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.

HoneyPea Welcome. There's lots of support on here. As others say, it can vary between pregnancies when the sickness begins. As you suffered so very early last time, I'm assuming you suffered badly as the two normally go together? My goodness, a 'behaviour school' teacher. Now, that must have been a demanding job!
BradyM Lavender satchets used to help me sleep a bit. If you have heartburn, being propped up can help, too.The pregnancy pillow is a great idea. That does sound grim, and I hope your sleep pattern soon changes.
pregnancydiaries I am sure you are worrying unnecessarily, as the midwife says, if you are worrying about being dehydrated damaging the baby. For sure, it has to be a bit longer than a couple of days. If that was so, then almost everyone who's suffered badly on these threads - which date back ten years - would have had babies affected by it, and none have, though some have been rushed to hospital with sirens going, they were so ill.
FateHasRedesignedMost Oh dear, about OH feeling hard done by.
You have more to feel hard done by about!
Togetherismyfavouriteplace I hope Stemetil helps you.
Waves to Derbee, kalidasa Melleebacca and everyone. Everyone has given excellent advice as always.

BradyM Sorry - I forgot to say welcome! Forgetting my manners.

@LucindaE I was sick most of the way through last time and my doctor was very old school so the most he would do was give me Gaviscon as I was putting weight on. I had a lovely class that were very protective, they would be in the middle of throwing chairs and then stop when they saw me to make sure they didn't hurt me but it was quite a stressful environment. Ended up being signed off at 5months (and the sickness got a lot better then, could have been worsened by the stress maybe!) as I was on crutches and the midwife said it was too dangerous to be there so very different situation this time round. @Melleebacca I'm lucky as DS will quite often play on his own but I worry about him missing out.

Hello ladies. Sorry to keep going on about this.. but since I got these Keto urine sticks, things have become strange.

Yesterday I was able to eat quite a bit I thought.. I had toast for breakfast and some potatoes for dinner as well as actually a chocolate bar at bed time....

Yesterday my Urine test were a good colour, just borderline / trace for Ketones. Then today I had toast again for breakfast. Then I didn't have anything else since and did a test and it's pretty dark. What's that about ? I called a new GP yesterday who said I need to go on a drip if ketones show up on those tests at all. I thought I was doing quite well and I'm surprised ! I had a chocolate bar last night and toast this morning ! Why would it be so dark ?? I don't want to go to hospital again

@nubbie

Hello ladies. Sorry to keep going on about this.. but since I got these Keto urine sticks, things have become strange.

Yesterday I was able to eat quite a bit I thought.. I had toast for breakfast and some potatoes for dinner as well as actually a chocolate bar at bed time....

Yesterday my Urine test were a good colour, just borderline / trace for Ketones. Then today I had toast again for breakfast. Then I didn't have anything else since and did a test and it's pretty dark. What's that about ? I called a new GP yesterday who said I need to go on a drip if ketones show up on those tests at all. I thought I was doing quite well and I'm surprised ! I had a chocolate bar last night and toast this morning ! Why would it be so dark ?? I don't want to go to hospital again

How much fluids are you taking in? The ketones goes by how hydrated or dehydrated you are, not by what foods you eat as far as I was told by the hospital when i went in for fluids.

@abbs1 ah im so confused !someone else said the ketones show starvation and not enough calories.

[quote nubbie]@abbs1 ah im so confused !someone else said the ketones show starvation and not enough calories. [/quote]
If this helps the hospital told me I needed to be holding down a min of 500ml of fluids in a 24hr period otherwise I needed to go into hospital for fluids. I was drinking a couple sips of water and would vomit it all back up within minutes so hospital was a daily trip for me for months as only IV medication worked until I got put on steroids. I hardly ate anything for weeks as nothing really stayed down.

@nubbie ketones are produced by starvation, dehydration makes them more concentrated. We need fluids to flush them out. I will be making ketones as I am not eating enough and losing weight, but I’m toeing the line when it comes to liquids as I am taking in as much as I can. While food does have some liquids in it, it’s more important to be taking in fluids so ketones don’t get to a toxic concentration.

@BradyM welcome. I’m on cyclizine because I’m hopeful it helps me sleep. I tend to go to sleep at 7pm ish and wake up around 5am. The last 2 nights have been worse as I’m anxious to find out my first trimester screening results. I’m also waking up hungry because I’m throwing up dinner again. And I have terrible gas pains, which I think is due to being so bedbound.

@Melleebacca and @LucindaE thanks as always for helping calm me down yesterday. The midwife said I was probably more anxious and worked up because my ketones were really high. Now combining cyclizine and prochloperazine so let’s see how that goes 🤞🏼 Xx

pregnancydiaries I am glad the reassurance helped and I do hope that combination helps you.
nubbie I find the whole topic of ketones rather confusing myself. I just take as a rule of thumb for advice that while they may not be the best measurement of dehydration, hospitals usually admit with a reading of 3+ ketones on kesostix. But certainly, dark, scanty urine, a headache, blurry vision, non elastic skin etc are sure signs and it is awkward that hospitals and health authorities have varying approaches.
Melleebacca and abbs1 Good explanations of a difficult topic .
HoneyPea It's really good your LO can entertain himself.
Apologies to anyone rudely overlooked.

HoneyPea I meant to add that it is dismal that doctor took that approach and would only prescribe Gaviscon; my goodness, that was the approach my doctor (just about to retire then) took 28 years ago!

[quote Melleebacca]@nubbie ketones are produced by starvation, dehydration makes them more concentrated. We need fluids to flush them out. I will be making ketones as I am not eating enough and losing weight, but I’m toeing the line when it comes to liquids as I am taking in as much as I can. While food does have some liquids in it, it’s more important to be taking in fluids so ketones don’t get to a toxic concentration.[/quote]
This makes SO much sense ! Thank you for explaining.

Hope everyone’s coping ok?

I had a bad day yesterday, lots of nausea and vomiting, I think the stress of having parents evening made it worse. It was only a 10 min virtual chat with the teacher but I had to do it alone as DH was out.

I couldn’t think of anything to say to the poor teacher so after she’d given me feedback I just sat there smiling in a fake way (I was so nauseous sweat was running down my back!) She asked if I had any questions and I couldn’t think of any so there was a long awkward pause! To make matters worse I’d tried to change the background on my PC to hide the messy office behind me, but while trying to blur it out I clicked on an outer space backdrop and couldn’t get rid of it! So while she was talking to me I had these silly cartoon stars and spaceships floating around me 😳😂😳😳 She didn’t mention it but she did look surprised and like she was trying to suppress a smile!

Does stress make it worse for you?

@FateHasRedesignedMost I think stress definitely makes it worse. Despite the rather challenging circumstances (just moved country, didn't know anyone, don't speak the language perfectly, just lost my Dad, very stressed husband struggling with the children and brand new job) I have somehow managed to stay really zen in this pregnancy. Then I got very upset on Thursday having the CVS and had a truly awful couple of days Friday and Saturday -- on Saturday I threw up so much I really thought I was going to end up in hospital at nearly 14 weeks. Have managed to get it back under control but I'm sure it was stress-induced.

DH is away with the boys at the moment so I am trying just to rest and eat as much as possible to get a bit of strength back and hopefully be able to do more when he gets back to give him a break. Trying to eat really fattening things! Haven't had the results back from the hospital yet though so a bit anxious about that.

Hope everyone is hanging on. @nubbie as @Melleebacca explained, ketones are definitely produced by starvation, not dehydration, though will be more concentrated in your urine and blood if you are very dehydrated. In practice, a lot of nurses/doctors use them as a proxy / short-cut sign of dehydration but this is not strictly accurate and it's not always helpful -- it's more unusual, but you can be dehydrated without shedding ketones, and you can be in ketosis without being dehydrated. I have in the past still had max ketones after weeks on a drip and dozens of bags of fluid. Fluid will as explained above help to dilute / flush out ketones but only as long as you are actually eating and retaining something. If you unable to eat at all (which was my situation for long periods in both previous pregnancies) you will stay in ketosis and eventually your organs will come under strain. This is an unusual scenario with hyperemesis, however, as the great majority of women will be able to eat and retain a bit once medicated and hydrated in hospital. I had an appointment with my consultant during DS2's pregnancy last year, having not seen her for six years, and she remembered me immediately because I was such a problem to treat and stuck in hospital for so long!

I’m feeling so silly, yesterday I had a horrible couple of bouts of diarrhoea (tmi sorry) and in the evening I didn’t feel sick. Felt like all my pregnancy symptoms had gone…convinced myself I was having a miscarriage. With that I didn’t take my regular Cyclizine BIG mistake. I’m on throwing everything up and a really sore tummy.
Meant to be seeing the midwife this afternoon at the surgery and I feel so ill. Not sure what to do now?
I’m hoping the bad tummy is from the pregnacare vitamins

@HopefulJ2018 I get that. I’m having terrible gas pains and while trying to avoid the ondansetron constipation, it sometimes goes the other way. I do notice that when the cramps are worse the sickness is worse. In my previous pregnancies, the constipation has lead to bad sickness as it feels like the only way to empty the stomach is via vomiting, so perhaps having an empty digestive system does have the bonus of minimizing sickness? Keep on top of the meds, even if miscarrying, it takes a while for the hormone levels to drop (and there’s no harm in staying on them a day or two longer).

@kalidasa I hope your stress levels are easing now. Glad to hear you’re attempting fatty foods. I’m amazed that you’re managing to cope without DH, I am at the stage where I get a little antsy when it’s only me at home, just because when I’m sick it’s a huge trek to get ice blocks from the freezer.

Hi everyone! I'm checking in as I haven't been here is a while. I've been pretty sick and just trying to survive. I broke down and cried a few times too. This weakness and nausea are just killing me.
I'm feeling a bit better today. I'm not sure if it is time or a compiled effort of ginger root supplements, vitamin IV and acupuncture, or whichever one of those. But I'll take it. I was even able to go grocery shopping, although I almost threw up at the sight of meat. Hoping this means the baby is good and the nausea is easing up

FateHasRedesignedMost Sorry about bad day but I had to laugh about the outer space background for Zoom. I want some of those said silly spaceships and starsto use for my Welsh lesson - everyone takes themselves far too seriously!
Great explanation from kalidasa about ketones and starvation/dehydration as welll as those of Mellebacca and others.
kalidasa You made a big impression, then, to be remembered after six years!
HopefulJ2018 Most likely it was just a sickness free day - which unfortunately was ruined by diarrhoea. Never worry about tmi on here. I hope you managed to defer the appointment if you felt too bad?
AnyaC94 Welcome back. It's good that the Acupunture helped.
My head has just stopped throbbing with a migraine, so I'm a bit vague - waves to all.

Hey all how’s everyone doing?
I had to admit defeat today and ask my wife to drive an hour and a half before work to drop the twins at her Mums. Thankfully she’s off work today and didn’t mind having them. Unfortunately my mum is coming down for hospital appointment tomorrow so tried to spend the morning cleaning the house while vomiting, managed to faint in the hall way so that was fun 🙄. My mums abit of a pain so having her visit right now isn’t ideal, she doesn’t know about the baby yet as we’re waiting to tell people till after the scan Saturday. Back on the ICE least it doesn’t make me instantly vomit! Had to beg for meds from a different go who kept on about writing in to their online thing they reply to within a week (a WEEK!) eventually convinced her to give me cyclizine - worth a try even tho it did nothing last time! Now to get the energy to walk to chemist to get it!

Oh sorry for the really long ranty post there 🤦‍♀️

@AnyaC84 so impressed that you managed grocery shopping! When you have good days, try not to overdo it because it can make the sickness worse.

@BuffyFanForever rant away, it’s fine. There are some people you want around while you’re sick, and there’s some that you don’t. And that’s totally normal. When I was pregnant with DD2, my stepmum came and stayed for a couple of weeks. She had HG before and was really helpful, but I still struggled having an extra person in my house while sick.
And if cyclizine didnt help last time, is it worth getting something stronger?

Surviving here. My mental health is a bit of a rollercoaster while waiting for tests and test results, but still only vomiting once or twice a day. Been a really busy week at work too, which I have mostly stayed on top of. The next 5wks until summer break are meant to be much calmer.

Waves to everyone.

BuffyFanForever I hope the Cyclizine does something this time. Many sufferers find Xonvea helps, but it being expensive, the problem is getting it Some are really helped by Stemetil. Do you fnd an anti acid helps?
Melleebacca Cheering you on at this stressful time.

Oh hi. I've just stumbled in here because I have an HG diagnosis. This is my third pregnancy but the only one that has stuck around long enough for HG to kick in. So it's been a bit of a surprise how sick I can get.

I have had 1 hospital stay already and I'm only 7 weeks. Hoping for no more.

Existing on sips of ice cold Robinsons Fruit Creations peach & raspberry squash and dry Yorkshire puddings which I sprinkle with salt. I wake up in the night thinking of salty Yorkshire puddings which is very weird. I nibble them like a squirrel. My DH is getting very very good at making them now.

I'm currently trying Cyclizine, and it's okay but the afternoons are still really bad.

Does anyone else get very cold as they get more and more dehydrated? I can't seem to warm up and I've generally always been a very warm person.

Anyway, that's me. Hi!