What is hyperemesis gravidarum? Read this mom's experience with severe morning sickness during pregnancy.
What can you read in this article?
- Symptoms of hyperemesis gravidarum
- How to survive severe morning sickness while pregnant
Do you still remember how your first trimester made you feel? Do you remember the feeling of waking up in the middle of the night only to throw up and cry? Do you remember feeling so sick because of too much pressure in your stomach? Well, if you do, you're not alone - I too remember it all too well.
It was around June of last year when I found out that I'm pregnant. At first, I wasn't actually convinced that I was pregnant. I didn't want to because I wasn't keen on the thought of being pregnant in the middle of the pandemic.
I brushed the thought of someone growing inside me aside and continue working, commuting back and forth from Guadalupe to Ayala, 5 days a week.
But one night, I came home really exhausted from work, when I started feeling cramps on my stomach. I decided to take a pregnancy test, and voila, two lines showed up.
Still in denial, I decided to buy another kit only to see the same result and it was then that I decided to embrace the journey of being a mom - a first-time mom.
I thought that my first trimester will go smoothly like what I saw with my friends and relatives, but I guess my body thought the opposite. I felt so weak.
Right after my first visit with an OB-Gynecologist, I started to feel the symptoms of morning sickness. I felt dizzy early in the morning, I didn't have the appetite to eat breakfast nor lunch and dinner, and I hated the smell of garlic and onion. Lastly, I kept on throwing up.
I said to myself, this is just morning sickness and I can still go to work, but as the days progressed, my "morning sickness" turned into a whole day thing that I kept on calling in sick with my manager so I could stay at home and get some rest.
It was horrible. So horrible that I decided to visit my OB-GYN earlier than my scheduled visit to make sure that everything was still okay and my baby is still growing inside my tummy.
My doctor asked me several questions about what I'm feeling and right after that, she told me that I was experiencing severe morning sickness commonly known as "Hyperemesis Gravidarum."
What is severe morning sickness?
Since I was a first-time mom and my pregnancy was unexpected, I didn't know what hyperemesis gravidarum was. And so I did what I do best, do some research about it.
I found out that not all pregnant women experience hyperemesis gravidarum. This diagnosis is not something that a pregnant woman wants to have, and I can attest to that. Because of severe morning sickness, my active lifestyle turned upside down.
When I was in my second month, I was stuck in bed for the whole day with a pail beside me so I could throw up easily. I couldn't take my prenatal vitamins because it made me dizzy and caused me to throw up. I couldn't eat my favorite food because it will make me throw up. I could not even stand taking in a lot of water.
To be honest, I felt like giving up during that time, especially since I could not go home to my family because of the lockdown, and the rising cases of Covid-19. I felt so helpless. I told myself, if only I had my mom beside me, I can survive hyperemesis gravidarum. But of course, my partner was always beside me to comfort the emotional pregnant woman that I was.
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Getting better by the day
Luckily, when I entered my third month, the symptoms of severe morning sickness started decreasing day by day. I could drink more water and take my prenatal vitamins as needed. I could already eat breakfast without throwing up. I still felt queasy at lunch and dinner, but that's better than my earlier weeks of pregnancy.
And as my hyperemesis gravidarum started easing up, the number of Covid cases in the Metro also lessened, and my partner and I decided that I should stay with my parents in Cavite so I can rest.
Fast forward, I am now in my eighth month of pregnancy and so excited to welcome my little one. I am also now married to my partner and working as a customer service agent at home. I guess I can tell the whole world that I survived hyperemesis gravidarum as a first-time mom.
It was a very horrible experience, and when I say horrible, you wouldn't want to experience the pain of throwing up all day and feeling weak. But if those days will make me remember the joy of being a first-time mom, I will gladly go through with it again.
To all the moms out there who are now experiencing severe morning sickness, I believe that you can survive it just like I did. Just make sure to still take your vitamins and of course, take good care of your health. Surround yourself with people who love you and care about you and your little one especially now that we're still in a pandemic.
I hope I was able to inspire you with my hyperemesis gravidarum story and if you still need to learn more about this, you can always do your research or ask your OB-GYN, just like what I did. Have a safe pregnancy and have a very good life, Mommies!