Beth Denny

The reason I’ve been away so long is that I’ve been diagnosed with Hyperemesis gravidarum. This is really bad morning sickness as I’m pregnant with baby Denny no.2. Kate Middleton, the Duchess of Cambridge, was also said to have suffered with this when she was pregnant with Prince George. I’ve been unable to keep anything down for around three weeks and needed to take tablets to be able to eat or drink so I could keep nourished and hydrated. The advice for women with morning sickness is to eat dry and bland food but I couldn’t manage even plain steamed rice, boiled vegetables or milk. I was nearly admitted into hospital for an IV drip as I lost nearly one stone in weight.

When I was eight weeks pregnant I had an early pregnancy scan to see if the baby was ok and it was exactly the right size and everything looked normal which was such a relief.

My Doctor prescribed antiemetics (anti-sickness tablets) so I could function throughout the day as all I could do was sleep and become breathless from going up or downstairs. The first tablets I took was Prochlorperazine (Stemetil) but I was still suffering with this and poorly some mornings. I was then prescribed Cyclizine. This made me really light headed and dizzy. So I finished the course of Stemetil instead which seemed to become more effective over time.

Thankfully I’m feeling much better now and hope to stop taking my tablets soon.

With my first pregnancy I had morning sickness every day and sometimes two or three times throughout the rest of the day but I could eat a wide variety of fruit, vegetables, dairy and carbohydrates. I couldn’t eat meat but could eat fish if it didn’t have a strong odour.

Our second child is due on my birthday at the end of October and I can’t wait to meet the little one and new edition to our family.

For more information on Hyperemesis gravidarum please visit the HER website which I found very useful when I was poorly.