Hyperemisis
Mar 20 '00 (Updated May 08 '00)
***UPDATED 5/8/00***
I want to alert women (and their partners) to a potential serious form of morning sickness. Hyperemisis Gradivarium. It occurs in about 1/2000 women and can be quite serious. Explain to me in simple terms it is this: sometimes, a woman's body is sensitive to the pregnancy hormone. Some women feel only queasy, some women throw up occasionally and then there's me (and women like me). I throw up non-stop. When this happens, your body gets seriously dehydrated and the electrolyte balance gets thrown off. Signs of dehydration are:
1) In-frequent urination
2) Urine is dark yellow
3) Lips get chapped
4) Skin feels 'tight'
5) Hair can get 'static-y' (not a word, I know but the best description I can think of)
With HG, you should seek medical attention. IV re-hydration is what was used most frequently with me. Since you can't keep anything (not even water!) down, they have to find another way to get your body back in balance. The good news is that this is typically a good sign that the baby is quite healthy and will take the nutrition it needs from you. The bad news is, with the baby taking all the nutrition, your stores are depleted and your body suffers. This can be a very serious situation if not caught in time.
Here's my story:
When I was pregnant with my daughter in 1993 - I started getting morning sickness around week 7. Only it wasn't in the morning and it didn't ever stop! I assumed it came with the territory and wasn't going to complain. That is until I spent a solid weekend in the bathroom! I went to my appointment on a Friday, started throwing up that night and stayed next to the bathroom for the entire weekend (no exaggeration).
I didn't bother to call the midwives as I assumed morning sickness just came with the package. I was thrilled to be pregnant and didn't want to complain.
Monday morning, we called the Dr. who told us to run, don't walk to the ER. I was admitted: severely dehydrated and 32 pounds lighter than I had been at my appointment 3 days earlier! I had an IV put in and bag after IV bag of saline pumped into my body. They tried to stop the vomiting (which, by the way, is aggravated by dehydration: a vicious cycle) and they put me on a plethora of medication - none of which worked.
Finally, around my 7th month, I switched doctors and my new dr. told me about Unisom - yes, the sleep aid! It made me able to function once again. I was still occasionally nauseous but didn't throw up on an hourly basis anymore! I would recommend asking your dr. about it as a solution to Hyper. Grad.
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LAURALYNNE
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Member: Laura
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