Morning Sickness

[sillygirl]

Since I kind of had a pregnancy scare this month, I am just wondering about morning sickness for those of you that have had it.


People say that it is different than normal n* - how? What does it feel like? When does it start? When does it (usually) end? I know it's different for all people, but I was just kind of wondering what to expect since I will hopefully be pregnant in a couple of months.

[stella9]

Morning sickness has a variety of ranges from mild to
hyperemesis. I've had four pregnancies in my life and two living
children. Each time I had morning sickness. I never v****
with any of them, but there were a few days that I worried about doing
so just because I thought it would never ever stop if I did.



Morning sickness is a misnomer because it can strike at any time and
last all day and night. Mine started at around the fifth
week and lasted until the 13th. It was all day and all
night. Some days were better than others and I was greatful that
my work schedule was extremely flexible (ie, I am my own boss). I
found that eating always helped me. An empty stomach was a
huge mistake and only added to my nausea. I have to say it was
very wearing and annoying. On top of nauseau there is the
exhaustion that comes with pregnancy. Its not picnic and believe
me, there were many many moments when I wanted to end it right there
and then.



Okay now that I scared you let me tell you how very very worth it
is. Even if you DID v***, it would be worth it. I
almost did not have children because of my emet. I hemmed and hauled
about having children for years - all due to my emet.
I filled up my life with an MBA degree, a career with a top company and
traveled around the world. My husband and I had a beautiful home
and a great life. STILL something was missing. I finally
bit the bullet and was willing to do it.

My life has never been the same since. I cannot imagine not
having had children. My only regret is that I did not do it
sooner and have two more.



No career, no home, no travel in the world can replace the wonders of
being a parent. Nothing can change the way a baby smiles at you
or reaches for you from their crib. Watching a child walk for the
first time, hearing a first word or seeing a new tooth are all
amazing. All the milestones along the way are wonderful to share
in. As for the morning sickness of pregnancy - you will never
even give it a second thought when you move through life with your
kids.



You will worry about sv's. You'll worry about everything.
But that is part of being a mother. That is what we are given
instinctively in order to protect our babies. Its a worry that is
not like anything else. Its all part of the package, one that we
have forever whether our babies are two months old or forty-five years
old.



Remember, no one ever laid on their deathbed wishing they spent more
time in the office, made more money or wished they had had a bigger
home. Sadly, many have wished they had kids.



If you should get morning sickness, they can give you a drug called
Zofran. It is used for chemo patients for nauseau. It took
the huge edge off of my nauseau with my last pregnancy which sadly
ended at 11 weeks. You take it once every 12 hours. It is
very expensive and most insurance companies won't cover it. Ours
did not, but we scraped the $35 per day to have it. It did not
get rid of the nauseau, it just kept it from overwelming
me. There are also sea bands which I found incredibly
effective.



Best of luck to you.



Stella

[jennyleigh1975]

Stella, what a wonderful post!!!! I was almost in tears, my eyes were watering up!!!! There are times when I feel so bad about not going back to school, and going ahead and having my children. Sometimes I think, geez, I am thirty years old, and have no kind of formal education, but then I think about how I was able to be here at home for all three of my children. It was me that watched all of their milestones, not a grandparent or a daycare. Dont get me wrong, I know lots of mothers have to work and many mothers want to work. All I am saying is that when I feel bad about not going back to school, I think about all I have been here for. If I had put off having more children, I might not have been able to have more, seeing as how I had to have a hysterectomy last summer at age 29. I am going back to school, I start summer quarter. I am only taking one class this summer though ........... college Algebra, yuck!!!!

I have an aunt that is 96 years old and in a nursing home. She had a wonderful career in education. At the high school I attended, she founded the vovational/business program there. Most everybody in the town where I grew up, know how she is, she has taught most of the people in the community, well the ones 40+ yrs old anyway. She even taught my mother in law in high school, lol!! However, she had this brilliant career, but never even married or had children. Now, everytime I go to see her, she tells me how lucky I am to have my three children and how she wishes she would have had atleast one child.

As for morning sickness, with my first, I didnt have any at all. With my last two, I had it from about six weeks to 4-5 months. Morning sickness is such a misnomer, because I was never nauseous in the AM, always in the PM. Crazy as it sounds, even though I was nauseous, I never really felt sick. I could usually always eat, and then I would feel better. I never v*. Usually what happened to me was that I would be so hungry, sit down to eat, and then five bites in to my meal, I wouldnt want anymore. I also started not liking foods that I liked when I wasnt pregnant. I love Chic-fil-a, but during my pregnancy with my son, I couldnt stand to even smell the place.

I am sorry to ramble here, just know that for most mothers, the pregnancy nausea is controlable, and that there are alot of women that do not have it at all. Like Stella said also, there are lots of meds out now to help with the nausea, should it occur, just talk to you doctor. Having children is so worth it!!!!

[crystalmom]

Hi guys! What great posts. I will agree wholeheartedly, that although morning sickness did strike me hard, I am so grateful for my son, and I DO want to do it all over again!


I was sick from about 6 weeks, until 18 weeks, although i had to continue the mornign sickness drug (in Canada it's called Diclectin) throughout the entire pregnancy. I usually v*'d in the morning if I did v* at all that day, although the n* countinued for the whole day. I will admit that I became used to it, and actually thought I was over the emet thing. Unfortunetly, this was not the case, as I found out with a sv two years later.


Again, I will say that all the v*ing in the world is worth a precious baby. I would (and hope to) do it all over again,


Bananas! That was a good one for me. And I always kepp crackers beside the bed, and Ginger Ale.


Hope this helps.


Crystal

[sillygirl]

Stella - wow you are right about that Zofran! It is expensive! But I was pleased to learn that my insurance does cover it. I looked it up on my insurance company's website, and I would have to pay $100 for a 3 month supply, but the insurance company would pay the other $2,700. I feel a lot better now that I now I can afford the treatment if it happens!

[stella9]

A few more thoughts.



Jennyleight - Thank you for your kind words. As for your getting your education, go for it.



When I was in my early twenties, I could not imagine having
children - period. I went to college right out of high
school. Right after college I landed a fabulous job with a very
presitgious mutual fund company. There were many new recruits,
like me, which gave a wonderful collegiate feel to the workplace.
Trading stocks and bonds was the place to be. After all this was
in the late 80's at the height of the "yuppie" revolution and I was one
of them. I got caught up in all of the trappings that went
with that era, except for the BMW. The firm I worked for sent me
to grad school so I chose Johns Hopkins University. The firm paid
for my entire education, including books, which toppped at about $40K
at that time. (I can't imagine what it would be now). So I
worked during the day and went to school at night. JHU's MBA
program was 3.5 years, but myself and another person in my class
elected to do it in two years. I was able to double up classes
during the summers and January intersessions. If I had to do it
again, I definitely would. It was a great experience all the way
around.



Never in the back of my mind did I ever think about having kids even
though I was married and it was the "time" to do so. This, I know
now, was primarily because of my emet coupled with the glamour of
my lifestyle. While I did not have many peers at work who
had kids, some of my personal friends did and everytime they told
me of sv's, walking the floors with screaming babies and them not being
able to do much for themselves because of the kids, it made my decision
not to have them much easier. What I know from having lived
through both scenarios is that you cannot have it all, but you can
balance things out nicely.



After working for the firm, I moved to another agency and within five
years opened my own. Fortunately, my company has been successful
so I have had the best of all words - making a living, having a career
and being with my kids every single step of the way.



Knowing what I know now there is not much I would change. I am so
glad that I found the courage to have the children. Jennyleigh,
you have the kids, now you CAN go back to school now. It
will have its challenges, but you can do it at your own pace. It
won't be the same as someone right out of high school who does not have
the obligations to children, but you can do it. One of my dear friends
is going to school now to get a Masters in Social Work and she has a
six year old. She has been in school for two years and has one or
two left to go. It has been a juggle since she has out-of-school
rotations as part of her curriculum, but she is managing and her
daughter is no worse for the wear.



Still, with getting two degrees, the wonderful work experience and
travel all over the world my biggest accomplishment and greatest joy
are my two children. They are both smart to a fault. They
have both gotten into the two most prestigious schools in our area for
academically gifted children. Each will attend their
prospective schools this fall (one is for boys and one is for
girls). They are kind and considerate to everyone they
meet. They are very social and have wonderful senses of
humor. Parents of other children call me constantly for playdates
because my kids are easy going, nice and kind to siblings of other
children.



Morning sickness? Its nothing compared to the love and joy of
having children. While I know that the possibility of having it
is daunting, it is not the reason to NOT have children. I have
seen enough child abuse in my line of business to know that there are
plenty of reasons not to h

[crystalmom]

Stella, what an amazing post. You sound like quite the courageous and intelligent person. I cannot imagine having the ability to do some of the things you have done. Actually, I'm most envious of going to Johns Hopkins. I am taking nursing right now, and would love to go there, however I live in Canada, and couldn't possibly afford it anyway.


It is so true that in the life time that we have, 9 months are very small, in the braoder scheme of things. So those emets, considering NOT having children b/c of the fear of m/s....remember that it will come to an end, and it is worth ever single second.


Crystal