No nutrition in days

[dashley111]

I have not taken a vitamin in weeks, and have not held down anything with any type of nutritional value in days.

It is starting to be really concerning.  I'm worried I'm lacking some key nutrients- but no matter what I try, I just cant seem to keep anything down.  I resorted to eating crappy cereal that is fortified with vitamins just to feel like I'm taking in SOMEthing.  I have even drank Slim Fast because it has some nutrients in it.  Ensure is too thick, and the taste of Boost made me wretch.

But now not even those things are staying down.  I'm allergic to all of the anti-emetic medications.

I'm at a total loss as to what to do.  I could really use some encouraging words/support/advice.

[bobandjess99]

You

Will

Be

Fine. 

Really.  Just don't worry.  

I made it through 2 awful, hyperemetic pregnancies.  I lost 35 and 18 pounds respectively.   And delivered healthy babies.  

No vitamins, no healthy food...nada.  I couldn't.  And oddly, the healthier the food, the worse it was.   The things i finally WERE able to keep down were not great, but at that point, calories were calories.  My midwife actually said "if what you can eat are twinkies, eat twinkies"  (for the record, i could not, and did not eat twinkies.  Ew)   But what i did eat were processed grains, dry cereals.  Ice cream.  Pop.  Bubbly pop.  Rice and plain potatoes sometimes. 

For the most part, the vitamin angle is settled before you get pregnant/in the early weeks.  You can eat nothing during the first tri and be fine.  Heck, as i learned, you can eat nearly nothing the entire pregnancy and still be fine. 

But anyway..don't focus on eating things "high in nutritional value" Just eat..what sounds good and you can keep down.  

[Thandiwe]

I agree with the PP.  With my second pregnancy, I was the sickest I've ever been in my life.  I lost 20 pounds and only gained 15-17# in the end.  And yet I had an 11.2# baby.  What got me through was going with whatever I could stomach, whenever I could stomach it.  I would eat McDonald's cheeseburgers at 10 o'clock at night, or macaroni and cheese at 9 o'clock in the morning.  Then I usually could eat nothing during the day.  And I just did what I could.  But that little bit made a difference, and he's a smart, healthy 3.5 year old today.

  It's a miserable and scary time!

[Ratchet]

Although this is obviously an important time for fetal development, think how TINY the baby is- it really needs very little else other than to be protected from harmful stuff, which is probably the reason 1st trimester nausea/ vomiting exists in the first place.  Most of the the really junky food out there- all that processed, white fluffy stuff that can be kept down (crackers, cereal, white bread, etc) is fortified, so you are getting something.  And think of the average fast-food consuming American out there- I would bet that a solid chunk of the US eats even crappier than you right now, just probably much higher quantities, and not to say that they are healthy but you sure can survive a long time on nutritonally devoid food.  Carnation Instant Breakfast tasted OK to me some days, and is less thick and medicinal that Ensure etc.  If stuff is relatively thin or liquidy, and you eat in small (like 2 bites at a time) quantities it will probably be more likely to stay down long enough to digest some before you throw it up. 

So, no need to worry about your baby but this sounds awful for you.  If something works, eat it even if that means 3 meals per day.  And if nothing works, and you have hyperemisis or get dehydrated or something, and you can't take anti-nausea meds, there is always the option of IV fluids and nutrition.  So if you are really worried, and nothing is staying down at all, let your provider know and if they are worried about your intake they will do something about it.  But if you can keep down crappy cereal and drink a few cokes you will survive and your baby will be fine.   

This is my first pregnancy, and the nausea/ vomiting was as bad as I ever imagined it could be (short of having hyperemisis) and I am finally getting a bit better at 14 weeks now.  But I spent about 6 weeks being able to eat little more than cereal and Yoplait yogurt and McDonalds and Coke.  Anything nutritional I threw up so I just stopped trying.   I am SO thankful to be off the McDonald's now and have been able to eat vegetables for a week.  Woohoo!

[Jaimee]

I agree with all the pp's that you don't need to worry about the health of your baby at this point.  Baby is feeding off of your reserves and only needs about 100 calories a day.  Eat whatever you can whenever you can.  My midwife told me if you can only eat cake, eat cake.

But this doesn't solve the problem of you feeling like sh*t, which I know can be so depressing and exhausting.  You mentioned you're allergic to all the typical meds, but I have two suggestions for you.  One- 1/2 a unisom tablet before bed.  It really takes the edge off the nausea.  It's an antihistamine, so I would doubt you would be allergic to it.  Doxylamine is the active ingredient in Bendectin (commonly prescribed in Canada) and is category B.  Two- acupuncture.  Your insurance might even cover it; mine does!  I didn't realize my insurance covered it specifically for "nausea during pregnancy" when I was pregnant last time.  I wish I had known!  It also really takes the edge off.  I go twice a week and only pay my co-pay once every 31 days!  It's awesome.

I just encourage you to try one or both of these things to at least see if they offer you a bit of relief.  You deserve it!!!

[dashley111]

THANK YOU, guys.  You made me feel a lot better.  Logically I know that it will be ok, but I do feel some guilt still.  My last pregnancy I ate only cheesecake, Mcflurries, and drank 3 Diet Pepsi's a day and never thought a thing of it- but I was not into whole foods and chemical free living at the time.  I guess the knowledge is actually hindering me now.

I have an appt tomorrow, I will ask about Doxylamine then.  I'm not sure what the specific ingredient I have a reaction to is, so Ive been told not to take anything comparable to Promethazine (phenergan). 

I have had no success with acupuncture or chiropractic.  Ive tried magnets and wrist bands and all kinds of things...nasty ginger drops and strips.  Eugh. 

I bet I somehow go to my appt tomorrow and have gained 15 pounds, though.  Haha.

[octanebeetle27]

I agree with all the PP--baby will be fine and try to find some relief. With my 4 girls, I was sick as a dog the first half of my pregnancies (lost 10 pounds with every one of them). Ate the most amazing crappy food (all over those McD's cheeseburgers!). Could only scarf the folic acid vitamin down (tiny). Babies have all been great. But yes, please try to find something that helps you feel better! I've heard great things about accupuncture, unisom with some vit B. Eat what you can no matter the nutritional value of it. Frozen meals work great--minimum prep and ready almost instantly. Hang in there--hope you feel better soon.

[Jaimee]

I hope you'll be able to try Unisom!  I know this might not be appealing, but would you consider trying a different practitioner for acupuncture?  I found there is a huge difference in technique and effectiveness.

[dashley111]

Is the unisom a specifically night time thing?  How much drowsiness does it cause? 

[Jaimee]

My first mw recommended taking it only at night, but I did experiment and try taking it in the morning or in the afternoon- basically whenever I felt most nauseous.  An OB I saw with my second said I could take 3 times a day if I needed to.  But, I found that taking it at other times of day was not effective.  It does cause some drowsiness... how much, I'm sure, depends on the individual, but I found it to be much less than Benadryl.  When I'm drowsy I get more nauseated, so that wasn't helpful to me at all.  I stuck with taking it only at night.  I started out taking 1/2 a tablet with a bit of B6.  As the pregnancy progressed, I cut it down to 1/4 tablet and still felt enough of a benefit.  With my first I stopped taking it around 30ish weeks and with my second I took it all the way through.  It's contraindicated with breastfeeding so I have not been able to use it this time around!

[justamama]

Can you not take zofran? I saw phenergan mentioned, but maybe I missed Zofran. (((()))) Right now, the Zofran is 50/50 for me. And I'm not constantly vomiting (but I am more than in my other hyperemesis pregnancy, and with much less warning) but I am constantly nauseous. And if I get to a breaking point with the nausea, I just can't eat because I instantly gag and wretch if I even try to eat. Last check I was down 3-5lbs and most of the time the only liquid I can drink is Dr. Pepper. The easiest food for me to keep down is a baked potato, french fries (I've never gotten sick eating french fries!), pizza, etc. I manage steak and veggies sometimes, and I do make sure I'm buying whole wheat breads and pastas. But at this point, if its got calories, I'm happy to keep it down!

[Ratchet]

I initally was using Unisom, 3 whole pills per day (I think 25mg?) and then later did meclizine once a day, and neither made me particularly sleepy- I am working full time, sometimes long days and late into the evening, and I was OK.  When I was home I slept sort of whenever I could just because it was better than sitting around nauseated and throwing up.  But I never had a problem staying awake thru the day or getting up in the morning.  So it's worth experimenting with.  It may not cause much at all for tiredness.  although honestly I don't know how much it helped.  Actually, adding in famotidine for heartburn helped a fair amount even though I didn't really feel like I had classic heartburn- I think it was still a piece of the misery.

[dashley111]

I went to the doc yesterday.  Somehow managed to gain 3 pounds, which Im baffled by.  All I can think is that its all the soda Ive been drinking.  They gave me more Zofran and Reglan.  Im nervous about taking the Reglan for some reason...

[Jaimee]

Oh good... new things to try!  I thought you were allergic to Zofran?  Well you could try just the zofran for a few days and if its off and on, add the reglan.  Both are category B.  Sounds like heartburn meds helped Ratchet. 

[dashley111]

Im allergic to Phenergan and Compazine. Ive been taking Zofran and its not working at ALL- Im not allergic to it because its an anti-nausea and not an anti-emetic.  I have felt ok today so far, and am picking up the rx later tonight.