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/topics/nausea-vomiting-in-pregnancy
I would like to thank everyone who has given such invaluable support and advice on this and on previous threads.
It has been suggested that I add some practical tooth cleaning advice: a lot of sufferers find using a child's small toothbrush and strawberry toothpaste far less nauseating.
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.
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.

@FateHasRedesignedMost

I was taken off the meto (after being on it for a few months) because of the twitchiness / involuntary movement. It's quite important you do come off it if that starts as apparently otherwise you can be stuck with it permanently.

Has anyone ever been advised to stop cyclizine towards the end of pregnancy? My HG has flared up after my mum died last week and when I asked the GP for some more to tide me over (I’m 37 weeks) I was told that it’s not advised towards the end because it can cause side effects in the baby? I’ve not been told this before! Wondered if anyone else had?

I'm so sorry about your mum @Ednadidit My dad died in July and he was really supportive last time I had HG. I got pregnant very soon after he died and it's all quite strange.

I'm pretty sure I took cyclizine right to the end in both previous pregnancies, but I do remember reading more recently to avoid it at the end as it might make the baby sleepy. I def had some sort of anti emetic by iv during labour (because I kept throwing up, surprise surprise) so there must be something that's fine, I actually thought that was cyclizine but maybe not. Can you ask GP if there's another option?

Ednadidit Welcome to the thread. I am sorry for the loss of your mother. As kalidasa says, there is an odd connection between a death in the family and a new baby arriving. As you have got to 37 weeks, you don't need my normal spiel about kesostix, ice lollies and anti acids. If they don't want to give you Cyclizine, how about the relattively new drug Xonvea, which has been specifically designed for pregnancy?
kalidasa Great advice. I remember you being taken off Metaclopramide. I am glad you are still at home so far. How are things today?
FateHasRedesignedMost OH is obviously used to your normally being industrious! That sounds awful about the puke in every bin station experience - bins had no lids in London when I was suffering, which was useful.

thingymaboob I hope you are a bit better today.
Waves to all.

Thank you for welcoming me again - I need to post more often! Yes, it’s odd and so unfortunate that my mum has died a month before her first grandchild makes an appearance 😣 she was so worried about my HG at the beginning of my pregnancy so she’d be upset to think her death was affecting it again.

I’d been told that I could carry on with cyclizine until the end of my pregnancy but, as @kalidasa says, GPs now seem to be advising about the sedative effect on newborns, which is disappointing. I’ll try to speak to them again on Monday but I might just try to ride it out - I’ve not taken anything other than cyclizine which has agreed with me and I just don’t have the energy for trying new things out. At least the end is now in sight and I remember how far away it seemed at 9 weeks when I was semi-conscious most of the time. Good luck with your pregnancy, @kalidasa, and I’m sorry that you’re going through it too.

Thank you for the information!

Hi ladies, how are you all?

I had my early scan today; strong heartbeat (was amazing to both see and hear it on the monitor) and I’m 6.4 not 7 weeks apparently though she said that could change as the dating’s only a guide. It looked like a jellybean!

Very relieved it’s not ectopic! And apparently once the heartbeat is heard the risk of miscarriage drops to 2% instead of 1 in 4 so that’s another reassuring thing.

She did it transvaginally (didn’t attempt abdominal partly because I requested tvag to avoid having to drink and vomit water, but I also have scars from the lap&dye that are tender to press on).

I have a 2cm fibroid but she said it’s in a position that shouldn’t affect the pregnancy. Also a tilted back uterus which I didn’t know about until now!

@Ednadidit so sorry to hear about your mum. How are you coping?
My mum died suddenly when DD was 2 months old. She'd only met her once. My next DD will be named after my Mum.

Ednadidnot Goodness: silly of me to forget your name. As below, it might be worth asking for Xonvea if it's bad.
FateHasRedesignedMostThat's so good about the m/c rate dropping so greatly after the heartbeat is detected. I never heard that before. Congrats on scan.
thingymaboob I am sorry to hear about your mother. That's a lovel idea. I called my DD after my late mother-in-law. She'd died some years before, but an older relative died a few months before she was born.
I hope everyone is coping.

I've felt much less sick the last 24 hours and I'm really worried I've lost the baby. Agh, this stage of pregnancy really has no upsides!

I hope everyone is coping as best as possible.
We found out today we are having a little girl 💖 so we are super excited and our little boy I know is going to be an amazing big brother. I just need March to hurry up and get here now!

@abbs1 lovely news. It's nice to have one of each. How are you feeling sickness wise?

@thingymeboob I'm just over 17 weeks and my sickness is basically gone. I still take 1 xonvea tablet morning and night but I feel fine otherwise. I still can't believe this time in my last pregnancy I was on IV steroids, ondansatron and clexine injections still going into hospital weekly. Its just crazy how night and day difference this pregnancy has been. I'm now wondering if I've just escaped hyperemesis this time or if xonvea has stopped me getting so sick. Either way I'm very grateful.
How are you feeling? How many weeks are you now? Xx

@abbs1 I'm 21 weeks now. I'm nauseous all day and vomit about 1-2 times a day normally if I eat too much or don't eat enough. Still taking cyclizine and ondansetron daily. Definitely feel worse at 21 weeks this time round than with DD.

Lovely to hear you're having a girl. We are having a girl too. Girls are great. I was hoping for a boy this time around as it's definitely the last pregnancy I am willing to go through! Absolutely no more pregnancies!

kalidasa Try not to worry, as with mmc nausea seems to go off more gradually; but it's easy for me to speak; torment when you are either suffering or worrying.
abbs1 Lovely news all round.
thingymaboob I hope things ease a lot for you asap.

@abbs1 though the xonvea hasn't worked quite as well for me as it did for you, so maybe this would always have been a somewhat better pregnancy for you anyway, I have been very impressed by it. It definitely makes a significant difference and has kept me out of hospital so far. I'm 9 weeks tomorrow and nearly lost control last week but then have had a better couple of days and am beginning to think I might make it through this trimester without admission which would be amazing compared to my previous pregnancies! I can't get up at all though, if I even eg walk to the kitchen and back I throw up straight away. So it's max dose xonvea + complete bed rest keeping me out of hospital so far!

@LucindaE thanks for your reassurance. I was back to throwing up last night which was also somewhat reassuring! It's so annoying to feel worried as soon as I have a slightly better day. I am looking forward to hopefully getting a bit further on and being able to feel the baby for reassurance. With DS2 I started feeling him from about 11 weeks, very early, so might not be that long. (Though I reckon that was probably also because I was so emaciated; I've only lost about 4kg so far which is pretty good I think.)

Hope everyone else is surviving. Both my MiL and DH have been ultra stressed the last few days so I am working hard on staying in my zen bubble!

Feeling queasier than ever today! And very tired. I can’t stop waking up between 2:30am-3am to be sick, then I’m wide awake so can’t go back to bed! When the metaclopramide kicks in I get some relief and try to nap on the sofa but that’s about 5am and my son wakes up at 6-ish. So feeling very sleep deprived!

I try to nap after school run. Still managing the mornings as sickness has eased by the time we start walking and the fresh air revives me a bit. But it’s like trying to nap after a night shift, you get constantly woken by the doorbell, the neighbour doing DIY etc.
😴 🛌

@kalidasa sorry to hear about more vomiting! Do you think you're getting dehydrated?

@FateHasRedesignedMost I'm having issues with middle of the night sickness too. Woke every 30 minutes last night. It was awful. Vomited so much this morning. Really violent wretching I couldn't breathe.

I feel absolutely awful. Almost as bad as first trimester again. Aaaaaaaaaarrrrrrgggghhhh!

Hi everyone, I’m not actually sick but my god I feel awful. Can basically only eat ritz plain crackers now. I’m only 6 weeks and am having a second ‘show’ of blood it’s worrying me so much. The thought of being like this for weeks or months is so depressing!!

@thingymaboob thank you for asking. Every day (sometimes every hour) is up and down. It’s certainly a strange time to get ready for birth. I’m so sorry to hear that something so similar happened to you. My daughter will be getting my mum’s middle name as her middle name. Mum already knew the name we’d picked first, so didn’t want to change it as she used to refer to her by name. She was unconscious by the time I decided to pass on the middle name. I hope she heard me telling her.

@LucindaE don’t be silly! I don’t post all that often. I asked about Xonvea and was put back onto cyclizine just until the day after mum’s funeral but had to agree that I’d been told about the potential side effects. Still, it gives me 10 days to get everything done and then I can take to my sick bed until the birth if needed. I cannot wait to get this placenta out.

@thingymaboob sorry to hear you are having such a rough time so late on! No I don't think I'm dehydrated. I def was a bit last week but I am keeping most things down today and am finding drinking a bit easier than last week too. Starvation has historically been as big a prob for me as dehydration but I'm eating ok for the moment too -- losing weight but not too much. If this is the peak for me then I can really hope to stay at home throughout which would be amazing fingers crossed baby is ok, still for another three weeks until the 12 week scan which feels like forever! In my other pregnancies I had scans all the time because I was stuck in hosp.

@Ednadidit I'm really glad your GP agreed to the cyclizine, that sounds like a sensible compromise. That time between the death and a funeral is so strange. We moved country 5 days after my dad's funeral so I was trying to plan a funeral and an international move at the same time, it was totally surreal. In case you are stuck for something to wear I booked a free personal shopper at a big dept store to get the outfit for my dad's funeral. I wanted to look really smart for him but couldn't bear the thought of trailing round the shops tearfully! It worked really well. I realise your options will be more limited at this stage of pregnancy but thought I'd mention it. I think the half life of cyclizine is not that long anyway so I would guess the risk of drowsiness for the baby is more if you're on it right at the end / in labour. And they give women pethidine in early labour don't they which has the same effect. Good luck for the funeral and the birth, what a pile up for you.

@abbs1 congratulations on your little girl! Interesting you've been less ill with the girl as people tend to say it's more common the other way round. I'm one of five girls and my mum was very sick every time though I did once hear her comment that she was least sick with my next sister down "which is interesting because she is the least feminine of you all isn't she?" Really hope she has never said this to my sister herself!?

@thingymaboob Im so sorry youre still so poorly. I hope it settles down soon for you. By 21 weeks last time was still nauseas but the vomiting was minimal and I could finally hold down tablets. Im so excited about having a daughter! Still doesn't feel real.

@kalidasa 9 weeks was definitely the worst for me so I hope you get some relief soon. Im glad xonvea is helping you a bit.
I feel like hyperemesis maybe escaped me this time or the xonvea has just worked extra well for me.
Its really odd cause when I was on the mini pill, it caused absolute havoc with my hormones and made me feel awful. When I came off it I felt fine.
Its crazy how hormones affect ones body. So to now find out im having a girl has it been because its a girl and if I had another pregnancy and its awful hg again and its a boy maybe it has something to do with that? No idea.

There is a new little video on youtube on a channel called brushed off films about hg. Its about 15mins and has some research on why hg happens. Theres still no definite reason but interesting watch.