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HG Facts

Hyperemesis Gravidarum rarely ends at 12 weeks of pregnancy. It typically improves in the middle of pregnancy, but symptoms often last until birth. 

Support is Vital

"The support I received over the past 6 weeks helped get me through what has been the toughest time of my life. Having someone who really who really understood the condition give advice helped us through and crucially, at times, gave me really useful information I didn't get from my own medical practitioners. In my experience, HG is such a debilitating and lonely struggle, the more support you get the better chance you have of surviving it" - Lisa, from London.

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Most of us expect to experience some nausea and vomiting in pregnancy (commonly called "morning sickness" even though it occurs any time of day or night). It is often a welcome sign if you have been trying for a baby, and therefore it is not often that women complain or ask for treatment for "normal" pregnancy sickness.

If lifestyle techniques like eating bland foods, eating little and often, and resting haven't worked, then you should seek help. 

How do I know if it's HG?

Each of the following criteria are required for the medical definition for HG:

  • Symptoms starts in early pregnancy, before a gestational age of 16 weeks. 
  • Characterised by severe nausea and/or vomiting
  • Inability to eat and/or drink normally
  • Strongly limits daily activities

What does that mean? Some signs that you need treatment and help with your symptoms are:

  • If you are not eating and drinking because of the nausea and/or vomiting. Food aversions can be normal in early pregnancy - but not being able to keep down most foods or liquids is not. With HG it's common that something you can tolerate one day will not be tolerated the next day. 

  • If you are struggling with basic day-to-day activities like showering, leaving your home, driving, working, and looking after your family because of nausea and/or vomiting. Sufferers often describe having to lie down most of the day and that smells, noise, talking, and bright light trigger vomiting. 

  • If you have lost weight, particularly if you have lost more than 5% of your pre-pregnancy weight

  • If you are getting dehydrated e.g.: dry mouth, difficulty peeing and/or urine is dark. 

 

Where to get help

You can check your PUQE (Pregnancy Unique Quantification of Emesis and Nausea) score by going to p8 in the clinical guidelines. This rates your nausea and vomiting over the previous 24h on a scale from 3 to 15. The guidelines suggest IV fluids and/or medication may be appropriate for scores over 7. 

Check out our guide to making the most of your healthcare appointments here. 

  • Most of us begin suffering symptoms of hyperemesis gravidarum at 5-6 weeks pregnant, well before you have the initial Booking Visit in the Maternity Hospital (usually at 12-14 weeks.) For this reason, your first port of call for help or diagnosis of HG may be from your GP or hospital Emergency department, before you have had any routine contact with midwives and obstetricians.

  • You may need to tell your employer sooner than you had planned, especially if you need extended time off work.

  • If your symptoms are causing you to feel low, do not hesitate to contact your GP or midwife for support. More on HG & mental health here. 

General Practitioner (GP)

Depending on the severity of your symptoms your GP may prescribe anti-nausea medication: find out more about these here. 

Often you may need to to give a urine sample and undergo a physical examination to test for signs of dehydration. If you are showing signs of dehydration, your GP may refer you to the Emergency Department.

Your GP can also support you during your pregnancy as part of the Maternity and Infant Care Scheme: this covers standard antenatal visits and up to 5 extra visits for pregnancy complications such as HG (this may not apply if you have opted for private obstetric care). Read more here. 

 

Emergency Department (ED)

Depending on where in the country you live, you can attend the ED in your local hospital or you can attend the ED in a specialist Maternity Hospital (Dublin, Cork, and Limerick). Here is the HSE list of maternity units.

The midwives and doctors will assess you and determine whether you need IV fluids and/or medications.

You can attend the ED with a referral letter from your GP (this is free.) You can also attend the ED without a GP letter; standard hospital charges will apply.

 

Midwife

Midwives can give advice over the phone, for example in the Emergency Department of the Maternity Hospital. If you are taking part in midwife-led care, such as the Domino schemes, your midwife can assess your symptoms and refer you to an obstetrician or into hospital. 

 

Obstetrician

For people on the public schemes, you won't usually have a scheduled obstetric visit until at least 12 weeks; if you have a private obstetrician they may be available to you earlier in pregnancy. If you attend Emergency you would usually see a non-consultant hospital doctor (NCHD) initially who will be able to prescribe the most common treatments and will call in a more senior doctor if required. 

 

A dietitian can also be very helpful with HG: read more on how to access one on this page. 

 

Help from us

We have a private peer support group online: it is a place to get practical tips, ask about others' experiences, or just to share your experience with people who understand. Click here to request to join (please note, it is limited to HG patients and survivors, not healthcare providers or carers).

You can also email us (please allow a week for response as we are all volunteers). 

We also offer general information on social media:

  • Instagram and Threads @hyperemesisireland
  • Twitter/X @hyperemesisie

 

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