Hyperemesis Gravidarum. HG. It's something that has affected me for the first 26-ish weeks of my pregnancies with all of my kids. That makes me one of the lucky ones, some people have it until they give birth, or even beyond. The only pregnancy that I didn't suffer with it was with our angel baby. So in a way, it's almost comforting that I am suffering with it again. Sort of. I mean, every morning that I wake up and have to run for the toilet to puke reminds me that my baby is still growing. But I guess comforting isn't the right word, because there is nothing comfortable about HG. Reassuring, maybe?
Wait, suffering again? But that must mean... SURPRISE! The Mojicas are expecting baby #4!
We found out the week before last. The whole family had been struck with a stomach bug that was going around and even though I don't normally catch stomach bugs, even when my kids do, I was struck too. (And this is the TMI part - sorry!) While all the kids that had it were throwing up, most of the grown ups that we knew who had caught it, only had, fever, nausea and the runs. Well by the third day, my fever had gone away and so had the diarrhea, but the nausea was getting worse. I knew then that I had to take a test. The next day came and the nausea was accompanied by severe food aversions. That's it, I KNEW for sure that if I tested, it would be positive. So I took a test, more as a formality than anything, I already knew what it would say, and sure enough, there were two lines.
While most normal people that still wanted more kids would be nothing but happy to find out they are expecting a new addition to their family, my happiness was accompanied with dread. It's a feeling that other HG mamas know all too well. You see, HG isn't just your regular, run of the mill morning sickness, oh no. It's so much more than that. Morning sickness is generally characterised by nausea and vomiting, and maybe some mild food aversions. For some people it lasts all day, but for most, it's intermittent. Morning sickness usually goes away with the first trimester and can generally be remedied with sea bands, crackers and ginger ale.
HG on the other hand, is extreme and unrelenting. You are sick every waking moment, with no relief. You have aversions to EVERYTHING. You have very few 'safe foods'. You have to eat, not only to fuel your body and the baby, but also because the emptier your stomach gets, the sicker you get. But eating is a chore. You don't get hungry in the way you used to, instead, your stomach just feels empty.
Food aversions are so extreme, that just the thought of food makes you heave. Scrolling through social media feeds is a dangerous game, because every picture of food that you scroll past makes you gag, if not throw up.
HG makes you tired and weak, to the point that normal, everyday tasks are exhausting. Taking a shower feels like I have just run a marathon. Walking from the living room to the kitchen means that I have to stop and rest before I can do anything else. Just yesterday, Anthony had to help me up off the floor because I had gotten dizzy and sat down and I couldn't get myself back up again.
And that's not all, there are other symptoms: altered sense of taste. I would describe foods and what they taste like now, but if I do, I will be running for my puke bucket. Just know that it's extreme and unpleasant.
Heightened sense of smell. Everything has a strong smell, even things that didn't smell before. And of course, every smell is bad. I can smell heat coming from out oven, hotplates and toaster. I can smell the coldness from our fridge and freezers. One of the worst smells for me is people. It's not something that I had ever smelled before getting pregnant, so I know it's just my HG, but EVERYONE has this smell, I can't even describe it. It's just the smell of humans. I can smell it on their breath and on their skin. I can smell it through their soap when they are freshly bathed. It's just there. The smell of humans.
I get dizzy all the time. Probably because I can't even keep down water most of the time. And I have no normal body temperature, I am always either freezing cold or burning hot, there is no in between.
All in all, it's a nightmare and all I can do is try to cope, to get through each day.
Medication helps, but that just gets me to the point that I just described above, I can't even imagine not having it.
Other than that, all I can do to cope is find my safe foods, today it's triscuits and string cheese, the other day I could eat almonds, but that's out now. I try to eat a little bit every twenty minutes or so to keep my stomach from being empty and pray that it stays down.
If you know anybody suffering from HG, please know that they are not exaggerating, it is a nightmare. Crackers and ginger ale don't help. Things that usually help morning sickness dont help. The rare things that do help can change from day to day.
It's a frustrating and lonely sickness and all I can ask of my friends and family is to not talk about food to me and please, please pray that it goes away sooner than my previous pregnancies. ❤
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