Vomiting 1/2 a dozen times a day isn't really any better than vomiting a dozen times a day.
Official diagnosis: Hyperemesis Gravidarum.
The Zofran hasn't really done much, so I had Mr. W call the doc's office this morning. He explained how little I'd kept down over the past two weeks and how utterly miserable I am. They brought me in a couple of hours later.
1st things 1st...the twins are alive and...well...not kicking, but you know...and making their Daddy proud. They've caught up and were both measuring 7w1d (Mr. W swears the doc said one measured 7w4d). Their really pissing their Mommy off, though. OK, I'm very happy their doing so well, but they need to give me a break.
After a nice chat with a doc I've never met, I got an IV and a litre of saline. It honestly did nothing to help my stomach as I still had to run to the bathroom on my way out of the office. She also wrote me a referral for a Reglan pump and a port so I can get fluids (that's what I got from it, but I'll find out more when I get the call about it). I just read a story about someone who could actually eat after this and it makes me literally sob with hope and possibility that I might be able to eat soon.
I'm sorry that all my posts are so negative and I'm so down, but I literally can't get up off of the couch without vomiting. I'm terrified that I'm doing harm to my babies and my anxiety is through the roof. Even with the doctor's assurances that the babies will be fine, the anxiety is still here.
Mr. W gets my vote for best husband in the world. Not only is he waiting on me hand and foot, but he's running to as many stores as it takes to get anything we can think of that I might be able to keep down. He even went to more than one pharmacy to find some sea-bands for me. (We'll see if they work. Right now they're simply making the veins in my wrist stick out.)
Oh, and Mr. W gave the doc a first today. He told the doc that I kept him up last night. Even while I was sleeping I was gagging. Every hour on the hour according to him.
19 comments:
Don't worry about complaining! We all know that you are happy about being pregnant but you are feeling miserable and complaining is totally allowed.
I hope the doctors are able to find something that works to get you feeling much better soon. I've been thinking about you!
Oh god! That's horrible Amanda! I'm so glad the twins are doing ok, but I hope their mom gets some relief soon!
Oh my goodness, that sounds horrible! My good friend had hyperemesis during her pregnancy. If you want I can give you a link to her blog and email if you ever have any questions. She had a rough time for awhile, was in the hospital getting fluids a few times, but her little girl is turning a year next month and everything turned out okay. I'll be thinking of you!
Oh goodness..I'm so sorry you're still feeling so terrible. Hopefully, the closer you get to trimester 2, the better you'll feel.
I've had good friends with hyperemesis. It's awful.
I hope you get some decent relief soon.
J
You poor thing! Maybe the port thing will help and you'll be able to eat.
And you know these have to be boys. No girl would ever put her mommy through this. At least not til she hits 13 ; )
I hope that call comes very soon with promises of a new day
oh. that just sounds terrible. I'm so sorry. I really hope they can give you something that helps soon!
I am so sorry. I had a pregnancy like that. It was terrible.
in response to your questions...
i hate to say that i really didn't feel better till almost 16 weeks. i know that is far away, but i am just being honest. i lost about 30 lbs. i was so worried about the baby, but the dr said it would be fine and it was. i couldn't keep anything down. and i mean anything. i did end up having to take vitamins through the iv cuz i couldn't take those either. i really hope your insurance gets worked out so you can have the relief you need. although it didn't cure me....it helped. also, b/c i couldn't sleep due to vomiting all night, i was prescribed sleeping pills. sounds crazy to take them when you are pregnant, but i really needed a break from the throwing up. just a suggestion. prayers are with you! hugs!
Oh man ... I'm so sorry this is so sucky for you right now. I certainly wasn't as sick as you, but I can remember how tough the first 16 week were for me. The doctors will be checking the babies and they will be fine, you are going to be the one going through the ringer! Hang in there, believe it or not, one day you will not be sick! I know, it's hard to imagine that time coming. But it will!
I could write a book on vomit - says the lady whose firstborn she called a nine month eating disorder.
I did B6 and phenergan shots every day + half a Unisom at night (this was in 1994). The phenergan knocked me out cold for hours (so at least I wasn't aware of how hideous I felt) and I only puked 6-7 times a day instead of 10-12 on it. So, yeah, I know how miserable you are feeling.
Things that helped (other than time - it does eventually go away, hopefully sooner rather than later) - staying rested, staying hydrated. Easier said than done, I know. I have taken Reglan, Zofran and something else I can't recall. Suppositories, injections and pills and Sea Bands. Personally, I didn't think the bands helped. Pills I couldn't keep down. Suppositories had a tendency to not want to stay put. The best I felt was in the hospital on IV fluids and injectible Zofran. You can have a home health care nurse help you with IV fluids at home.
Ice cubes, slushy drinks and popsicles were my saving grace. I had to take it slow. I could not drink even more than the tiniest sip at a time or my stomach would revolt. The place I rented the home doppler from also had Preggie Pops. If you can stomach ginger, those, candied ginger and ginger snaps seem to help some also. I was never able to keep a prenatal down and despite doing this not once, but a few times - all of said kids turned out healthier than me in the end - regardless of how much weight I loss or how many times I got hospitalized for dehydration. Healthy birthweights and all. :0)
Hang in there hon - I know it is really awful right now. It will go away eventually.
Mel said you might need advice on the L&F so here I am to say----B6 and unisom, which are the ingredients in the best medicine for HG ever, Diclectin. You can't get it in the US because they are very litigious, but in Canada and many other nations it is the standard first line treatment.
For more information on things you can do to help the symptoms, try http://www.motherisk.org/women/morningSickness.jsp
They have forums, online advice, phone advice, and are brilliant.
And weirdly, I had less morning sickness during this pregnancy when I took baby aspirin and heparin than in the others where I was sick as a dog.
Take B6 at minimum, it really helps a lot. And think about the unisom, at least at night so you will wake up less sick and can get a good night's sleep.
You poor thing. Do not worry about complaining. Even those of us who have dealt with infertility are entitled to gripe about how tough pregnancy is, and considering what you're going through, I'd say you have every right to vent!
I'm currently pregnant with twins following a FET, and I have been very lucky to have dealt with some nausea and exhaustion in the first month or so, but that's about it. I hope you're feeling better soon!
Oh wow - I do hope you find some relief, and your husband sounds like a dream!
Sorry you're sick. I had HG until the day all four of my kids were born. Phenergan in a home IV worked the best for me. Don't worry about the babes, your body will take care of them before it takes care of itself.
Some nonmedical things helped also, like sniffing a lemon. Scratch the peel, and put it right to your nose. Sounds weird, but try it. Unfortunately, it only helps when you're inhaling. Also, shaved ice saved my life with my last pg. Sometimes I couldn't even swallow it, but it felt really good to have it dissolve in my mouth to get that nasty taste out. Eat whatever sounds good to you right after you throw up, even if it's not the healthiest choice. Something you're craving is more likely to stay down longer. Some things that worked sometimes for me were grapes, toaster waffles, and Tootsie Rolls. Hope you feel better soon.
GOOD GRIEF! WHY CAN'T THIS BE EASIER FOR YOU.
blech.
xoxoxo
My heart goes out to you. HG sucks!
Respectfully disagreeing with a previous poster, I will say that B6 on its own did NOTHING for me. What gave me some semblance of a life back was the following regimen: Unisom (sleep tabs, NOT sleep gels)/B6 at night and Zofran at the unofficial max dosage (32mg/day vs the official max of 24). I tried Zofran at first but ended up hospitalized and on everything at once (reglan, phenergan, zofran, etc.), which stopped the cycle of puking 30-40x/day, and once I got out, the Zofran and Unisom/B6 combo allowed me to cope. I won't say I felt great, but I did stop barfing for the most part - I did still puke a couple of times a week, but I could totally live with that. I've heard that it is conventional wisdom in the HG world that Zofran stops the vomiting and the Unisom/B6 helps with nausea. I found that to be true.
I felt the worst from 6-16 weeks, and then I gradually got better from 16-27 weeks, at which time the HG went away. During the 16-27 weeks period, I gradually tapered down the Zofran but remained on the Unisom/B6. I had one big relapse at 20 weeks.
But I was getting in a decent workday from 11-16 weeks (on a weird, limited diet), and I was back to light exercise by 17 weeks, and that helped a good bit, though there's no way in hell I could have done that before then.
Regarding my very limited diet, for a few weeks the only thing I could eat or drink was ice-cold whole chocolate milk. I have no idea why this was, but I could actually gulp it. I could not STAND water, which I normally drink vats of each day. Other HG pals of mine have found the same thing with the chocolate milk, but it doesn't work for everyone. Watermelon cubes were also good for a while. Eventually, I was able to drink certain flavors of Vitamin Water.
You've probably found it already, but hyperemesis.org has great info, message boards, and support. Hang in there!!!
Oh, also - Zofran is insanely constipating. You'll have to add Colace to your regimen, which helps because constipation will increase your nausea. But take the Colace at a time when you are pretty sure you won't barf, because apparently Colace is the most disgusting thing ever to barf, according to the ladies on the HG boards. I managed to avoid that, thank goodness.
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