What is it? - Norma - HG stands for Hyperemesis Gravidarum. HG is a severe form of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy. It varies a lot on severity. For me it was absolutely awful, I was unable to keep any food or liquid down and had to have a PICC (peripherally inserted central catheter) inserted into my arm in order to keep both myself and the baby nourished. It is labeled as HG once you loose 5% or more of your body weight, and you get very dehydrated. Here is a link that talks more about it.
http://www.helpher.org/hyperemesis-gravidarum/
Hyperemesis Gravidarum is a pregnancy disease that you wouldn't wish on your worst enemy.
how has having HG changed you? - from me to Anne -
HG HAS changed me. I've come to realize that nothing worth having comes easy. That's for sure!
how did your pregnancies differ? - from me to Anne -
My pregnancies didn't differ TOO much. I got dehydrated and starved, I lost a lot of weight, I missed out on life, I had countless doctor appointments with many in the medical community, and I cried a lot of tears during my pregnancies. Its just that with my last baby I got the attention of doctors sooner, which meant that I also got medicines, a PICC line, etc. quicker than I did the first time I was pregnant. Is there a certain time of day that HG is worse or is it consistent all day? - Sara - Well, I don't really know the answer to that on more than just my level. It was consistent all day. Basically every time I ate or drank anything, 30 min or less later it would be coming up. But if I didn't eat or drink anything, then I would just throw up bile, and that seemed to be the worst in the evenings. I don't know why.
For me, the first few months of my pregnancy, HG was relentless. I threw up morning, noon and night. Then as time went on, I only threw up in the mornings. It was 5 months of throwing up every single day though!!
Where can a person who has HG find support and others who can relate to what they are going through? - Jessie On the HelpHer website!!! it is the best site that I've found as to getting info there is a section in the 'mothers' area that says volunteers and you can find other people who have been through it who are willing to be contacted - you can find both Anne and myself on there! http://www.helpher.org/mothers/get-support/volunteers/search-results.php
Its EXTREMELY hard to find support, as well as other people who can relate to what someone who has HG goes through. Its a rare pregnancy disease that NOBODY understands (unless you've gone through it yourself).
if a friend has HG, what are some of the useful ways to help them out? - Mindy -
ASK!
I know that for me, it was helpful when people brought my husband (Dave) food. Since I couldn't eat or fix food (or even stand the smell of food cooking) it was really helpful when neighbors brought over a pizza or something for HIM to eat. He was busy working and caring for me, so fixing food just for himself was not at the top of his list.
I agree with Anne, I will also add listen. I couldn't tell you how many people were like oh you're sick, you should try the BRAT diet (bread rice applesauce toast) HG is very severe and normal fixes just don't cut it. Along those same lines though, I did have a very wonderful family member who was trying to research and find and much info as she could as to other things I could try - like accu-puncture. I will forever be grateful that there were people out there that were trying to help find a solution! I would also say that HG is a very lonely experience so maybe visit the momma, however if you make the choice to visit, know that it isn't going to be pleasant! I was very fortunate to have my mom who was also round the clock care with me most of the time. It is a very lonely and isolating experience for the caregivers also, so maybe see what it is you can do for them? I really appreciated cards from people far away. I was not usually up for a phone call (not so fun to start throwing up and need to hang up on them...) and visits from people that were able to.
It is even real? - Chris
Unfortunately, YES...this is a real pregnancy disease that has NO cure.
ahh, you have to love a sarcastic brother. YES it is real, but that is a good question I guess. There are many people and health care professionals that believe that it is a psychological disorder or a form of an eating disorder. It isn't. Things like depression and not eating are what happens because of HG, not the other way around. I am VERY lucky that for the most part people in my life have BELIEVED that it was real. From many accounts that I've read a lot of husbands just think at first that their wives aren't as tough as other women. I think that would be just awful, so if a woman says shes really really sick, it isn't because she wants attention!
Is hg genetic? If you have it with one pregnancy will you have it with the next? - Katie
that is a good question - and a tough one - so I will answer with yes??? maybe??? not positive. lol. From what I've read from research it does seem to be something that is genetic, however Anne and I are not the best examples of that. Neither of us had a mom that had HG. Whenever my mom would come to the Dr with me, they'd always ask about her pregnancies, because they said the best predictor of you pregnancy is your mom's. My mom had 2 very normal pregnancies, she had ZERO morning sickness (and really fast deliveries to boot!) so she and I could hardly be more different. My mom's sister though had one pregnancy, and she seemed to have some of the same symptoms - not as extreme, but probably related. We only have one other female relative from my mom's immediate family which is my cousin, whose mom I am not related to, and she had no symptoms in her pregnancy. (sorry that was a long winded answer!) You will probably have it with all pregnancies. from what I've read it seems that you have about a 10% chance of not having it the 2nd time around. because of that my pregnancy with Gabriel will most likely be my only one.
I don't think HG is genetic, but no one truly knows yet. No one in my extended family has had HG. I was the unlucky one.
How do hormones affect the disease, if at all. - Jean -
What I've been told is that my babies make an ASTRONOMICAL amount of the pregnancy hormone HCG.
yes, I agree with that. Anne was tested for her HCG levels and I don't know if I was or not. I haven't ever seen the results. from what I've read women who are pregnant with girls (producing the same hormones that we have in our own bodies) or pregnant with multiples (producing MORE hormones) are more likely to experience it, but there again Anne and I are not good examples, we've had all boys! With my last pregnancy, I found out I was pregnant on June 7th, and by June 19th I was vomiting uncontrollably (and that was even with having zofran, a powerful anti-emetic in my system as of June 9th!)
Any specialists in the US, if so, where? - Jean - As for specialists, I haven't found a medical one. I've only found one other woman who has suffered from severe hyperemesis like I have....and she's pretty special to me! (Love ya hyperemeSISTER!!!) aww, right back at you! there is a high risk doc from GB that we have both seen, so he is probably the local expert - but other than that there is a woman in CA that is running a study, so she probably is about as expert as anyone out there.
How do you know you have HG as opposed to morning sickness? If you have HG in one pregnancy, will you always have it? - Shannon
You know you have hyperemesis, instead of morning sickness when you can't keep ANYTHING down.... I would throw up sips of water, saliva, medicine, etc.
I think the jury is out as to whether one will always suffer from hyperemesis, once having it in a pregnancy. For me....I have suffered through it each and every time. However, I met a nurse in the hospital who claimed she suffered from it with her first pregnancy, but not with her second. Wish I had her luck!
I found this little graph on the HelpHer website that I thought would be a good one to take a look at. I've only come across one mention in a book that a woman had it once and not a second time. so I think there is a 10% chance of that happening. again, not really sure why! http://www.helpher.org/mothers/hyperemesis-or-morning-sickness/index.php
Well I think that is about it for the questions and answers. thank you to all who wrote in questions, and who took the time to read and learn about HG. If anyone out there is wondering how you can help, there are a couple of ways! If you are a woman who has had 2 normal (non HG) pregnancies, and you are not biologically related to Anne or myself, you can join in an HG study. For it you will just have to answer questions and give a sample of your saliva. Another thing that you can do is donate to HG research - one way of doing so is to order a 'mommy strong' bracelet. http://www.helpher.org/about-her-foundation/bracelet-campaign.php it is an excellent way to donate and spread awareness when people ask you about it! If anyone out there has any other questions, feel free to ask at anytime.
