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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

Hyperemesis Support

989 replies

LucindaE · 14/08/2021 09:39

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.

Hyperemesis Support
Hyperemesis Support
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kalidasa · 20/10/2021 19:55

@Melleebacca thanks, with DS2 when I was in hosp for ever they were on the very brink of putting a tube down to feed me that way but thank goodness I avoided that! (One of the docs said they thought it wouldn't work very well if I was constantly retching anyway and the very thought of it made me retch!) I had those 4cal drinks with DC1 but threw them up so much that I couldn't stomach them at all with DC2. I am def doing better with eating this time but I suppose the amount I am actually able to absorb around all the vomiting is still pretty small. But hopefully at over 11 weeks now the very worst bit won't last much longer and I'll be able to stabilise the weight at least. Both boys were fine healthy babies despite my huge weight loss in the first half of pregnancy so fingers crossed.

LucindaE · 20/10/2021 20:35

DaimDillyDoo Welcome. I am so sorry over your losses after two episodes of Hyperemesis. Everyone is very supportive on here. You have had great advice. Things do improve a lot for most sufferers at some point between 14 and 21 weeks. Even those who suffer throughout don't tend to feel as bad later on. As you are a veteran of this scourge you don't need my spiel about ice lollies, flat full sugar coke, the juice of tinned fruit, kesostix which if not the best test of dehydration hospitals do take seriously, etc. Might a good anti -acid like Omprazole help with the nausea?

kalidasa Congratulations on getting past 11 weeks without being admitted! Star
BuffyFanForever Thank you. I wish I had been on a beach somewhere! Some other time...
abbs1 So true about the cost of an admission as against effective meds.
Pleasedon'tworry I am glad you are a bit better and hope you get a far greater improvement.
Good advice from Melleebacca,kalidasa, Pleasedon'tworry and everyone.
Apologies to anyone rudely ignored.

OP posts:
thingymaboob · 20/10/2021 21:16

@Pleasedontworry

Has anyone seen the bbc news report on HG… I wonder if the woman interviewed is/has been on this thread? It made me cry a bit watching it.
I've cried so much today. I watched the BBC news at 1 and she was on there and I cried my eyes out.
abbs1 · 20/10/2021 21:58

I didnt see the news at 1pm but just read this article on HG

www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-10111127/Pregnant-women-severe-vomiting-condition-like-Kate-Middleton-consider-abortions-suicide.html?adobe_mc=TS%3D1634763453%7CMCAID%3D302D2926EAD567B7-60001298F2AA00D2

Still clearly not enough awareness about it esp GPs and women not getting the treatment they need.

LK182 · 21/10/2021 13:17

Hi again all,
Did/does anyone find their HG aversions change? I was doing better on cheese rolls but the last couple of days I haven’t been able to stomach them. It’s getting so frustrating constantly having to try and find something else that stays down!

Melleebacca · 21/10/2021 17:01

@LK182 yes. My aversions change constantly. I can vomit something up about 3 times before I can’t even stomach looking at it again. And I have all the aversions from previous pregnancies as well. So what I can eat is incredibly limited. When you start improving, some of those aversions will fade.

@abbs1 Thank you for sharing that link. It’s so nice to see the research that is being done in the uk in relation to HG. While NZ is great at doling out meds for it, there’s no research being done on it. I was under maternity mental health’s watch with my second, and they all seemed unsure about how to treat me. I’m coping ok this time around, mostly just hiding in my room and trying to remember that my kids will be very unaffected by this season of me in bed.

kalidasa · 21/10/2021 17:50

@LK182 yes totally. At 11 and a half weeks with no improvement in vomiting yet I am really running out of options -- a lot of things which were relatively safe I've just thrown up too many times now and can't face. Luckily my precious pgs were quite a while ago so my trauma has faded!

I had an acupuncture appt today. She seemed quite shocked by my state but I quite enjoyed it, it barely hurt and it was nice just to lie there for half an hour under a blanket. I think it did help a bit because I felt properly hungry immediately afterwards and managed to have some lunch for the first time in a while. She said it might get worse for 48 hours and then improve so I'll see how the next week goes but I might go again. She said she could tell from my ear (!) that my stomach was extremely inflamed. She put needles in my ear, feet, wrists and stomach. I also cried telling her about my dad which was maybe good (cathartic) as I've been very "together" since he died. Also for the first time today I thought maybe I could feel the baby. It's very early but I felt DS2 for the first time around now (after similar substantial weight loss!).

Anyway, only thrown up twice today so far which is good going. Hope everyone is hanging on.

LucindaE · 21/10/2021 20:15

Thingymaboob, Melleebacca and abbs1 It's awful that women are allowed to suffer so badly too often. Good about the research.
On aversions, mosts seem to change. However, to this day I cannot endure those iced gems!

kalidasa As I am sure you remember, I was really helped by Acupunture. I hope it can help you a lot. It does help most, but being so expensive and seemingly not helping many as much as me, I am reluctant to recommend it. Good that you have been able to eat.
Congrats on movements from baby.

OP posts:
LucindaE · 21/10/2021 20:16

kalidasa Weird! For some reason, I can't get your name into bold properly..

OP posts:
kalidasa · 21/10/2021 20:18

Thanks @LucindaE amazingly, I think I can actually claim some of the cost back once I have my health card here. I assumed it wouldn't be covered, but she gave me the form they give you to reclaim later so apparently some of it will be which is good news! I think I'll definitely try to go again in a couple of weeks.

LK182 · 21/10/2021 20:20

Thank you, it’s good to know it’s not just me!

@kalidasa I had acupuncture at about 12 weeks and had 4 sessions in the space of 2 weeks. After my first appointment I was able to stand up straight for the first time in 2 months and go for a walk! I found it really helpful so I hope it works for you too. I couldn’t afford to do anymore as regularly but the lady who did mine said if it doesn’t work after 3/4 sessions it won’t work so there wouldn’t be any point in carrying on. I appreciated her honesty as she could have said it takes 10 sessions and taken all my money!

Derbee · 22/10/2021 04:51

@kalidasa I found acupuncture helped me. At my first appointment I think I scared the lady, as I just cried and cried as I was answering her questions. I don’t think I’d ever sat down and described just how miserable my life was, and it just opened the floodgates. I had 4 sessions, and in my last one she left some needles in (they were like tiny tacks) to give me longer lasting relief.

I’m currently 17w6d and I am only vomiting once a day. In a way I’m grateful, but the nausea never has any relief now. I have been weighing myself, and I’m almost back to my original booking in weight from 10 weeks ago (although I had lost 3kg between week 5 and 8) I’ve got a couple of kg to go, but I feel that my calorie intake is obviously improving.

Hope everyone is doing ok. I’ve been really tearful since the news story about HG, I think it just hit home and made me feel sorry for myself. Although I know many have it much harder than me, which makes me cry again for being weak. It’s an emotional rollercoaster. So grateful for this thread though.

HopefulJ2018 · 22/10/2021 15:12

Hi all,
I’m hoping to find some Solace in this group. I’m 7 weeks+5 and really struggling with nausea and vomiting. First pregnancy and I just feel awful. I’ve just started Cyclizine thought I’d turned a corner yesterday so didn’t take a tablet at night and today is a nightmare. I just can’t function I feel so weak. I have my booking in appointment on Tuesday I don’t know how I’m going to get there I’m so nervous of just throwing up in the surgery. Plus I keep seeing my myself when I have a big throw up session which is so embarrassing 😢

Derbee · 22/10/2021 15:26

Hi @HopefulJ2018l this group is so helpful. There are a lot of ladies with a lot more experience than me. All I can say is I am also in my first pregnancy, and I have been complete traumatised by how horrific it has been. My only advice is to keep taking your maximum dose of pills, even if you feel ok. I made the mistake of cutting down/stopping and was so sick again, it took me a few days to recover. I’m sure I needed a few days for the medication to start working, and as soon as I stopped it, I needed a few days for it to build up again.

I’m so sorry you’re also going through this. Someone will be along in a minute with better advice than me, but I didn’t want to read and run.

HopefulJ2018 · 22/10/2021 15:36

@Derbee

Hi *@HopefulJ2018l* this group is so helpful. There are a lot of ladies with a lot more experience than me. All I can say is I am also in my first pregnancy, and I have been complete traumatised by how horrific it has been. My only advice is to keep taking your maximum dose of pills, even if you feel ok. I made the mistake of cutting down/stopping and was so sick again, it took me a few days to recover. I’m sure I needed a few days for the medication to start working, and as soon as I stopped it, I needed a few days for it to build up again.

I’m so sorry you’re also going through this. Someone will be along in a minute with better advice than me, but I didn’t want to read and run.

Aww thank you so much x
kalidasa · 22/10/2021 17:41

@HopefulJ2018 yes definitely take the max dose of what you've been prescribed consistently and don't reduce it even if you start to feel better. In fact don't even consider reducing until you have reached the second trimester! For your appointment next week, you can buy special sick bags which have a sort of absorbent gel in them -- might be worth ordering some of these to take with you in case you do have to be sick in public / during the appointment. You may find that the adrenalin of having to go gets you through the appointment itself but then you feel much worse afterwards so be prepared for that. I'm sure @LucindaE will be along soon with her standard welcome message but you can also buy ketostix to use at home which can give you a sense of whether you are getting too ill to stay at home and need to go to the hospital for some fluids.

I feel so sorry for all of you facing this for the first time. My first pregnancy was back in 2012 but I will never forget the shock of it. My (future) husband and I hadn't been together long at all (less than a year) and honestly didn't know each other very well and it was utterly traumatic to navigate such serious illness. We were both so thrilled I was pregnant but I remember him saying to me in hospital one day that if I wanted to terminate, he understood, I was so incredibly ill. An awful conversation to have.

This is my third HG pregnancy (after a long gap) and just to reassure you that both my sons were very healthy babies and are very healthy children (6 and 8 now) so there were no ill effects for them even though I had very severe HG both times and was on the max dose of every possible drug, including steroids for months with DS2.

Melleebacca · 22/10/2021 18:20

@HopefulJ2018 just echoing what has already been said. Take the meds. They need a few days to build up in your system, so even if you miss a dose it can make everything so much worse. If you’re not feeling like the meds are helping, you can get stronger ones.
I’m one of the people who just can’t vomit in public, due to adrenalin and willpower, but leaving the house for anything does knock me back. I’ve been working 2hrs a day, as a distraction, and yesterday I vomited the minute I got home. And then made my husband work from home because I was scared of how sick I was.
The first HG pregnancy is the hardest, you don’t expect to get this sick, you don’t know when it will end, it’s a lot. You’re doing great so far.

@Derbee hopefully you will start to turn a corner soon. With my first I started to improve after the 20wk US. I started to notice a baby bump, I knew the gender and it started to feel less like a terrible illness for no reason and more like there was going to be a baby at the end of it.

@kalidasa oh I loved acupuncture. But I would walk out of it, and vomit in my car before going home. I went to a specialized pregnancy one and I think I broke him when I said it didn’t help with the sickness. But I did enjoy the mindfulness of the sessions.

HopefulJ2018 · 22/10/2021 18:48

Thanks all, so nice to know I’m not alone. It’s a very isolating thing to go through.
Does anyone have the best timings 3 x a day cyclizine?

thingymaboob · 22/10/2021 19:09

@HopefulJ2018

Thanks all, so nice to know I’m not alone. It’s a very isolating thing to go through. Does anyone have the best timings 3 x a day cyclizine?
6am, 2pm, 10pm is what I was doing. I had mixed in stemetil and ondansetron in between these times too.
Derbee · 22/10/2021 19:10

@HopefulJ2018 I found it was trial and error. I assumed 3 pills in 24 hours meant 1 pill every 8 hours. But there’s no way I can go that long. I take one at 7am, 1pm, and 7pm then go to bed early, as I’m able to sleep through most of the time.

Melleebacca · 22/10/2021 19:13

@HopefulJ2018 I’m taking cyclizine and ondansetron this pregnancy. It’s my first one with cyclizine, but I was recommended it as it makes you drowsy, and my anxiety is so high, I need help sleeping. I currently take 8mg ondansetron and 1 tab of cyclizine every 6hours that I’m awake. 6.30am, 12.30pm and 6.30pm. But I’m not super accurate with my last dose, I tend to take it after I throw up all my dinner. I occassionally wake at 1am and take another cyclizine then and skip my morning one. No idea if this is a good schedule or not, just trying to keep on top of the sickness mostly.

Togetherismyfavouriteplace · 22/10/2021 19:48

Hi All,
Hope it’s Ok to jump on…
I suffered terribly in my first pregnancy and was prescribed meds from 6 weeks.
I am currently 6 weeks with my second and here we go again! I thought I’d gotten away with it this time but nope Sad

I can’t get an app with my doctor for a while but need some meds to help with the sickness . I still have some in date from my first pregnancy, does anyone know if I’m ok to just take them? Or do I have to be reviewed or something by the doctor. Can’t see why not and I am desperate!! So hope it’s ok??

LucindaE · 22/10/2021 20:25

Welcome to Togetherismyfavourtieplace and HopefulJ2018.
Togetherismyfavouritelace Congratulations for your courage in going for it again. I would definitely take the meds while you wait for an appointment. There is lots of support on here. Did it ease off a lot at some point in your last pregnancy? Have you got support ffrom friends and family to look after your LO, as rest is one of the best things? HopefulJ2018 You've had great advice already from Derbee and others. I include my normal spiel that might help, though you may have come across it on the thread. Ignore the bits that don't apply. Most sufferers find that they improve a lot at some point between weeks 14 and 20, or sometimes later. Even those who are unlucky enough to suffer throughout generally are not as ill later on as they are in the first part. A good anti acid can make a surprising difference to the sickness. Kesostix are worth buying online or from a chemists, as while they aren't they best test of dehydration, hospitals take them seriously. When reporting on the vomiting to doctors, remember to emphasize the number of heaves in each vomiting session, as doctors tend to count these as 'vomits' and this can lead to their underestimating the severity of your symptoms. Besides drinking through a straw, here are some drinks that have helped others: full sugar flat coke (if you don't find it too acid), ice lollies, the juice of tinned fruit, Lucozade, apple juice, Ribina, Dr Pepper, soda water, Elderflower water, tonic water, ice cubes, Iron Bru, lemonade, lemon squash, orange squash, orange juice (if not too acid), fizzy orange, 7Up, isotonic drinks, sips of chocolate milkshake (maybe soya), fizzy water, apple juice, Robinson's fruit drinks, Rubicon sparkling mango drink , raspberry Lucozade sport and frozen ice cubes of flat Lucozade sport. Also, pink lemonade and cloudy lemonade. Foods of a sort include tinned fruit, cuppa soup, nibbles of crisps and chips, cheap ice cream, Scotch pancakes, bagels and biscuits, potato smileys, slices of melon and mango. Protein drinks have also been mentioned.
Interesting how Acupunture helped Derbee and LK18 and others and not Melleebacca. And interesting about it not being likley to work if it hasn't in 3 to 4 sessions.
Waves to thingymaboob abbs1 kalidasa. .Great advice from you all as ever.

OP posts:
HopefulJ2018 · 22/10/2021 21:10

Thank you all for the advice, I’m so thankful to have found this tread. I felt so alone 🥰

Togetherismyfavouriteplace · 23/10/2021 08:31

@LucindaE
Thank you so much for your reply! I will definitely be trying the tablets today.
Unfortunately, I had sickness the entire way through my first pregnancy. I was being sick right up to the day she was born! Although by around 20 weeks I felt like I was beginning to function better and the all day nausea and sickness had thankfully eased. Can’t believe it’s all happening again!

Thankfully I do have some great support. My mom is an absolute diamond. She came round to look after my LO and do some housework for me yesterday ❤️