Does it ever stop?

Moms with HG in their 1st trimester.

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Does it ever stop?

Postby rharrison81 » Jun 04, 2004 11:42 am

This is my 3rd pregnancy but 1st HG. I've already been in the hospital for rehydration once and will be back in again soon I'm sure. I'm only 7 weeks and at this rate I'm not going to make it to 40 weeks with a full sack of marbles. So far I'm just on phenargen 25mg every 4-6 hours but it's not working I still can't keep my "cookies". My diet consists of crackers, water and phenargen. Some day I hope to be able to eat a nice meal maybe steak, baked potato and a salad but until I can stop puking meals like those are only in my dreams. We could really use a puking emoticon. I'm trying to keep my sense of humor but when you can't do anything but stare into a toliet or bucket 24/7 it's really hard. How do you ladies do it?
Rachael Harrison
2 normal pgs, 1HG pg
Destiny '98, Hannah '01
EDD 1/19/05
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Postby Milli » Jun 04, 2004 3:42 pm

How did I do it? ZOFRAN!
I took phenergan and reglan before my OB tried me on Zofran, probably because it's so expensive, and they didn't touch the nausea. Reglan gave me diarrhea on top of everything and phenergan just made me incredibly tired. I still would throw up 15+ times a day WITH the drugs. It was a nightmare and I thought I would die.
Then they switched me to Zofran and my husband would swear it was really Zoloft because of how much it improved my mood. Zofran took care of the vomiting, and Unisom/B6 took care of most of the nausea.
It's definately something you want to ask about, and soon!
By the time I was started on it I had a midline and was able to take it IV where it would kick in very quickly. It also comes in tablets, either the kind that dissolve or the kind that you swallow. If you check out the protocols section of this site you might get an idea of what other women have tried that worked for them.
It's important to try and find some sort of liquid that will stay in your body if you can. For me the only thing that worked was caffeine free Coke. My husband likes to joke that our son is made of Coke and Zofran, but then he didn't have to have hg!
I'm wishing you the best and hoping you find some relief soon!
Milli
Rowan 5/12/02 - HG pregnancy
"Charlie" edd 12/15 - normal pregnancy
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Re: Does it ever stop?

Postby MamaLily » Jun 04, 2004 3:44 pm

Rachael -

HG is really horrible, isn't it? I'm sorry that you are suffering through the worst right now. Those first few weeks of HG were esp hard on me because I didn't know what options I had. I really think you ought to be on something besides the phenergan. Have you tried Zofran? What about Unisom/B6? Meclizine? Reglan? Anzemet? Kytril? Has your doctor mentioned getting IVs regularly, or having an NG tube or a PICC line? There are a lot of things to try, and a lot of combos that seem to work for different people.

I think it was Jenni who said that the emoticon for "embarressed" looks like someone who is on the verge of vomiting. :oops: I think she's right! So feel free to use it whenever you want...we all understand!

Hang in there. I know that Andy will have lots of great tips for you and others can help you survive. It seems impossible to make it through even one more day, but I know you can do it. And the baby at the end makes it all worth it, even if it seems so far away right now.

We're all here for you!

- Anna
"The little reed, bending to the force of the wind, soon stood upright again when the storm had passed over." - Aesop
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Postby jenniz » Jun 04, 2004 4:04 pm

:oops:

Yep, it was me! LOL...I really do think this is the "Get out of my way, I'm gonna hurl" smiley! And Rachael, I was glad to find one that looks like a pukey smiley!!! Cuz that's all I do (puke, not smile! LOL)

I am at almost 36 weeks now (HOLY COW!!!) and I must say that even though I am still so unbelievably sick, it is very hard at the beginning. Now, at least I can see my big belly, feel my baby moving and in general realize this is going to be over relatively soon. With my first pregnancy, I was pretty much hospitalized most of the time. My insurance at the time didn't cover the zofran pump (which was actually not used too much at that time, but they didn't cover the terbutaline pump, which I really needed to stop preterm labor) so I was just in the hospital most of the time. I tried all the meds, not much relief. This time I was on the reglan pump and switched to zofran pump (through PICC line) which didn't provide relief and I chose to wean at 25 weeks, I've been back in the hospital a couple times for rehydration since then, but all things considered, I don't feel any worse without the medication. It would be nice to still have the PICC line for fluids, but the thing made me even more miserable and I just got to the point that I wanted to be sick on my own terms. So, yes, I'm still puking, but by golly, I can take a nice long shower! You need to find what's important to you and try to keep a little bit of control over it. My story isn't meant to scare you...but to tell you that well, no, the medication didn't work and yes, I've still been hospitalized, but I was physically DONE with the pump beeping at all hours of the day and night, DONE with dragging the IV pole around, DONE with not being able to take a shower (because of the PICC line) so I said it...enough is enough! I don't feel physically better, but mentally, it does me a lot of good to be sick on my own terms. Early on this time, I did the things I could to keep some control...I prayed, meditated, ate what I could...its not a lot, but if its all you've got...that's what you do. Thinking of you! Hugs!!
________
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Last edited by jenniz on Feb 17, 2011 7:32 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Natalie » Jun 04, 2004 5:44 pm

When I want to use a puking emotion, I use this one: :mrgreen: You have to click on 'View more emotions'. The green makes perfect sense; the enormous smile I'm far from sure about!
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Postby aaronsmommy » Jun 04, 2004 9:40 pm

Jenni - I totally agree on this emoticon :oops:
I want to hurl just looking at it, and I'm not even pregnant!!! I'm not sure how you do it.

As for whether it ever goes away, yes, hyperemesis ALWAYS goes away!
Yeah sometimes you have to wait a while, but it always goes away, and almost everyone starts to feel at least a bit better before they deliver, some almost normal.
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Postby PamelaRose » Jun 10, 2004 12:07 am

Hi, Rachael - Hang in there! It definitely will go away, sooner or later. You can't be pregnant forever, and you can't have HG forever. They need to add that to the old "certainties of life" saying: death, taxes, and now pregnancy/HG. Sounds like you need to up the meds, though, to get you through!

If you need anyone to talk to, I'm a few hours away in MN, and Wendy is from Bismarck. :)
Pamela

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*Avery (1-24-01)
*Reilly (12-16-02)
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Postby rharrison81 » Jun 11, 2004 6:13 pm

My trips to the hospital for fliuds now total 4 at 8 weeks and Zofran is no mircle drug! I'm still puking! 4mg every 4 hours and still can't keep much down. This lovely BRAT diet (banana's, rice, apple sacue and toast) is going to kill me I need real food. I'm anemic now too I can't keep down my prenatals much less iron pills. I'll probably be back in the hospital by Monday because they only give me 30 Zofran at a time and it's the only thing keeping me home, well the gatorade too. Ok I'm off before I start puking again. :oops: Now even the computer and tv make me sick too what a fun 7 months I have a head of me :?
Rachael Harrison
2 normal pgs, 1HG pg
Destiny '98, Hannah '01
EDD 1/19/05
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Postby dwtegli » Jun 12, 2004 4:04 pm

Rachael,

You can always up the Zofran to eight milligrams every 6 hours. My doctor left me on the 4 mg every six hours and told me that if I needed to take two that I could. That seemed to help. If you can't get on the computer and just need to talk email me and I can call you. I am in Bismarck so am not that far away.

Hope you feel better soon.
Wendy,
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Postby Cheri » Jun 13, 2004 3:04 pm

Hi Rachael,
I'm sorry to hear what a tough time you're having right now. It reminds me a lot of my worst pg. I spent several days in the hospital at 7 weeks & was back in at 8 weeks too. Being in the hospital is miserable & the food they give you stinks!! You should be able to go up to 32 mg on the zofran to get a little more relief. Have you tried adding Unisom/meclizine with that too? (Sorry if I'm repeating info).

I would really encourage you to keep focused on the short term for the moment. If you think about being this sick for 7 months, it becomes unbearable. Try to focus on just taking the best care you can of yourself for the next 1-2 weeks & then celebrate making it through that. (Although I don't know what a fun celebration is with hg :? )

I think I am just a couple of weeks ahead of you (don't have a definate due date yet) and although I'm not so sick this time, I'm counting down till the end of June!

Hugs,
Cheri
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Postby MamaLily » Jun 13, 2004 10:30 pm

Rachael -

I'm so sorry to hear that you're not doing well. I want you to know that I understand what you are feeling...it just stinks!

I think increasing the zofran may help, or you could try adding other drugs. Zofran wasn't a miracle drug for me either, unfortunately. And I couldn't tolerate any computer or tv (or anything else) for many wks. I had to take it about 15 minutes at a time. But eventually it did get better for me. I didn't take prenatal vitamins my entire pregnancy, and my baby has always been perfectly healthy.

It sounds like your doctor needs to be more proactive in your treatment. Have you looked into IVs through home health care? Or a PICC line? Could you schedule hydration at the outpatient ambulatory care at your hospital? There may be some good options for getting better care!

Hang in there and let us know how we can help!

- Anna
"The little reed, bending to the force of the wind, soon stood upright again when the storm had passed over." - Aesop
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Postby Ivydragon » Jun 18, 2004 10:34 am

Hi!

So, not your first pg, but your first HG experience! Ok, a few things you need to know. Most HGers are NOT this miserably sick for 9 months, so you can just throw that out right now. Yes, some are sick the whole time, but you won't know for sure until you get there. As long as I stayed on my meds, I felt normal by 20 wks. You can't sentence yourself to misery for nine months - it may be totally unrealistic, and so depressing!

There's a post in here all about Zofran/B6/Unisom. It's important to read. Hydration is SO important. One thing I did (besides B6 injections), was to be woken early to take my meds, and have something to eat. I'd then go back to sleep. I didn't even have to get out of bed, dh brought me breakfast. I'm talking HOURS before I would normally get up. So then, when I did get up, I wasn't famished, nauseas, or about to hurl (most the time). Eat small things frequently, and try keeping solids and liquids separate. Sometimes that helps tons. Vary your food choices, and see if you can't get in some variety. Don't worry about nutrition. If it's appealing and it stays down and it's junk food, it's at least calories getting in compared to healthy food that comes back up!

HG ALWAYS has a peak. Even in pgs that are the most severe, the very very worst of it is about 13 wks. So, honestly, you're in for a rough month, but very very many HGers feel a little bit more human, and a little less like they are about to die, and get on about the business of enduring and recovering after that. Right now, your goal has to be short term. Can you wrap your mind around the next month? Nope. Can you wrap your mind around the next week? No. Can you wrap your mind around the next day? Probably not. The next hour? Possibly. The next minute? Yes - yeah, you can DO that. The worst of HG is about surviving the next thing - irrelevant of time. "Yes, I can survive sitting here in this horrible waiting room for my name to be called." "Yes, I can survive this blood draw." "Yes, I can survive walking to the bathroom to pee." "Yes, I can survive opening the car door." "Yes, somehow I'll make it to the front door." "Yes, I actually can get out of the bathtub with my husband's help." "Yes, I think I'll actually make it to the bed without throwing up."

Break life down into the pieces that are small enough for you to handle. That's how we do this. We also want our babies more than we want pretty much anything on earth. That is how we do this. We come here to get support and understanding from women who actually know exactly how you feel. That is how we do this. We find the best Drs., the best meds to combine, the best way to stay hydrated. That is how we do this. We KNOW it has to end at some point. That is how we do this. We learn to be proactive, and fight for what we need. That is how we do this.

And hun, it's enough for most of us after once or twice. Yeah, some go on to have 3, 4, 5 HG pgs, but most of us only have about 2, and we say, No, no more - I've had enough! That's why we have forums about adoption, and surrogacy and no more for me! Because for all HGers, we also get to the point of enough is enough.

We are some of the strongest women on earth. We sacrifice hopes, dreams, planned futures and normal life just to get the child we set out to bring home. HG takes everything it possibly can, but it does end, and we get the most spectacular reward of all. Babies!

Huge hugs, and you can vent and post here as much as you like. Let me know what we can do to help you, and call and bug your Dr. Only 30 pills at a time? Is that the Dr., or the ins. ?!? There are ways to work with the insurance to get that upped. If your Dr. won't work with you, get a new one! Call the hospital and find out who the best one is, and get in with them! Like you're going to be better after 30 pills are gone! I was on Zofran for 31 wks, and I had moderate HG when I was on Zofran (my 2nd pg).

Huge hugs, Andy
Mom to Aaron 14 (HG), Anna 11 (HG), Adam 8 (adopted), Andrew 8 (adopted), fostering a newborn . . .
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Postby rharrison81 » Jun 18, 2004 11:13 am

Andy,
Thank you so much! I feel better on the Zofran I can actually get out and do a little bit each week as long as it's not too much. I've been blessed the last few days and haven't puked it's been like a dream come true however I'm also keeping myself prepared for that down hill slide. I'm taking my meds religously but now she (nurse practitioner) is trying to change me from Zofran to Kytril. It's not a ins. thing because my hubby is military and the ins covers everything it's just the doctor. The Kytril didn't help the first time but I'll try it again anyways and pray that it works. I'm hoping my arms have a chance to heal before I have to have another IV or blood draw. I have these real ugly purple, blue, green and yellow bruises that I got stuck in 3 times before the first bruise ever healed they look aweful but that's the only places they've been able to stick IV's and do blood draws because of dehydration.

Does anyone know if using a straw makes it worse? I keep hearing conflicting things from the doctors office about drinking from a straw. One nurse told me to and one told me not to. I don't actually see the doctor until July 7th. They have me on the high risk schedule because of the hyperemesis and my last pregnancy I went into preterm labor at 30 weeks. This is going to be one heck of a roller coaster ride but it will be worth it in the end.
Rachael Harrison
2 normal pgs, 1HG pg
Destiny '98, Hannah '01
EDD 1/19/05
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Postby Ivydragon » Jun 18, 2004 11:38 am

Nurses are funny opinionated people.

Here's the skinny on the straw. Are odors from liquids bothering you!?! If so, try a drinking cup of glass or ceramic, so saran wrap will stick to it really good. Cover the top in saran wrap, and poke your straw through it. You can't smell it before you drink it then! Ta Da! Our straw trick, lol.

You know, I don't get why your Dr. is fiddling so much w/ your meds. If Kytril didn't work well before, why try it this time?!? Kytril is a sister drug to Zofran, so they work similarly, but enough different that sometimes Kytril is used when Zofran fails! So, what, is it less expensive than Zofran?!? Sometimes it is, sometimes it isn't. If you haven't been vomiting for a few days, tell her that this is working and you won't try anything different unless it's being added to your treatment protocol, or until you're convinced that you won't automatically relapse! You're the one who is miserable, and she should stop fiddling unless it's neccessary. Ask her WHY she wants you to try the other one. Zofran is much more widely used, and thus much more known on how it affects Mom and baby - we simply don't know much about Kytril, and I'm kind of surprised at her wanting to change so quickly. Zofran sometimes takes a bit to kick in, and it sounds like it has.

That downhill slide will happen if you stop Zofran - it'll be like all of a sudden you hadn't taken anything at all, and there's no guarantee that the Kytril will pick right up where the Zofran left off. Zofran also isn't as effective once stopped and restarted - several reasons to really question switching. If you do too much or radically change what works, or get sick, you will relapse - otherwise, you have a good chance of avoiding that! I learned that the hard way - I ran out of Zofran, and within a day I was in the hospital and puking worse than I did the whole rest of the pg. That's why I'm so upset at this midwife, lol.

Sorry I've been absent from here - trying to arrange my life so I'm more consistent in here.

Huge hugs, Andy
Mom to Aaron 14 (HG), Anna 11 (HG), Adam 8 (adopted), Andrew 8 (adopted), fostering a newborn . . .
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