By Rachel Dewell: Mother of 5 / RN-BSN / Hyperemesis Gravidarum Survivor
The podcast currently has 22 episodes available.
You've probably heard of a labor doula. Someone who stays by your side throughout the labor and delivery and afterbirth process to provide physical and emotional support. A bereavement doula is just how it sounds, someone to stay by your side while you grieve the loss of your baby.
I had never heard of a bereavement doula but after getting acquainted with Kathleen Garcia, I'm glad that there is someone out who wants to help parents walk through one of the hardest of life's experiences: the loss of a child. Kathleen says that she never wants a Mom to have to suffer alone.
In this episode:
To connect with Kathleen, visit her website here: http://kgempoweringmothers.com/
She also has an etsy shop here: Oils Of The Rainbow
Jessica Spry-Sinay lives in the Netherlands with her husband and 2 daughters. She wanted to share her experience with two HG pregnancies and hear about the differences in treatment and care in other countries. She volunteers for a support group in her own country and reaches out to support groups in neighboring countries to offer help whenever she can.
We talked about:
Part 2 of Genna Rourke's interview (check out part one here) about her two HG pregnancies and the charity she started. HGwarriors.com is for women all over the world struggling with Hyperemesis Gravidarum. If you're past HG but want to help support other women, you can volunteer here. The number one thing that women who have gone through HG in the past say is that they felt so alone. This is a great way to help one more HG woman feel like she is not alone. Check out the FB group here.
Download "Hyperemesis Gravidarum, The Ultimate Survivor's Guide", here. Especially if you're in the UK, you need to know how to navigate the medical care system to get the treatment you need. She is currently working on a guide for women in the US.
Dr. Tim Jackson is a doctor of Physical Therapy. He also studied nutritional biochemistry, digestive health and its systemic effects, as well as functional endocrinology. He helps people with all sorts of disorders over at HealYourbody.org. He also does online consults through his Heal Your Body Program.
In this episode we talked about:
What MTHFR means: (It's not your first thought. I know what you were thinking.) It stands for Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase. (Say that three times fast.)
It basically means that if you have it, you lack the ability to activate folic acid into methyl-folate.
Then you don't have the useable form of folate and you have too much folic acid sitting around.
That's when disorders start popping up. Miscarriages have been associated with MTHFR.
Best place to get tested: 23andme.com. You will just get the raw data, no interpretations.
Get interpretations at livewello.com or MTHFRSupport.com.
Heterozygous means you have one copy
Homozygous means you have two copies
Polymorphism is a SNP (Single-nucleotide polymorphism)
Genetics refers to actual mutations someone might have. Trisomy or Down's Syndrome are examples.
Epigenetics are modifiable risk factors, which give us a predisposition to certain diseases or disorders. The key word is modifiable. They are not set in stone.
"HG can be the straw that breaks the camel's back."
Allostatic load means the sum total of internal and external stressors on the body.
"It can take a disease from subclinical to clinical" (expressed).
"Any stressor can effect the expression of genes."
Exposome means everything you've been exposed to in your life.
You can have too little or too much methylation. This effect neurotransmitter production (mood disorders), T-cells (infection and allergies), and Glutithione (which controls free radicals).
Can Hyperemesis Gravidarum be an allergy to the hormones, the placenta or the baby? Short answer....YES.
Neuro-immune is more accurate than "Auto-immune" to describe this.
Liver Detox:
Phase 1: oxydation
Phase 2: conjugation-methylation
Phase 3: Transport to the cell
Milk Thistle supports Phase 1 detox. If phase 2 is not adequate, the byproducts of phase 1 sit around causing oxidative stress.
B vitamins, NAC (N-acetyl cysteine-precursor to glutithione), Glutithione and Glycine support Phase 2 detox.
Oxidative Stress causes all disorders, which go through 3 stages.
Stage 1: energetic imbalance (you don't feel bad in this stage)
Stage 2: Functional: Fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue syndrome. You feel the effects but there are no biomarkers to show what's going on.
Stage 3: lesional-can be seen on an MRI (like Multiple Sclerosis)
Inflammation causes fatigue ad premature aging.
Lipid Peroxidation: damage to cell membranes
What to do about it:
Support the methylation cycle
Reduce oxidative stress
Diet:
Clean out processed foods and additives.
Remove sugar and gluten.
Consider removing dairy
Heal your gut (mood disorders are related to leaky gut.)
Just because you don't have symptoms, doesn't mean you don't have a disorder.
"The system that is disordered might not be what's expressing itself."
Supplements:
Glutithione: Oral liposomal form, transdermal creams and oral s-acetyl-glutithione
Magnesium and zinc are cofactors for methylfolate and other b vitamins.
B12 needs methylfolate. Taking methylfolate without B12 could cause "methyl-trapping". To learn more about this, check out my paper about the importance of Magnesium, Zinc and B vitamins. Sign up here and I'll email the paper to you.
For more suggestions, check out Dr. Jackson's website.
He suggests not taking supplements all at once but after changing your diet to reduce insulin (which is pro-inflammatory), increasing healthy fats (which fuels the liver, tissues and cells and helps balance hormones) then layer in supplements, one at a time. Minerals first, magnesium, then zinc. Then add B vitamins, starting with B12. The last supplement to add is methylfolate.
Liver, gallbladder and pancreas:
We know the importance of the liver. The gallbladder helps with bile flow. Bile is dependent on glutithione. If you're not methylating in the liver and the bile is backed up, toxins back up. This can mess up our ability to process carbohydrates (diabetes is carbohydrate intolerance) and this has an effect on our pancreas, which produces insulin.
If you want to get in touch with Dr. Jackson, you can visit his website at healyourbody.org. Check out his facebook page. Or email him at [email protected].
Let me know what you think! Does this connect some dots for you about your health?
I talked to Ashley Ziegler of the blog, Itsy Bitsy Blessings about her experiences with Hyperemesis Gravidarum.
We talked about so many things:
Her most visited post is a guest post by Brad Klingele titled, "So, Your Wife is Barfing her Guts out". You have to read it. And then pass it around to all your friends and their husbands.
How we can fall into the trap of thinking we can "will ourselves through it". I know I did that before getting pregnant.
The paranoia she felt when she was hospitalized, thinking that she was surely going to die and thinking that no one was telling her the truth.
When her Doctor said that she didn't know anything else to try, a combination of drugs, phenergan and zofran, actually finally worked.
Consider lowering your dose of medication is the side effects are too much. Or ask about raising your dose if it's not working. Many drugs are dose specific and will work better at a higher dosage and in combination with other drugs. Don't be afraid to ask.
Ashley's blog series on women with HG.
We talked about why HG women in particular feel the need to have other people understand.
Ashli McCall's book, The Chronicles of Nausea, where she talks about her Hg experience in a diary like prose. She also talks about her experience with cancer in conjunction with HG.
Her other book is "Beyond Morning Sickness". I would recommend them both.
Ashley Ziegler is currently pregnant with her fourth pregnancy.
Email me if you are interested in hearing more about the International HG Day Meetups. [email protected]
What should you do if Zofran or the other prescription medications aren't enough to combat the nausea and vomiting of pregnancy? What if you're not eating or drinking and no one in your town knows how to treat Hyperemesis Gravidarum? What are you options?
In this episode, I talked to Katie when she found herself in this exact scenario. She found that marijuana was more helpful and allowed her to eat and take care of her child than the prescription drug Zofran.
In this episode:
Kyle Davies is a Chartered psychologist, therapist, coach, consultant, speaker & author. He specializes in helping people overcome chronic health challenges, get unstuck and transform their lives.
We talked about:
The role of emotions in the body.
Why we divorce emotions from physical illness.
What stress is and how to "deal" with it.
How illness starts and then stays chronic.
How a label can become your identity.
How to get unstuck.
If you want to get in touch with Kyle, you can find him on his website:
kyledavies.net
facebook
twitter
What do you think of his approach? Did it resonate with you?
Today I ranted a little about my pet peeves about how we sometimes talk about HG.
The baby gets everything it needs from you, so don't worry.
While true, the only time there's no negative effects of that is when Mom is fully stocked with baby making products (i.e. minerals, amino acids, vitamins and fat.) It's hard to do when you're not eating, starting out at a deficit and running on empty. That's when the body goes after the reserves in the bones, teeth and tissues. And that's when compromises happen, whether for the baby or more so for the Mom.
This is not to make you feel guilty, because I know you're doing everything possible to get through it. It's more a rant at how seriously doctors should take the malnutrition that happens during an HG pregnancy. We can't say that folate matters and women need to eat healthy and then turn around and tell Moms it's fine to throw up every day of their pregnancy and lose weight and everything will be fine. You may both survive it, but it's not ideal. And there are things we can do about it. Doctors and nurses: Act like it is the crisis that it is!
I took XYZ and my baby was fine, so yours will be too.
This one is harder because I know that it comes from a place that wants to reassure the Mom that she is doing everything she can and it's going to be alright. And there is a place for that. And when you're just surviving, not vomiting is the top priority and then the next one is to actually consume food and drink.
But it's actually means nothing that one person took something and nothing bad happened. Just because someone says something is safe doesn't actually mean it's safe for you or your baby. I mentioned the germline exposures. Here's a podcast episode to get a taste of it. Genetics is obviously individual and can cause different results in different people. It's something to pay attention and know about yourself. I didn't mention this in the podcast but this is why vaccines can be harmful to one person and not to another. At the same time, epigenetics means that it's not a static system. We can effect change in our bodies by changing the environmental and food exposures to our bodies.
We are shaped by our mother's mother's mother, so we can't be blamed for that. But we do have the responsibility of what we do today.
My body has betrayed me. My body is stupid/broken and hates me.
I know that's how it feels. I know that we feel like we're dying and no one is saving us. But in fact, symptoms are a sign that the body is protecting itself. Organs shutting down is actually the very last ditch effort the body is making to preserve you. It's thrown out every sign/symptom/cry for help it could find to get your attention. Your body would never betray you. It's always on your side. Just because it doesn't make sense, doesn't mean there's no reason for it. Our problem is we haven't figured out why it's happening. But we will.
This is why I say that we must pay attention to what is happening when you're not pregnant. All symptoms are signs we need to pay attention to. If you start there, you make a huge difference.
Which brings me to the last one:
There's nothing I can do. This is me. Nothing can change. There's no hope.
There is always hope! There is always something we can do. The body is always trying to heal, it just doesn't always have all the raw material that it needs. Don't give up. Don't accept less than a long and happy life. Recovery and healing takes time but it can happen. Believe that it's possible. And then set about making it happen.
Ultimately, as crazy at it sounds, I see getting Hyperemesis Gravidarum as the best motivator to pursue a healthier life than anything that's ever happened to me. Sometimes bad stuff saves us from something worse.
Who is Julie Kelly?
As a Food Scientist, Julie Kelly’s passion for all things edible began in her college days at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. She discovered her knack for helping people ‘find their way with food’ while cooking for friends in the evening and studying nutrition during the day. After working towards a Masters in Dairy Science, working in the corporate food world, and then the management consulting world, Julie met her husband Chris, fell in love over bikes and food, and opted for a more meaningful career as Mom to their daughter Ivy, and a nutrition consultant at Nourish Balance Thrive. Julie enjoys geeking out on nutrition science while also sharing her knowhow with ‘real people’ at NBT. Her favorite part is working with women and families to sort out their dietary, immune and hormonal challenges.
In this episode we talk about:
Protein:
Fat:
Blood Sugar Control:
Signs of Adrenal insufficiency:
If you're planning to get pregnant:
Book a half-price consult with Julie before January 1, 2015 using the code HYPERG. You can also download Julie’s e-book, What We Eat, to see how she makes real food a reality everyday.
Dr. Michael Fox is not the first person to suggest that the cause of morning sickness and hyperemesis gravidarum starts with blood sugar dysregulation but he is one of the few OB-GYN and Reproductive Endocrinologists who suggests that eating a ketogenic diet during pregnancy is not only safe for mom and baby but also the answer to this blood sugar dysregulation.
Dr. Fox thinks that the problem starts with hypoglycemia (low blood sugar), then gets worse when women eat carbohydrates (which turn into sugar in the blood) to combat the nausea (crackers anyone?), which can spike insulin 2-3 times what it would be in a non-pregnant woman, then add in dehydration, which makes everything worse, loss of nutrients (from vomiting and not eating) (especially magnesium, zinc and b vitamins) and so begins the cascade of symptoms that spirals out of control leaving the newly pregnant women feeling like she's dying with no hope of coming out of it. Add in doctors and nurses telling a women that it's "normal" and there is nothing that can be done and you have a very bad scene.
In this episode we discuss:
Links mentioned in this episode:
The podcast currently has 22 episodes available.