What's the best time of the year to survive HG?

[bibliojo]

Hi all,

I've been thinking about when to plan my second pregnancy and I was wondering what other women thought was the best time of the year to survive HG. I went through HG in the summer time (June-September) with my son and I think that the heat made me feel worse. I know that I became dehydrated more quickly than if it had been a cooler time of year. But I would like to hear about other women's experiences, especially those that have gone through HG at different times of the year. What were the advantages and disadvantages to going through HG at that time of year? Which season would you recommend for going through HG?

Thanks,
Joanna

[RebeccaM]

I've only had HG once, but it lasted the whole 9months so I've experienced HG in 3 different seasons. Here's my take:

WINTER: This was the first trimester, so I felt the worst, but I was actually glad it was during the yucky months of January and February. I didn't miss much and even if I wasn't sick I would've spent the time cooped up indoors. I didn't have any major holidays or vacations to miss out on or stress over (and I didn't have to miss out on all the yummy holiday food ) . It was also nice not to have the heat.

SPRING: This was my second trimester, and not suprisingly, the most pleasant. It was nice weather, but still no heat. There were lots of early summer fruits to enjoy, which was great because fruit was something I craved like crazy.

SUMMER: Of course my last trimester occured during a record heat summer. That was miserable. I think the heat would have really made me crazy if I was as sick as I was in the first tri. BUT, again, all the yummy, HG friendly, summer fruits were inseason, like peaches, watermelon and strawberries. I drank Jamba Juice fruit smoothies regularly and they were sooooooo good.

I think, overall, going through the worst of it in those bad winter months was a good thing. Probably the best time I could've picked (although I didn't pick it ).

[Natalie]

Hi Joanna

This is an interesting idea - I'm glad you thought of asking the question

Well, I had HG from Feb - June. No disadvantages come immediately mind, but the one advantage I remember is seeing all the lovely trres and flowers coming into bloom and leaf. It always reminds me of new beginnings but I love Nature and I am a 'Spring-o-phile' as it is. I remember one beautiful day (my birthday), one of my best friends took me out to this gorgeous place 'Westonbirt Arboretum' near where we live. We spent a wonderful late morning and early afternoon wandering around admiring all the Rhodedendrons and Azaleas, hearing the birds and watching the wildlife. I specifically remember being able to eat a bowl of mushroom soup which was such a big deal for me, (I remember it 15 months later!). I wasn't over HG by then but I was getting there. I was very weak and I did take the sick bucket, but luckily didn't barf. What a great birthday!

I shall be watching the answers on these threads with interest...

Regards

Natalie

[MamaLily]

My HG was the worst November - February. And if I have a choice in planning it again, I'd prefer to avoid being sick during those months. It was hard because I missed my anniversary, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years', the winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, etc. And I love winter, snow, and the holidays! But with my HG I was unable to tolerate any kind of lights, music, TV, books, people, etc. I literally spent months down in the basement, curled up in the fetal position without any kind of stimulus. And so I really did completely miss out on the holidays. Luckily I was released from the hospital a few days before Christmas, so I was able to be home. If your HG is the kind where you can "function" (at least a little bit), then it might not be so hard during those months. Also, the few foods that I did crave (peaches, ripe watermelon, etc.) were not available during winter.

If I could choose (and I know I may not have that luxury), I would plan to conceive sometime in the beginning of the year (Jan or Feb), finish the worst of HG sometime in the spring/early summer, and then deliver around November or December. When I get to the point of tolerating reading or being with people, it would be nice to go outside during the pleasant days/nights of summer and fall. Being 9 months pregnant (and HOT) during the winter months always has sounded better than being pregnant (and HOTTER) during summer. The downside would be having a newborn in the middle of winter, which might be scary with the flu and other sicknesses going around.

This is interesting to hear everyone's experiences with HG and time of year! I hope more people chime in...

- Anna

[nomore]

Ho,

I had my worstof HG during July and August. I felt like I missed the whole summer (as we live in NEw England) and these are the nicer warm months of the year. It really bit and I was very sad I missed the summer. THis time we are planning on trying to concive late Sept/ early Oct and will face HG during the winter. All seasons have a disadvantage. I hope that I really dont miss too much of the holidays, but am trying to remain positive, that even though I am VERY prepared this time, with a protocol and meeing with the Peri beforehand, that maybe this time might be better. Good luck as you plan. I knowit helped me to look at a calander and plot important dates and see "how far along I would be" and compare to last pregnancy to see what it could be like. HG lasat time lasted until deliever, but did ease at around 30 weeks, although nausea and vomting never ended until delievery.

HuGS,

Robin

[bibliojo]

Thank you all for your reponses! It has been interesting hearing what other women think is the best time of the year to survive HG. Sounds like most of you think spring is a good time to get through it!

I'm like Anna in the way that I too am unable to tolerate any sort of stimuli without feeling worse so I basically spent the whole summer of '02 curled up in bed or hugging the toilet bowl. I felt like I missed so much! Everybody was out enjoying the sun doing fun things while I was stuck at home (or in the hospital!) sick. I think that this probably further contributed to my depression (I was already depressed from being so ill). And I think too that because I was missing so many summer activities and get togethers with family and friends etc. that I pushed myself harder to try and act like a woman who had normal morning sickness (which we all know HG is not!) and ended up paying for it in the days/weeks that followed.

So we'll see if I decide to go through HG in the spring. It sounds like it would fit into our general plan of things. I'd like to wait until my son is at least two which he will be next February but the downside of having HG in spring would be that I wouldn't have as much help as I would in the summer when my MIL is off work. Who knows? I guess there really isn't a perfect time for all this, eh?

Joanna

[MamaLily]

Joanna -

I think you're right - there really isn't a perfect time for HG! It's just hard to plan on being out of commission for that many months!

I'm sorry that you also couldn't have any stimulus while you were so sick. That was definitely the hardest part of HG for me...not being able to do anything or read anything or even think about anything without becoming sicker. Thinking about it now still makes me mourn for the loss of those months. Just wondering...did any meds/treatments work for you? Did you try meclizine? I'm crossing my fingers that meclizine will at least help me to come out of that black hole a little bit sooner with another pregnancy!

Take care and let us know what you decide. Of course we will be here for you no matter what!

- Anna

[bibliojo]

Hi Anna,

I first tried 4 Diclectin a day combined with B6 but I only got worse and ended up in the hospital. In the hospital we discovered that Maxeran, Gravol and Zantac worked well for me but when I was sent home and had to take the medication orally rather than intervenously I was still very sick. Taking these meds orally just took the edge off and prevented me from throwing up several times a day to just a couple times a day (most of the time at least) but the overwhelming nausea that remained with me meant that I was basically out of commission until around 18 weeks. I know now that there are things that could have been done to make me more comfortable and less nauseous. I was going to do another post on this (and probably still will at some point) but I want to know how much response and effort I should expect from my doctor and what level of comfort should I be expecting from the medicines I am being treated with. Should it be as last time where I stopped throwing up as much and was able to at least stop losing weight but was still feeling sick all the time? Or should I expect to be only nauseous most of the day? Some of the day? Or should I demand the course of treatment that allows me to feel like myself?

I have not heard of meclizine before. Is it on the medications page on this site? I'll have to look it up. Did I work quite well for you?

Joanna

[MamaLily]

Joanna -

I'm sorry to reply to you so late! We've been moving and I've had a million things to do!

I wanted to write about meclizine. It's an over-the-counter medicine that is usually used for motion sickness. And there are women here who have tried meclizine with some promising results. Even when vomiting isn't a huge problem, the leftover nausea is just torture! And my understanding is that meclizine can help fight some of that nausea. I didn't try it when I was pregnant, but I'm planning on it for my next pregnancy. I have it on my protocol as my first line of defense.

Did you talk with Motherisk during HG? I was hoping to conceive last spring and I called them with some questions about HG management. They were very helpful, and they will even call to check up on you! Talk about a wonderful service!

Good luck as you prepare yourself for HG. We're thinking about trying again sometime in late December/early January. It's scary but exciting at the same time! We'll have to support each other!

- Anna

[bibliojo]

Hey Anna,

No worries about the late reply! Moving can be very stressful and A LOT of work! And thanks for the info. I'll have to check to see if meclizine is available in Canada. I'm all for anything that will get rid of even a little bit of the nausea!

I didn't call Motherisk with my first pregnancy. I was too sick to call anybody but my mother and cry about how awful I felt! The thought of phoning a stranger and trying to have a conversation with them was just too much for me to handle! I'm sure you know what I mean...we seemed to have had similar types of HG. But I did call Motherisk last week to get some info on preparing for an HG pregnancy and talked to the lady there about the medication possiblities for HG in Canada. I was a bit disappointed to be honest. She kept on pushing Diclectin which I told her I tried with my first pregnancy but that it didn't work. It's so important to get a handle on HG right away and I just feel like I would be wasting my time with Diclectin. I would probably just end up in the hospital again like I did last time and would always feel like I'm one step behind in treating the HG rather than feeling somewhat in control of it. Do you know what I mean?

My DH and I have come to a decision that we are going to TTC starting in May next year. It's a long way off yet, but I'm glad that I have a more definite time to plan around now. I'm going to hate missing another summer but it is the time of year that we have the most help so that factor has basically decided it for us.

Good luck with your decision to TTC this winter. I can totally identify with your mixed feelings. It'll be wonderful to have another baby but dreadful to have HG again. But I know what we will be here to support each other in our future pregnancies and all the anxiety and fear leading up to them! If you do get pregnant before me you'll have to let me know how the meclizine works for you!

Joanna

[MamaLily]

Joanna -

Yes, I really think we had the same kind of HG. I couldn't talk on the phone at all (except with my husband, who was traveling with work, and then only for about 30 seconds each day). But maybe you could ask Motherisk to check in with your husband or someone else.

When you called them, it's too bad that they pushed Diclectin so much. I tried Unisom/B6, which is the closest thing to Diclectin here in the U.S., and it didn't do anything to fight my nausea/vomiting. Plus, the Unisom made me jittery and unable to sleep. So, needless to say, it's not even a part of my plan for NG! I wonder if you spoke with someone else at Motherisk if they would have some other ideas. My perinatologist (who knows a lot about HG), said that she thinks it's sometimes better just to start with the meds that you know will work. I hope you find some good options! By the way, have you looked at the page on this website that lists all of the meds commonly used by HGers? It's a great resource! Here's the link: http://www.hyperemesis.org/mothers/trea ... ations.php

Keep me posted on your plans before conceiving! I know I can't count on it, but deep down I'm just praying to get a better handle on HG right from the beginning! Being proactive will hopefully keep me from getting so low!

- Anna

[dbarr]

My experience was that Summer was the worst time for HG. The warm air seemed to make the smells worse, and I had such bloodhound nose and a hyper gag reflex. Opening windows didn't always help, b/c it was so warm, and there were smells from exhaust fumes, barbeques, etc. I smelled over-ripe fruit, mold/mildew in the kitchen and bathroom and especially at the gym locker room, what I think was rotting wood in older homes (I do outreach work), etc. I could detect grease smells from a restautant a block away. All of these smells seemed more severe in the warm weather... The cold air was so refreshing in the Winter months.

[Kariinbliss]

I don't know if anybody is still watching this thread or not, but thought I'd add my two cents. I had HG during the summer with both previous pregnancies, and am at 6w 3d now (5-22-05), so may lose another summer. I was just commenting to my dh that I can smell EVERYTHING, and everything STINKS!! LOL. We live out in the country, so have horse and cow smells to deal with aside from the regular cooking odors and wet dog and sweaty kids. If I had a choice, I'd probably try to conceive in winter, so a lot of the smell factor wouldn't be there. The heat is also a killer, the only time I wasn't nauseated with my second was when I was in the pool! (don't know what heat has to do with it, but it's got to be something!) Anyhow, those are just my two cents!

[Caurie]

The worst of my HG was also from Feb. to June. If I do it again I would actually prefer to go through it during this time as well. There was something very helpful and healing in being so sick during the Winter and improving once Summer arrived. I found some peace watching the snow fall from my window, watching the Spring flowers bloom and then feeling good enough to enjoy the summer.