My Struggle With HG

A few things I learned along the way…

I had HG [hyperemesis gravidarum] with my first three babies. If you are struggling with it right now, I have all the sympathy in the world for you! It was one (well, three) of the hardest times in my life. With my first, I was still working outside the home. The second two, I had little ones depending on me, BUT I could barely get up off the couch.

So, I promise that here you won’t find “advice” like:

“Have you tried eating saltine crackers first thing in the morning?”

Yes, Practical Pam, I have. And it was a great experience throwing them up for the rest of the day and never being able to bring myself to eat them again for seven years and counting!

But I will tell you what REALLY worked for me and what I suspect could have been making it worse.

So lets start with what Hyperemesis Gravidarium is: A long and hard to pronounce name for puking all day long – beyond the normal morning sickness. It’s terrible. Sometimes I couldn’t even swallow my own saliva without throwing up.

Here’s how WebMD explains it:

When you have hyperemesis gravidarum, you vomit a lot, sometimes almost constantly. This can lead to problems like dehydration and weight loss. Morning sickness often fades by the end of the first trimester, but hyperemesis gravidarum usually lasts longer.

It generally strikes between the 4th and 6th week of pregnancy, and maybe at its worst around weeks 9 to 13. The vomiting is so severe, most women are unable to go about their typical daily activities. Symptoms usually get better by the 20th week, but not always.

Doctors don’t know what causes it, but they believe it’s related to a rise in hormone levels.

WebMD

• Vomiting almost constantly.
• Dehydration and weight loss.
• Doesn’t always get better by/after 20 weeks
• DOCTORS DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT CAUSES IT!!

Now, I don’t love WebMD. I like to look around at multiple articles and sites I trust. You know I’m on the natural-minded train. But the good ol’ MD of the web is very accurate in this situation.

I felt like I was throwing up almost non-stop for months.

I burst blood vessels in my face and eyes. I couldn’t keep anything down – even water. Obviously I ended up dehydrated and in the hospital. I lost 25, 25, and 13 pounds in my first three pregnancies [in that order] it lasted 6 months with Dash, 5 months with Bear, and 3 months with Sunshine.

I didn’t have it with Mars. He was my only pregnancy where I felt like I had “a little bit of morning sickness, like the average pregnant woman”

So, what was different? A few things between #2 and #3, and A TON between #3 and #4.

Hold on, I’ve got to tell you the Legal stuff:

I AM NOT A MEDICAL PROFESSIONAL. DO YOUR RESEARCH. DISCUSS THINGS WITH WHOEVER IS PROVIDING YOUR CARE.

ANY ADVICE PROVIDED OR STATEMENTS MADE have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This article or any advice given is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

AND THE LAST ONE:

*This post contains affiliate links. This means if you purchase through a direct link I share, I receive a small commission at no extra cost to you, because you were referred by me*

Alright, the biggest change between #2 & #3 was diet.

Drinking water as often as possible BEFORE the worst of it hit helped a ton. If you’re already in the thick of it, it’s gonna be hard. You’re probably already getting badgered by everyone to drink more water. It’s something i heard at every prenatal appointment. Just do the best you can. If you get a second where you’re not choking down the urge to vomit, drink some water. Tiny little sips at a time.

Another thing that helped was the fact that I had started my “journey into natural living”. I know, so cheesy, but I was eating better, more nutritious foods. 

I had also gotten into essential oils – which didn’t help much because EVERY SMELL MADE ME SICK. However, I was able to use peppermint oil to keep myself from throwing up a few times. I would actually just place a drop or two into the toilet bowl. That way when or if the urge passed, I didn’t have to deal with the smell lingering around like if I had put it on my skin.

If you can tolerate the smell, that is awesome! Oils can definitely benefit you in many ways. As for me, it was a hard no. I was able to use them in my fourth pregnancy and peppermint (and my doula) saved me from throwing up yet again when I was in transition.

Things also changed when I started suspecting I had some sort of wheat or gluten intolerance. My body was at a weight I was happy with about a year after having Bear and I was feeling good. Mainly, I credit cutting out [most of] the gluten. But I still snuck it every now and then. So when I got pregnant again, and I ate anything that sounded good just to get something in me, I often chose foods that had gluten.

It was a vicious cycle. I’d feel terrible, eat gluten, feel better-ish because I finally had something in my stomach, throw up and feel terrible again.

Turns out I have celiac. Yeah, I was surprised too. How can someone eat gluten their whole life and mid-twenties it turns on them? That’s a whole different article. Well, I stopped eating it entirely and I started feeling better – not all the way, but it was a start.

Between #3 & #4 was when things really changed.

I had been gluten free for a couple years now and I had done a lot of research about HG. I felt pretty knowledgeable.

We were moving from our first home into our new one, and I felt so exhausted and weird. 3 days after officially moving in we found out… Yup, pregnant again. [I swear we know what causes this!] So I was thinking “what dollar amount am I willing to spend to avoid months of sickness? I now have three children!”

Well, the answer to that was a very big number – I didn’t spent that much. But I did send The Daddy a text saying “just a heads up, I spent [undisclosed amount] on vitamins and supplements to try and avoid getting sick again”

Momma being sick isn’t easy on anybody, so he was down.

What did I take?

Prenatals

Gummies and/or capsules. Even the fourth time around, I would occasionally gag when I tried to swallow a pill. Maybe it triggered bad memories. Gummy vitamins came in very handy, but I knew they had added sugars. I like to try a variety of things so here’s my top choices:

• Garden of Life Vitamin Code RAW PRENATAL (Capsule)
• Garden of Life my kind ORGANICS Prenatal MULTI (Gummy)
• Smarty Pants Prenatal Gummy
• Plexus X-Factor Plus™

I’m working on another post comparing several brands. There are some important considerations that need to go into picking a prenatal. Methylated, folate vs folic acid, added sugar… We will get into all that.

New Chapter Ginger force

After only my first pregnancy, I NEVER wanted to taste ginger again. Have you ever made a taste memory? Well, everyone and their mother told me ginger would help with the nausea. I was so sick that now during pregnancy, the taste of ginger actually made me more nauseous.

*funny side note – Not only was the Doula we hired for #4 named Ginger, but baby Mars also has red hair [Mars: the red planet, Ginger, red hair, see what I did there?]

*further side note – Ginger (the person) DID help keep me from throwing up during my labor with #4. She had some ninja quick reflexes and stuck a bottle of peppermint oil right under my nose. It worked like magic! DOULAS ARE AWESOME!

Anyway, back to the point: taking a capsule of ginger meant I wouldn’t have to taste it, so I took at least one a day. I really do believe in it’s “power” I also use it when I’m sick or dealing with inflammation.

I got mine through Thrive Market, but it’s available on Amazon as well.

Papaya enzymes

I typically buy the American Health brand. You can get mostly any brand (just check the ingredients, I bought some in a hurry on my girl’s trip to Chicago recently and those boogers had yellow dye in them!)

FYI: Moscow Mules are delicious, but not all ginger beer is gluten free and I learned the hard way on that trip.

Papaya enzymes are a great digestive aid and can be taken multiple times a day. They also really helped with my heartburn for #3 and #4 and Marvel takes them for indigestion regularly.

Magnesium

Oral form and spray on form. Magnesium is necessary for so many things. A lot of people are deficient in magnesium. The body doesn’t do a great job absorbing it from supplements, it does a bit better absorbing through the skin. I also use magnesium often at the end of pregnancy when my legs are crampy or I need to soak my tired swollen feet.

The Thrive Market brand oral tablet I took is a combo of magnesium, calcium, and vitamin D3. I later started using Plexus and switched to their BioCleanse™ magnesium supplement.

Prenatal DHA

I’m not sure if this actually had an effect on the HG or if I could take it because of the other stuff, But I couldn’t stomach it the other times because if I burped, I would taste it. I used different brands in previous pregnancies, but this time I got mine from Thrive Market.

Honestly, I think that combining my vitamins, supplements, and diet changes had a huge role in keeping the HG away for #4. I ordered this stuff the next day after finding out I was pregnant and started taking them religiously BEFORE the nausea really got bad.

Starting right away had a huge benefit because, again, it was a vicious circle. The sicker I got, the less I could stomach causing it to get worse. Starting a new regimen when I was already in the worst stage of HG would have been difficult. When I was feeling at my sickest, I couldn’t swallow anything without gagging.

It’s a terrible feeling, and if you stumbled across this page because you’re going through it right now – again, I’m so sorry!!

Remember to GIVE YOURSELF GRACE!

Your house is probably a mess, and if you already have children you’re probably feeling inadequate right now. It might even be so bad that you wish you weren’t pregnant. I’m honestly not judging. It was such a physically and emotionally difficult time in my life, I know going through it I thought I never wanted to be pregnant again (and here we are with four of our own)

Cling to your support system, don’t turn down offers for help out of embarrassment. Don’t be afraid to respond with a suggestion when someone says “I’m so sorry, I wish there was something I could do”

YES THERE IS! TAKE THESE CHILDREN, GIVE ME AT LEAST 4 HOURS ALONE FOR A NAP, WASH SOME DISHES, FOLD SOME LAUNDRY, MAKE MY KIDS AND HUSBAND A MEAL, PRAY FOR ME!

You are doing hard work in really terrible work conditions. It’s OK to accept help.

If you are struggling emotionally reach out to someone. I mean it. I know it’s terrible, but when I started getting sick again each time I had to fight off some really disturbing thoughts. The hormones didn’t help. Consider joining a support group, even a Facebook group with other women who have or have had HG. The right group should give you the opportunity to vent without judgement.

Did you or do you currently have HG? I would love to hear what helped you! Please share in the comments so other Moms can learn from your experience too!