Is it safe to prevent v? Hubby disagrees

[lilyann]

Hi everyone! I have a question here. I was recently talking with my non-emet husband and telling him there are anti-emetic drugs out there (I never knew this until I got on this site 2 months ago). Anyway, when I asked him what he thought, he said it is unhealthy to prevent v* if you have a sickness or illness. He thinks you absolutely must get it out. I know I have read that when one has an sv by the time v* starts, it is not really necessary and most of the bug has already worked its way deeper into your system. Is this not true?

[crimgoddess]

The jury is still out on this one- some docs say when you are sick vomitting is a way to release some of the toxins, while others say that it doesnt matter, because those toxins have already been absorbed. It has been my personal experience that if you vomit, you will actually recover faster than if you hold it in. I seriously thinks it helps get all the bad stuff out- I know in the past when I would prevent myself from vomitting I would be sick for 3-5 days....horrible nausea, diarrhea, and feeling like I wanted to throw myself in front of a truck. Now that I do let myself vomit if I feel it is inevitable, I find that though I still feel likeI want to throw myself in front of a truck- that feeling only lasts for 1 or 2 days.


The thing is, it can be hard to distinguish between a stomach virus and food poisoning. With food poisoning, it is often to your benefit that you vomit, especially if the onset is a few hours after eating the offending food. You body is trying to get rid of food that it cannot process, and vomitting is the quickest way to do so. By forcing it out the other end, not only will you be sicker longer, but you are forcing unhealthy/contaminated material through your system.


The way I see it- our bodies vomit for a reason. They are built with this little function to really be of benefit to us- even though it may scare you s***less.


*amber*

[purpleteacher]

I agree with your husband to a degree. V* is normal and actually healthy because your body doesn't do it without having a reason for it. V* can cause dehydration and can be a sign of something more than just a virus. V* actually helps whatever is in your system come out faster. Doctors have told me this before and I believe them, but my fear is overpowering their advice to just let myself get sick and then healthy.

[samara's on tv]

<<Crimgoddess Said: With food poisoning, it is often to your benefit that you vomit, especially if the onset is a few hours after eating the offending food. You body is trying to get rid of food that it cannot process, and vomitting is the quickest way to do so.>>


I don't think that's true, cause I read somewhere that if you get food poisoning by the time you V* the toxins are already in your system anyway and it doesn't matter if you V* or not. Then again I might be wrong, my information might be wrong I don't know.


I haven't V*ed in about 6 years *Knock on wood* and nothing bad has happened to me, and I know about NUMEROUS times when I held it back but I'm okay, I didn't die or anything. I guess it's just a matter of opinion when it comes to holding back or just letting go. But I think it is true about when you are really sick with a SV and you hold back, letting go seems to make you better faster...although I'd still probably try to hold it back for as long as possible.


~Monica

[crimgoddess]

<<<<I don't think that's true, cause I read somewhere that if you get food poisoning by the time you V* the toxins are already in your system anyway and it doesn't matter if you V* or not. Then again I might be wrong, my information might be wrong I don't know. >>>>>


Here we go: Found some info that should clarify things:


(from http://www.schoolscience.co.uk/conte...gy/abpi/digest ion/digest7.html)



<TABLE cellSpacing=3>
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<TD class=subhist width=451>Vomitting
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<TD class=class vAlign=top align=left width=451>
Description
Sometimes food is eaten that contains food-poisoning organisms or causes irritation to the stomach. If this happens, the best course of action is to remove it from the stomach by vomitting. The vomit control centre stimulates the the diaphragm and muscles in the abdomen to contract and push the stomach contents back out through the mouth.

The medical term for vomitting is emesis. There are many other slang terms for 'being sick' or 'throwing up'.

</TD></TR>
<TR>
<TD class=class vAlign=top align=left width=451>


Causes
Vomitting is desirable if the food in the stomach is likely to cause food poisoning or damage the lining of the digestive system. In these cases it is better that the stomach contents are prevented from passing down into the small intestines.

Sometimes the cause is not due to bad food. For example, motion sickness, noxious smells and some cancer therapies may also cause vomitting. In circumstances like these, it is beneficial to give a medicine to stop the vomitting.

Bulimia nervosa is an eating disorder were the sufferer makes themselves sick after eating a meal so that they do not put on weight. This causes damage to the body in many ways. Stomach acids eat away at the teeth and damage the oesophagus in addition to the loss of weight due to a lack of nutrition.

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Treatments
Anti-emetic medicines can be given to stop a person vomitting when the cause is not due to food poisoning. They effect the region of the brain that controls vomitting and inhibits its action. Many motion sickness remedies work in this way and are taken a short time before the start of the journey.

Bulimia nervosa may have many causes and often relates to the person's psychological state of mind. A range of treatments and counselling may be required to treat the disorder.

I would also add that antiemetics should never be consumed after indulging in alcohol. That can also cause some serious damage to your system.
*amber*</TD></TR></T></TABLE>

[crimgoddess]

PS- everyone should check out that website- its pretty damned cool- roll the mouse over the picture on the left and it explains what can cause certain ailments. I love random web searches !


*amber*

[lilyann]

Amber--I can definitely see the point in vomitting if you have food poisoning or have drank too much. But what about sv's? Is it safe to try to prevent vomitting in those cases if you are certain it is an sv?

[crimgoddess]

The thing is- it is very hard to be certain that it's a stomach virus, and not food poisoning. Their symptoms are almost identical, and unless you go to a doctor and get tested, its really hard to be know for sure it's one and not the other.


Sometimes you cantrack the progression of a virus, and be relatively sure that it's probably not food poisoning. In those cases, I don't think it is necessarily bad to prevent vomitting- but I do think that if you do expend a lot of effort to not vomit, you will be sicker longer. Of course- the opposite end of the spectrum isnt good either- vomitting too much can lead to severe dehydration.


To quote a beer commercial- it's all about balance


*amber*

[madisonsmom]

Anti-emetics dont always prevent v*. I think if your body really really needs to v* that it will because its a reflex. Yes, I know that emets have a powerful force to suppress it. I suppressed it one time when I had a stomach virus and felt SO bad but the urge when away like 6 hours later. I had d* the next day. I am VERY good at suppressing the urge to v*.


Your body does amazing things but I think that if there is something in your system that MUST come out...then you may not be able to suppress the urge.

[lilyann]

Thanks for the perspective everyone. Maybe my husband has a point.......On thetwo occasions I did v* over the past two weeks due to morning sickness, it was over very quickly and I was fine afterward. I did not try to suppress it, so I convinced myself that I only did it because I gave in. But....maybe I would not have been able to suppress it if I tried. Maybe in the 11 years before this that I have not v*, I truly managed not to catch any sv's or get food poisoning or whateverand Ihave just been kidding myself about my "super resistance to v*". I may not be as abnormal as I thought

[kel12347]

V'ing can be suppressed and would not be dangerous unless the v'ing is the result of alcohol or another poisoning (certain household products, etc.). I've suppressed the urge to v*, and I'm still alive to tell about it.

[neesy]

I have supressed it loads of times (including alcohol) and I am still living to tell the tale!


If I have ever had food poisoning I have only ever had dh!


Neesyx

[Galadriel]

I really am not
sure if v*ing does help or doesn't. I can see with cases like too much
alcohol or food poisioning then v*ing can be helpful because if the
food/alcohol is left in the body it only does more harm.



I think we as emets can supress it longer than most people can, but
probably most people don't try to stop it as much as we do and don't go
to such lengths to prevent it, so maybe as a result they don't have as
much "tolerance" built up. Does that make sense?

</font></span>

[lilyann]

Thanks for the support everyone. I feel a little better knowing that I am not the only one who has obsessed and worried about this.


Purple--I did ask him last month if he was noisy or quiet and he reminded me that he is loud about everything else (burping, farting, sneezing, etc) so he is sure he is not too quiet about vomiting either even though he says he never paid enough attention while he was doing it to answer definitely. I think that is what has really got me scared because I know how loud he can be about the other body functions so now I'm assuming the worst.


The good news is that I started therapy and hopefully can try to work though some of this there. It is too early to know yet as I have only had an initial interview and my 2nd appointment was to fill out a symptom questionnaire. We get down to business next week. Wish me luck!!

[lilyann]

Oops! I responded to the wrong post. I'll have to copy and put this reply on the other. Sorry if I confused anyone!!