Most women will experience 'morning sickness' feelings of nausea and actual sickness during their pregnancy. Forget the word 'morning', the queasiness can happen at any time of the day.
It's most common during your first trimester, and tends to ease after around 13 weeks, although some women feel queasy and suffer from nausea throughout their pregnancy, while it may return for others at different times.
But extreme sickness - Hyperemesis Gravidarum - is different.
Is it morning sickness or Hyperemesis Gravidarum?
If you're suffering from the following symptoms, you should talk to your midwife or GP in case you're suffering from Hyperemesis Gravidarum:
- You vomit more than four times a day
- You begin to lose noticeable amounts of weight
- Your vomit contains blood or looks like coffee
- You lose more liquid than you can keep down
Sometimes, what you think is morning sickness - the nausea and the vomiting - could be a sign of a different problem, such as a urinary tract infection, appendicitis or pancreatitis. Get in touch with your doctor or midwife straightaway if you:
- Have very dark wee or don't wee for more than eight hours
- Have abdominal pain
- Have a high temperature - we're talking of 38 degrees C (100.4F) or above
- Feel really weak, dizzy or faint when standing up
- Vomit blood
- Have a racing heart rate
- Have repeated episodes of vomiting
- Can't keep food or fluids down for 24 hours
So what is Hyperemesis Gravidarum
This is relentless vomiting and nausea that leads to a weight loss of over 5% of your body weight. It affects one in every 1,000 pregnant women.
Hyperemesis Gravidarum can vary greatly in degree and duration. It can mean frequent vomiting even up until birth. In extreme cases, you may even need to throw up after swallowing your own saliva.
Treatment
Hyperemesis Gravidarum may require treatment as untreated it can lead to dehydration and malnourishment.
Treatment usually involves special drugs to suppress vomiting, anti-emetics, and possibly a hospital stay and feeding and rehydration through an intravenous drip.
Some doctors may misdiagnose a case of Hyperemesis Gravidarum as severe morning sickness, as it's not an easy condition to diagnose. It's important to let your doctor know exactly how often you are sick and how much weight you have lost, and that you suspect you are suffering from Hyperemesis Gravidarum.
Hyperemesis Gravidarum affects family life
With morning sickness you may be unable to cook hot meals or need a short time off work. With Hyperemesis Gravidarum, you could be bed-ridden for weeks, unable to work for long periods, too ill to cope with domestic tasks and need far more support from your family and friends.
For your partner it can be stressful because he has to take on most of the domestic duties and responsibilities. He may find it very distressing to see you go through so much and feel frustrated if he feels he can do nothing to help.
How to cope with Hyperemesis Gravidarum
Seeking medical treatment for hyperemesis gravidarum is important.
After this, there are a few things that may help ease Hyperemesis Gravidarum:
- Massage can help relieve symptoms of nausea and is an easy way for your partner to offer you relief.
- Rest. Trying to do too much will only increase your stress levels and make your sickness worse.
- Separate food and drinks. You'll have more chance of keeping food down if you keep the hour around eating fluid-free. You'll need to make up the fluid intake between the times you eat though.
- Vitamin B6 may help combat nausea and sickness in pregnancy, so try taking a vitamin supplement if you can keep it down.
- Ginger. As with regular morning sickness, ginger products - tea, biscuits, ginger ale – might help ease some of your symptoms.
- Fizzy drinks. You may need to get energy through sugary drinks - lemonade, ginger ale, cola and lucozade – if you find them easier to keep down.
- Herbal teas like ginger, peppermint and fennel, may settle your stomach and help digestion.
- Dry and plain foods. Starting the day with a couple of crackers or a bit of toast, even before you get out of bed, can help prevent nausea.
- Eat small amounts of food, more often. If you can't eat solids, try milkshakes, smoothies and nutrition drinks.
- Sweets. If you're suffering from excessive saliva, try sucking on a boiled sweet.
Hyperemesis Gravidarum and future pregnancies
If you've suffered Hyperemesis Gravidarum once, it doesn't automatically mean you'll get it again. However, the chances are quite high that you will, though it may be very different the next time.
Whatever happens, it makes sense to assume that you could suffer Hyperemesis Gravidarum again so you can prepare yourself mentally and physically for the possibility.
If you have suffered Hyperemesis Gravidarum, it's important you give your body plenty of time to recover before you fall pregnant again.
Mum’s story
“I had Hyperemesis Gravidarum with both pregnancies”
“I had Hyperemesis Gravidarum during my first pregnancy, so I knew the signs, and this time it started at around eight weeks. I had sickness from waking up and all through the day. On the worst days it was every half an hour, sometimes going on throughout the whole night as well. I was regularly admitted to the clinic throughout this pregnancy and stayed for a few days at a time, where I had a drip to rehydrate me.
“It’s important to be assertive about getting help – the longer you leave it, the worse it gets. I was constantly told it was normal and it would pass at 12 weeks. Also, eat whatever you want, because your baby will be fine. If it stays down it’s good. Drink water all the time too, because hydration is the key to the whole thing.”
Jules, 30, mum to Winnie, 5, and 34 weeks pregnant
