Pregnancy Must-Haves: Hyperemesis Gravidarum Edition
I have always been one of those women who couldn’t wait to be a mother.
Long before I ever got pregnant, I loved reading and watching mommy-related content from my favorite content creators and influencers.
The pregnancy updates, the birth stories, the must-haves. I loved reading about it all!
And now, it’s surreal to think that I’m in the season of life where I get to share those things myself.
What I couldn’t have expected is that I would be one of the small percentage of women who struggles with Hyperemesis Gravidarum (extremely severe nausea and vomiting) for the duration of her pregnancy.
It’s a debilitating condition that has changed my life for the past 8 months; one that has stretched my body, mind, and soul to its limits.
Throughout my pregnancy, but especially during the early stages, one of the things that helped me the most was reading about other women’s experience with HG and the advice they had for fellow mamas.
So today, I’m sharing my pregnancy must-haves for Hyperemesis Gravidarum in the hopes that they can help you too <3
Pregnancy Must-Haves: Hyperemesis Gravidarum Edition
#1 Emesis Bags—Hospital grade emesis bags are a necessity if you have HG. I keep one with me at all times and have a stash in the bathroom, my purse, and my husband’s car (I haven’t been able to drive since I was 6 weeks pregnant). If you’re anything like me and find your vomiting so forceful that you end up peeing yourself (yup, we’re going there), I highly recommend sitting on the toilet while using an emesis bag. This was a much better system for me than constantly staring into the toilet and having to change my clothes multiple times a day.
#2 IV Fluids—I don’t even want to think about where I (or my baby) would be without regular IV fluids. Although they didn’t eliminate my nausea or vomiting, they helped me stay hydrated and prevented further decompensation and more hospital stays. While some women opt for home healthcare, my midwives helped me set up fluids twice a week at the hospital, which for me was ideal. This also allowed me to get my labs drawn and helped monitor my and baby’s overall health.
#3 Zofran—Medication during pregnancy is such a controversial topic, but I’m sharing my experience in case it helps other women. Although I’m the type to prefer holistic and natural remedies first and conventional treatments as a last resort, I got so sick so quickly that in order to stay out of the hospital, I needed medication. Diclegis and Phenergan did not work for me, but thankfully Zofran did. While it didn’t take away the nausea, it did interrupt/minimize a lot of my vomiting. While I wish I never even had to consider it, I am grateful for how much it supported me and shudder to think where I’d be without it.
#4 Pulse Oximeter & Blood Pressure Cuff—After my first trip to Urgent Care at 8 weeks, I quickly ordered a pulse oximeter and a blood pressure cuff off of Amazon so I could monitor my vitals at home. This allowed me to keep track of my daily status and share the data with my medical team so we could determine what action needed to be taken and when.
#5 Compression Socks—One of the worst consequences of HG for me has been being almost entirely bedridden for the past 8 months. Compression socks have been very helpful in getting my blood circulating and helping prevent clots. Would very highly recommend grabbing some.
#6 Ear Plugs & Eye Mask—Hyperemesis is a very strange illness, because things you wouldn’t ever think could make someone nauseous do. For me, light and sound were two big nausea triggers, particularly in my first trimester. Having a good eye mask and ear plugs were so valuable in helping me get a little more rest during my more excruciating weeks.
#7 Fruit-Flavored Toothpaste—Brushing my teeth felt almost traumatic during this pregnancy, because every time I did, it would inevitably make my vomit. Mint flavored toothpastes made this so much worse, but once I switched to this fruit punch flavored one, it became a lot easier and slightly more pleasant of an experience.
#8 Arcona Cranberry Mist—Pre-pregnancy, I was all about essential oils and herbal smells, but once HG hit I couldn’t stand a single essential oil scent or blend. This Arcona Cranberry Face Mist was one of the only scents that I could tolerate and it brought me a little comfort in tough moments or times when I needed to mask other scents.
#9 Water Pik—I didn’t get one of these until the beginning of my third trimester and boy do I wish I had it sooner. My mouth and teeth feel so much cleaner after using this Water Pik and I would’ve loved to have had this to rinse out my mouth after vomiting so much earlier on in my pregnancy. 10/10 would recommend getting one as soon as the HG symptoms hit.
#10 Oxy Powder—Between the pregnancy itself and taking Zofran, constipation was a real challenge for me, particularly in my first trimester. I tried several brands of magnesium that were supposed to help with constipation but unfortunately none of them worked and neither did Metamucil (it was also hell to try to keep down). In order to avoid a trip to the ER, I did end up taking Miralax at the recommendation of my midwives, but I didn’t want to stay on it long-term. Thankfully they approved these OxyPowder pills, which I had taken pre-pregnancy and are very helpful. I’ve found they can sometimes take a few days to kick in if you’re really backed up, but they are a much-preferred natural alternative for me.
#11 Buoy Hydration Drops—These are another item I didn’t discover until almost my third trimester, but I wish I had them sooner. While in the first few weeks of my pregnancy I couldn’t stand water, I also quickly became averse to any flavored electrolyte drinks (or any other fluids). Eventually that changed and the only fluids I could reliably keep down were a cup of green tea in the morning, water, and Dr. Pepper. I love that these Buoy drops are flavorless, they replenish minerals and electrolytes, and they can go in any liquid, including tea, soda, water, etc. It wasn’t until almost my third trimester that I was able to stay hydrated well enough to stay out of the hospital, and these drops were very helpful in achieving that.
#12 Just Ingredients Sweet Citrus Facial Products—I have been using Primally Pure products for my skincare for the past few years and have really loved them. But once I got pregnant, I couldn’t stand the herbal smell. I went from a very consistent daily facial routine to maybe washing my face once or twice a week and using their Clarifying Serum about the same amount. This was due in part to not having the strength to stand up and wash my face without getting sick and the smell making me nauseous and triggering more vomiting. Thankfully, my skin didn’t mind this new routine and besides some melasma, I didn’t really have any breakouts.
However, once Winter hit my skin became incredibly dry and I knew I needed something to moisturize it. The Just Ingredients brand released a Citrus Body Oil on Black Friday and this became my go-to belly oil. I much preferred this over the Earth Mama brand belly oil & lotion, which claim to have a citrus scent that is good for morning sickness, but I absolutely hated it and didn’t think it smelled like citrus at all. The Just Ingredients Oil smells like real oranges and I loved it so much I’ve now gone through a bottle a month.
I also decided to try their Sweet Citrus Facial Oil and Salt Scrub and those products have been just as fantastic. These have a true citrus scent that doesn’t aggravate my HG AND they are high quality products with simple ingredients. Would 10/10 recommend them all and I probably will stick with them postpartum as well.
Well Mamas, there you have it. If you are struggling with HG I hope these items will serve you or at least give you some ideas of things that might. Hang in there. You’ve got this <3