, if they even gave me some, would cause drowsiness.
It’s nice to hear from people in the same boat, thanks for nice messages. Sometimes I feel like as there’s so visible symptom i.e. vomit, it sounds like you are just making a fuss about nothing!!

I totally understand OP as I'm in the same boat now. 7 weeks 3 days here on pregnancy number 4 and I've had it with all of mine. Today has been a particularly bad day. I haven't even been able to get out of bed.
I'm on phenergan 4 times a day but it hasn't helped the nausea at all. All that helps is sleeping. I must be sleeping for 18 hrs a day. But then that doesn't help keep my fluid levels up. Catch 22.

I wish I could offer some advice but I can't. Just know that you're not alone x

Don't worry about it "only being nausea" and get yourself some medication asap! My nausea was so bad I had to take 2 weeks off work (unpaid as self-employed). I've been on anti-emetics since 5w and still have to take them now at 39w! Throwing up has been rare but the nausea is just too much to cope with. I've tried stopping the pills but it's always back within a few days, although nowhere near as bad as the first trimester.

I live abroad where they are sold over the counter. You really get used to the drowsiness but, anyway, it's better than the nausea. If you take before bed at least they help with pregnancy insomnia which is a plus!

Hello, back on this post again. In this past week, my nausea has got worse and I’m now in a place where I can only just lie in the dark with my eyes closed. I’m struggling with food a lot. By some miracle I’ve managed to get a doctors appointment at the hospital today - in a few hours! Should i be requested cyclizine? Or phnergen? Or something else? I can’t walk away empty handed. I need a miracle tablet so I can go back to work tomorrow!

Hi OP,

You can get Promethazine (sold as Avomine) OTC so no need for prescription. Thinks it's about £5 for a pack of 20-odd? I do get it on prescription as I don't have to pay for it then, which helped me as I took them religiously earlier on in pregnancy. That, and I have emetophobia.

I was prescribed cyclizine (sp?!) but only after being sick 4/5 times a day and keeping noting down - steadily got worse from about 8 weeks and got prescription at 16. For me they worked like an absolute dream and I didn't feel tired/groggy on them. Am now 21w and have managed to cut down to only taking 1 a day (from 3 a day at the outset) - I assume as I'm 21 weeks nausea is steadily subsiding.

Can't offer any help as to whether a dr would prescribe for you but wanted to give my experience of the magical cyclizine!

Poor you - that's basically how I ended up. It's probably a bit late now but I think promethazine and cyclizine are both antihistamines so very similar. I think it just depends what your dr prefers. I saw the dr again on Friday and she said they are the first line of meds to prescribe as they're viewed as the safest. I'm on the lowest dose of 3 x 10mg a day. They do help loads but don't get rid of the nausea completely. I'm 10 weeks now and have had a few almost nausea free days which actually worried me a bit but I've been feeling pretty sick since Friday. Luckily the medication seems to keep it to a level where I can function and usually eat normally.

Let us know how you get on x

I got given 5 days worth of cyclizine, so will give that a try. I haven’t had one yet but am currently up and about and feeling better than I have done in a few days. So that leads me to my next question - do I take it when I’m feeling ‘well’ (or nearer to well than death warmed up) to prevent nausea, or when I’m feeling really unwell to treat it?

I was pretty bad when I got my first weeks worth. I set a second alarm 20 mins before my normal one, woke up had a tablet and dozed for 20 mins. I found that just about long enough to kick in get me through the "shower, dressed" routine. I would then need another about midday and another as I was about to leave work - 6ish. If you've been really bad try taking one first thing and when you notice you start to feel bad take a second? Or maybe just go with whatever your prescription is? Mine was one tablet 3 times a day but dr said to try and get it down to 1/2 a day if poss. Hope they help.

I initially just tried taking them when I felt I needed to but it didn't really help. It seemed like I would then feel terrible for a few hours before getting a couple of hours relief then bad again. I rang the dr who said to take them 3 x a day as prescribed and it has been so much better although it did taje a few days to get the full effect.
I take one before I get out of bed, then one at lunch and one at dinner, roughly 5 or 6 hours between each one.
Good luck x

Thank you very much for your advice!!
Now to try and get a doctors appt this week for more tablets, as I only have 5 days worth!
I’m 9+2 and I remember that by my scan at 13 weeks I was pretty much almost normal last time. Please be the same this time 🙏🏻

I'm glad they took you seriously and prescribed something!

I always took a tablet first thing, then took the next when I started to feel that downhill slide (sometimes lunchtime, sometimes not till evening) I was incredibly sleepy for maybe 2 days, then my body seemed to adjust to them and I was fine.

I hope it works for you too and the sickness passes quickly for you!

Glad you got some help, it’s not worth suffering so badly. It really is debilitating.

In my experience, you need to take meds consistently. if you leave them until you feel awful again, they’ll take longer to kick in!

I don’t really think the cyclizine is doing anything, except causing drowsiness. I feel so so unwell. I’ve spent 2.5 years worrying about feeling unwell after a rough first trimester with my DD and this is about 10 times worse! Just hear for a rant, it’s a very isolating experience. I feel like I’ve not cracked a smile, had a conversation or socialised in weeks. DH is providing lots of practical help but I really need emotional support :-( can’t wait for this to pass (10 weeks tomorrow)
If the cyclizine isn’t working, should I just stop it? That’s what GP advised

I got Stemetil. Really helped me feel a bit more alive. My community midwife initially said I couldn't get anything as I wasn't vomiting, then the midwife in the hospital got it as soon as I said to her.
The nausea was horrible and I kept losing weight & didn't leave the house for weeks. Even when I was sick it didn't alter a thing.

I had HG for both pregnancies. If the cyclizine isn't helping, go back and ask for something stronger. I got given Metaclopramide as the next step, and then Prochlorperazine after that when that stopped working, and finally on to ondansetron for the rest of my pregnancy.

2nd pregnancy I was on Prochlorperazine for the majority of it as the ondansetron didn't have any effect on me. Constant sickness is bad, but I found the nausea worse as there never seemed to be any relief.

Cyclizine didn't work for me at all. Ondansetron and metaclopromide might be worth a try. Good luck!

I know how you feel. I have had awful sickness and nausea and luckily my doctors were very helpful but as yet, we haven’t found anything that helps. It got to the point that I decided that if no medication was going to help me, I wasn’t going to keep taking it incase it affected the baby, so I have been struggling on for the last 4 weeks.

Lots of sympathy from me OP. I was the same as you and found with my second pregnancy (currently 28weeks now) I was a lot worse. I think partly because I still had a toddler to look after. I would definitely go back to your doctor and ask for a different anti sickness tablet. A lot of them do make your drowsy unfortunately. Does your first child still have naps? I coped by taking two tablets a day one before bed and one about half an hour before my DD napped so I could nap with her. I was signed off work as I just couldn't cope.
They say 8/9 weeks is the worst time for it. Hope it starts improving for you soon

If its any help, I have felt as sick as a dog from 4-8.5 weeks. Overnight it just stopped, and i have now had a few days completely sickness free.

So it might just stop instantly overnight like mine rather than drawn out.

Thanks for advice/sympathies.
I’m thinking that I might just stop the tablets and forget medication altogether. The nausea is unbearable, but adding in the drowsiness and just feeling totally out of it is making me feel so isolated and miserable. I can barely remember the past 5 days. My toddler does still nap, so I’ve just slept for 2 hours while she did, yesterday I slept on the sofa while she laid next to me watching Peppa. I feel like a bit of a crazy mum at the moment!! 10 weeks today... counting down the days until things get better.
Good luck to those also feeling dreadful

Sympathies, OP. I'm 21 weeks now and the nausea has mostly gone unless I'm really hungry. First pregnancy I was sick constantly until 20 weeks. This time I've only been sick a few times but the nausea was awful up until about last week. I was prescribed cyclizine but had to stop taking it as it made me so drowsy I felt seriously unsafe carrying baby DS up stairs/driving etc. Fingers crossed you start feeling more well soon.