Was released from the ER yesterday with a hyperemesis diagnosis. Anyone have tips/tricks for dealing with HG? If you had it, did it last your whole pregnancy?
I had m/s from 13 weeks to 40 weeks with DD but it was nothing like this.
Was released from the ER yesterday with a hyperemesis diagnosis. Anyone have tips/tricks for dealing with HG? If you had it, did it last your whole pregnancy?
I had m/s from 13 weeks to 40 weeks with DD but it was nothing like this.
apricot / 345 posts
I'm so sorry you have to go through this
I had HG and was nauseous till 35 weeks. I stopped throwing up at about 20 weeks. I got daily IV infusions till 18 weeks. In my country it is not legal to get zofran while pregnant (except the life of the mother is in danger...) so I was on B1 B6 B9 B12 and an Dimenhydrinate (vomex). I was so tired all the time.
No real tips or tricks but what worked for me was: nothing containing iron, no vitamin D pills, starchy foods (on my worst days I ate a spoonful of plain rice like 20 times. I still hate rice) lemondrops, lemonade, anything lemon or orange. And sleeping as much as possible. And not bending over. When I had to pick something up and had to bend over I throw up at one.
cherry / 157 posts
I think figuring out what triggered me the most and kind of paying attention to whether I was definitely going to throw up or there was something I could do to prevent it (rarely). I pretty much lived on Gatorade and watered down apple juice, so see if either of those sit in your stomach. Make sure you are 100% aware of any restrictions your insurance has on how often you can get your medication. I was on Zofran and my ins didn't have a monthly limit but I was only allowed to buy nine at a time if I wanted it covered... Which meant going to the pharmacy 2-3 times a week. I know other people are only allowed 30 a month. You can talk to your doctor about upping your dose and using a pill splitter, or search around for the cheapest place to post full price, if ins might prevent you from having a full month supply covered. I woke up in the night a lot to dry heave or throw up bile, depending on my luck that day, and it always helped my morning a little too have a snack and a drink before going back to bed. If you have a strict workplace in the US, and they fall under fmla, I would ask your hr department and doctor about how to get that, because even on medication there were days when I just could not come in. Try to eat only stomach flu approved foods after a serious vomit binge, because those are more likely to stay down. I liked rice crispies and saltines. And I guess pray that you have the kind that goes away in the 2nd tri. After 16 of the worst weeks of my life and 15+ pounds down, it's finally lightening up. I was terrified it would be a full 40.
When I was having the worst days, it helped my morale to look up what my baby had recently developed our would be developing soon, so I could see what I was doing this all for. Lots of support from an understanding husband also helped.
ETA: being cold really always made me throw up, so I always had to have a full layer of clothing on and a blanket. I even had my husband warm up my side of the bed so I wouldn't touch cold sheets, which I know sounds silly.
pomegranate / 3706 posts
I had it both times, and different things helped each time, but some helpful things were: Zofran and IVs (duh), no plain still water, no vitamins, drinking lemonade, red gatorade, coke and coke slurpees (apparently coke is a common one HGers can stomach and my OB's PA said if it was all I could drink, I had a pass to sip it all day long), chicken noodle soup for one pregnancy was good, for the other it was very bad, mashed potatoes, plain and bland things like a plain toasted bagel with cream cheese. Chewing gum sometimes helped. Sleep- if anything, just to be unaware of feeling terrible for a bit, I also was sicker if I was sleep-deprived (hard not to be the second time around with a 13 month old to care for!). Looking at bright screens made me feel worse. If I physically exerted myself much at all, I felt worse. I almost always threw up in the shower, so I took them less-regularly. Having someone else prep anything you *can* eat, helps. For some reason the prep alone, even waking into the kitchen, was exceedingly difficult. If photos of food make you vomit, stay away from IG and FB! And just remember, when you're face-down on your bathroom floor, that you *will* survive this and you *will* get through it. There's a book called "Beyond Morning Sickness" that's great and validating too. Hang in there
pineapple / 12234 posts
Like, Erinpye, diet coke was the only thing I could keep down sometimes. I had HG with my second pregnancy and it.was.hell. I definitely had it with my third pregnancy but I went on a high dose of Zofran by 7 weeks and it helped a lot.
grapefruit / 4770 posts
@MrsH: oh man, I feel for you. If it makes you feel any better (it didn't for me), Kate Middleton was on the cover of People Magazine with the tag line, "Kate bounces back at three months!" So, apparently, we should feel better at three months is what everyone has told me (including people magazine!) I'm 12 weeks today, and got sick on the train last night, and the doctors office this morning. The only thing I can keep down is sprite, Gatorade, and chips. This was weeks 9-10. At week 11, I could have tiny piece of chicken once a week. Peppermints and jolly ranchers are life savers on the metro. Be careful of images. I was researching cloth diapers, and stupidly clicked on a YouTube video of a cloth diaper change not thinking it was an actual diaper change, and immediately started throwing up. Keep your visuals happy go lucky if possible!
At my appointment today, the midwife told me if I can get a little protein it'll help. Also, you have to get your fluids. Water makes me throw up. So, I drink Gatorade. I also picked up Izze or Izzy can't remember carbonated fruit beverage. It's like sparking water. I was told to eat a cracker ever 30 minutes, to keep something in my belly.
I don't know the best advice to give, because I'm still having more bad days than good. I haven't been drinking as much liquids as I should, and consequently I haven't gained any weight in two weeks, and am only up 4 lbs total. Today, they told me to try watermelon. Also, I went to the chiropractor, and she adjusted nausea points on my wrist. She said my wrist were loosy goosey, and the adjustment should help. The chiropractor also told me to out one drop of lemon in hot water to settle my stomach. I try not to walk past the bare minimum, was told to put my workouts on hold, and focus on keeping liquids down. For some reason, lights bother me now so I keep the lights down low. I posted my prescription cocktail in another thread, I'll edit this and add it in. I hope this is swift, and you feel better pronto!!!!
Meds: Prescribed Diclegis DR 10mg four pills a day. Two at night, one in am, one in afternoon. This is to be taken in conjunction with my Zofran 3x a day. If I start feeling weak, I'm to go to the ER for an IV. But, a side effect of the pills is drowsiness soooo yeah. I was told not to drive while on this cocktail.
Also, I was very up front with my job early on (told them at 8 weeks), and when this all hit the fan at 9 weeks, they offered me medical telework for two weeks. Had I not told the, what was going on, I guarantee you that would never have happened, and happened so quickly. They got me setup and approved to telework in two days, when normally it's a week plus of red tape. Being at home allowed me to be off my feet, and at least let me be sick in the privacy of my own home!
grapefruit / 4712 posts
I struggled with HG with both pregnancies. I stayed on zofran around the clock. I also always had motion sickness bands on. I drank Gatorade and Cherry Pepsi. The only thing that stayed down for me was apples and peanut butter (it also didn't suck if it didn't stay down). My OB also prescribed a suppository that helped with vomiting too. The other thing that helped me was sucking on ice chips. Failing everything else my doctor had me go into the hospital if I couldn't keep anything down for more then 5 hours. I was super prone to severe dehydration. Hope you find something to make it manageable for you. Big hugs.
honeydew / 7667 posts
@lil owl: @kick641: @erinpye: @HLK208: @dc yoga bee: @MrsRcCar: thanks for sharing ladies. I can safely say that the m/s I had with DD was nothing compared to this
Did it go away second trimester (for those past this stage and who didn't already mention above)?
apricot / 274 posts
I had HG. It was horrible. I'm so sorry you're going through it. It got better for me at 20 weeks. I threw up the rest of my pregnancy (had a preemie at 27 weeks) but it was much more manageable. I didn't gain any weight for awhile, but I ended up gaining 16 lbs total. My baby was just fine! Your body gives all the nutrients to the baby first and you just get what's left over. So don't worry because the baby is usually fine. I ended up having to be put on a Zofran pump for a few weeks when it was really bad. I was hooked to it around the clock. It was a lifesaver and those 3 weeks was when I gained the most weight. I took Zofran pills and Reglan helped me a lot. Hyperemesis is caused because your food sits in your stomach and takes too long to digest. Reglan speeds up how quickly you digest food, so it was actually fixing the problem some instead of just masking it like Zofran does.
pomegranate / 3706 posts
@Mrs.ThinMint: A full stomach may have been a trigger for you, but they don't actually know what causes HG. There are a lot of theories, but it's not yet fully understood.
http://www.helpher.org/hyperemesis-gravidarum/theories-research/index.php
http://www.helpher.org and http://www.beyondmorningsickness.com are both helpful, informative, and validating sites.
pomelo / 5678 posts
Izze really helped me. A soda stream might be helpful- I could only drink sparkling water. I had such a difficult time digesting I had to stop eating at 3pm or I was up.all.night throwing up I ate a lot of papaya digestive enzyme (chewable). I only gained 15 pounds but all was/is well with LO.
apricot / 274 posts
@erinpye: Delayed gastric emptying is a very common problem with HG and exacerbates the problem further. Helpher.org even discusses it. I should have said it's a very common problem, and not the cause. I still stand by what I said though. Reglan speeds up digestion and was a miracle for me. It helped so much more than Zofran because it actually was correcting the problem instead of masking it.
persimmon / 1363 posts
@MrsH: I have had it in two pregnancies (I am halfway through my second), and am basically an HG encyclopedia. I will just give you general advice because everyone's food/drink/meds are totally specific to them. Eat and drink whatever you can and don't think for one second about whether you're not supposed to do it during pregnancy. Get a hypremesis specialist for meds - and they're different from just having an obstetrician. An obstetrician's job is to make sure the baby is developing normallly - they're not focussed on the health of the mother except to the extent that it impacts the baby (ex dehydration). My hypremesis specialists are internal medine specialists who cross train in diseases in pregnancy. If you don't know where to find a specialist, the helpher foundation that others have talked about will point you in the right direction, and set you up with some books, goodies, and peer support. There are also a lot of closed fb groups that will add you if you just search hypremesis.
For me, I am always bad bad bad until about 16 weeks, then better but still a person with hypremesis til 28 weeks, then back to as terribble as the first trimester. So I now view it as a pregnancy long condition, rather than hoping it will go away, which I find psychologically more bearable than hoping that it will go away!
Generally from a medication perspective - the main meds are Reglan, Zofran, and Diclegis and you can take them all together. I take all the pills and I find it more helpful than only taking some.
I am happy to pm or emai if you want more info!
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