Hi, everyone!
You will have noticed that I am no longer blogging every day - since I am (I hope!) past the critical phase, I didn't think it was quite as necessary to maintain a daily record. But I do want to check in as often as I can.
Continuing to do better by baby steps every day!
Have dropped another Diclectin, so I'm down to 24 mg Zofran and 5 Diclectin.
Yesterday we went to the first MOMS Club event since I started feeling yucky! Our eldest was beyond excited. Poor guy, this summer has been so dull for him. He was as excited as a puppy. And the playdate we attended was at a house that has all boys, so it was full of all the things he loves most - tools, toy guns, super-hero paraphernalia (I don't know how he got into super-heroes, but it happened!), etc. He had a wonderful time. I did too! It was so nice to see other moms and get out for a while.
Of course, the two hours of just sitting and talking was enough to put me under the table for the rest of the day, but that's okay! And I missed our midwife's pregnant-mommy meeting again, but I'll try again in two weeks.
Tomorrow will be a rather nerve-wracking experience - we will be meeting our late pediatrician's replacement doctor. There has been a series of substitutes in the office until now, but the practice has finally sold to a new permanent owner. I'm taking both kids in for their check-ups, and it will be the first time we've been in the office since our pediatrician's funeral last February.
Thus, tomorrow the decision will have to be made - do we stick with this new chap, or move on? I want and need a pediatrician to (1) practice non-interventive medicine, and (2) be okay with all of our counter-culture craziness - midwife-assisted homebirth, longterm breastfeeding, non-vaccination, etc. I don't want a pediatrician who will be constantly disapproving of my decisions or trying to convince me into things that I'm not comfortable with. However, most pediatricians just don't possess that level of utter awesomeness. Too bad!
And by that statement, I don't mean that a pediatrician has to be a homebirther or a non-vaccinator himself - just that he enthusiastically supports the rights of parents to practice informed consent and non-consent. Unfortunately, many (most) pediatricians follow the doctrine of "do what I tell you or else get out."
And, if you think about it, that is very odd! The definition of a good parent is one who does his own research, thinks thoughtfully through issues, and carefully makes a decision based on that information for the good of his child - regardless of whether or not that decision agrees with current advice, trends, or fashions. But much of the time, our culture and our medical system define "good parenting" as "doing what we tell you without asking questions." Seriously???
So, tomorrow will tell! Thankfully I already know which ped we will immediately transfer to if this chap doesn't work out, so it won't be tragic if he's not a winner - if that utter awesomeness has eluded his grasp. :)
With two kids to watch and two check-ups to do, I don't think I'll have the time to fire off interview-type questions, but we should be able to see his reaction to our non-vax decision, and I may try to add homebirth to the general conversation to see his reaction. Hopefully that will do well enough to sound him out! I don't want to waste time in ambiguity while waiting for him to show his true colors.
Well, I have more to write, but I need to get down to the business of starting this day. I will try to check in soon! Love to all!
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Curriculum Woes
Now that I have my brain (mostly) back, my mind has, over the past week or two, turned to the issue of homeschool curriculum choices. And to my dismay, I find that I am now having doubts about the selection that I have happily had in mind for the past year or more.
Great timing, considering that I should already have ordered and should be starting in the next week or so!!
My original selection is an award-winning package curriculum that is a "real books" curriculum - for literature, language arts and history, it relies almost exclusively upon real books - that is, books from or based on the time being studied - rather than textbooks.
I find this approach immensely sensible. When I look back over my academic career, I remember almost nothing of the history that I learned from textbooks. Zilch, zero, nada. But I can still remember vivid details of history that I learned from, say, Laura Ingals Wilder books, or Jane Austen, or other period literature. That sort of thing sticks. Textbooks don't, for the most part.
So I love that part about it. No doubts as to the quality or the approach.
My nagging concern about this program is the time required to implement it. It starts out with a couple of hour a day for kindergarten and skyrockets from there. And while some people might be okay with that, I have always believed that one of the huge benefits of homeschooling is that one can obtain a top-notch education without spending all day doing school. After all, most (or much) time spent in public/private school is often wasted time - sitting and waiting, passing papers out or in, passing period, breaks, etc. It really is possible to get pure academics done in a short amount of time and then leave the rest of a homeschool family's time for "life" things - baking cookies together, going on trips, playing, going to the library, etc. etc. etc. - that's one of the main reasons for homeschooling!
So the thought of having a time-intensive program does worry me, especially as one can expect the time required to mount exponentially when one adds more than one child into the mix.
And then there's the question of whether or not young children even need a formal curriculum. There's a lot of comfort in a prepackaged curriculum, but a lot of my veteran homeschooling friends maintain that young children need only some very basic academics (math and phonics) and then learn the rest of what they need from an active family life that includes tons of activities and trips and other mind-stimulating stuff. And I do concur on that "life" part - kids learn SO much from just being exposed to activities and places.
A dear friend of mine (who has produced two utterly amazing sons, one a geologist and the other a seminarian) maintains that all one needs in order to homeschool young children is a math curriculum and a library card. Considering the results that she has produced, I'm definitely not going to argue with her!
So I'm thinking of just starting this year with a math book and a phonics program, and focusing on filling the rest of our time with fun stuff that's also good for learning - reading aloud, cooking, baking, board games, trips, MOMS Club activities, local events, library, parks, etc. - and then seeing where we go from there.
But I'm not sure.
Homeschooling mamas out there, I would love to hear from you your opinions!!
Thanks for listening to my rant!!
Great timing, considering that I should already have ordered and should be starting in the next week or so!!
My original selection is an award-winning package curriculum that is a "real books" curriculum - for literature, language arts and history, it relies almost exclusively upon real books - that is, books from or based on the time being studied - rather than textbooks.
I find this approach immensely sensible. When I look back over my academic career, I remember almost nothing of the history that I learned from textbooks. Zilch, zero, nada. But I can still remember vivid details of history that I learned from, say, Laura Ingals Wilder books, or Jane Austen, or other period literature. That sort of thing sticks. Textbooks don't, for the most part.
So I love that part about it. No doubts as to the quality or the approach.
My nagging concern about this program is the time required to implement it. It starts out with a couple of hour a day for kindergarten and skyrockets from there. And while some people might be okay with that, I have always believed that one of the huge benefits of homeschooling is that one can obtain a top-notch education without spending all day doing school. After all, most (or much) time spent in public/private school is often wasted time - sitting and waiting, passing papers out or in, passing period, breaks, etc. It really is possible to get pure academics done in a short amount of time and then leave the rest of a homeschool family's time for "life" things - baking cookies together, going on trips, playing, going to the library, etc. etc. etc. - that's one of the main reasons for homeschooling!
So the thought of having a time-intensive program does worry me, especially as one can expect the time required to mount exponentially when one adds more than one child into the mix.
And then there's the question of whether or not young children even need a formal curriculum. There's a lot of comfort in a prepackaged curriculum, but a lot of my veteran homeschooling friends maintain that young children need only some very basic academics (math and phonics) and then learn the rest of what they need from an active family life that includes tons of activities and trips and other mind-stimulating stuff. And I do concur on that "life" part - kids learn SO much from just being exposed to activities and places.
A dear friend of mine (who has produced two utterly amazing sons, one a geologist and the other a seminarian) maintains that all one needs in order to homeschool young children is a math curriculum and a library card. Considering the results that she has produced, I'm definitely not going to argue with her!
So I'm thinking of just starting this year with a math book and a phonics program, and focusing on filling the rest of our time with fun stuff that's also good for learning - reading aloud, cooking, baking, board games, trips, MOMS Club activities, local events, library, parks, etc. - and then seeing where we go from there.
But I'm not sure.
Homeschooling mamas out there, I would love to hear from you your opinions!!
Thanks for listening to my rant!!
Saturday (16w4d)
Happy weekending, everyone!!
Last night I went out at night for the first time this pregnancy - to a ladies' board game night at our church. It was absolutely wonderful, even though I needed to leave early, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I love all-women events!! There's nothing quite like group female energy and fun, and it was a great time.
Besides baby showers and wedding showers, this was actually the first women's event I've been to in..... well, at least two years. Probably more. It's been a while, and I have really missed it.
Hoping they do more of these types of events!!
Then after I got home, we fulfilled a long-time promise to our eldest and had a family sleepover in the living room. DH on the couch, baby and I on the mattress, and DS on the floor. Oddly enough, I got better sleep than usual! It was fun.
I am doing really well. Stable on 24 mg Zofran and 6 Diclectin, hoping to cut something out again next week (not sure what). Feeling little tiny baby kicks off and on, though nothing in the "wow!!!" category yet. Maybe in a week or two!
The Chublet reached another milestone this past week - he reached a willingness to be put in the door bouncer!!! Hurray!!! Last month it was the exersaucer, and now the door bouncer. Good stuff, though it really is too long for him (lengthwise - he's almost kneeling, though I've shortened it as far as it will go). Of course, he still doesn't want to put his feet down, but we're getting there. One of his major challenges toward mobility is that he absolutely hates to put any weight through his hips. Most babies do that automatic stepping when you hold them up, but he immediately tucks his legs up and refuses to put any weight through them. Not good for someone who should have been walking a year ago! But we are progressing.
Speaking of the Chublet, I have been trying to find out if there is a Bumbo seat that holds larger children, as he is now over the 22 lb. weight limit for the normal Bumbo. Well, there is! And guess how much it costs? As opposed to $40 for a new baby-Bumbo, the slightly bigger Bumbo is two hundred dollars. I was reading reviews on it and someone said that companies feel that they can slap a ridiculous ticket price on anything labelled "special needs," and I guess that's the truth! So much for the bigger Bumbo.
Well, off to do all those Saturday morning things - and to route the sleepier members of the family out of bed!
Last night I went out at night for the first time this pregnancy - to a ladies' board game night at our church. It was absolutely wonderful, even though I needed to leave early, and I enjoyed it thoroughly. I love all-women events!! There's nothing quite like group female energy and fun, and it was a great time.
Besides baby showers and wedding showers, this was actually the first women's event I've been to in..... well, at least two years. Probably more. It's been a while, and I have really missed it.
Hoping they do more of these types of events!!
Then after I got home, we fulfilled a long-time promise to our eldest and had a family sleepover in the living room. DH on the couch, baby and I on the mattress, and DS on the floor. Oddly enough, I got better sleep than usual! It was fun.
I am doing really well. Stable on 24 mg Zofran and 6 Diclectin, hoping to cut something out again next week (not sure what). Feeling little tiny baby kicks off and on, though nothing in the "wow!!!" category yet. Maybe in a week or two!
The Chublet reached another milestone this past week - he reached a willingness to be put in the door bouncer!!! Hurray!!! Last month it was the exersaucer, and now the door bouncer. Good stuff, though it really is too long for him (lengthwise - he's almost kneeling, though I've shortened it as far as it will go). Of course, he still doesn't want to put his feet down, but we're getting there. One of his major challenges toward mobility is that he absolutely hates to put any weight through his hips. Most babies do that automatic stepping when you hold them up, but he immediately tucks his legs up and refuses to put any weight through them. Not good for someone who should have been walking a year ago! But we are progressing.
Speaking of the Chublet, I have been trying to find out if there is a Bumbo seat that holds larger children, as he is now over the 22 lb. weight limit for the normal Bumbo. Well, there is! And guess how much it costs? As opposed to $40 for a new baby-Bumbo, the slightly bigger Bumbo is two hundred dollars. I was reading reviews on it and someone said that companies feel that they can slap a ridiculous ticket price on anything labelled "special needs," and I guess that's the truth! So much for the bigger Bumbo.
Well, off to do all those Saturday morning things - and to route the sleepier members of the family out of bed!
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
Wednesday (16w1d)
Hey, everyone!
Life over here in the parched desert is going well. Feeling better by ever-so-slight increments every day. There is no doubt that I have been so very, very blessed with this pregnancy. Still tired all the time and nauseated to various degrees constantly (everywhere from "minimal" to "hibernating in the bedroom" types of nausea), but on the whole this has been much easier than my last pregnancy (which was much easier than the one before that).
* Serious TMI alert *
If you're still reading, you have been warned.
This past week I realized, with a sigh, that my body is - once again - coming apart. Specifically, my pelvis is loosening up to the point where I can tell that the bones are moving. This is not something I noticed during my firstborn's pregnancy, but last time it showed up in force. The most noticeable part (this is really gross) is that I could notice the bones of the symphisis pubis rubbing against each other when I rocked back and forth between feet. At the time, I thought that it was beyond cool. That was before I realized how much discomfort I was going to be in! Now it creeps me out, and I am doing everything I can do to walk so that I can be in denial that it's happening again - i.e. so that I don't feel it. I need to get back to my chiropractor! (But being that I barter for adjustments with meals, that means I have to start cooking. Oh, my.)
Additionally, breastfeeding has gone from "mildly uncomfortable" to "yeouch!" It's not at serious pain levels, and I'm hoping it stays that way. This is pretty much the point where we ended up weaning last time, due to discomfort and loss of supply, so it will be interesting to see if we can muscle through this or not.
* End TMI alert *
The other day I went outside during the evening to play with our son, pretty much for the first time since I started feeling yucky. Didn't last long, because it is brutally hot, but it was interesting. Saw some of our neighbors whom I haven't seen for months.
Again, I find it interesting how easy it is to forget how life used to be pre-NVP - even though that was only three months ago! Every time I recuperate, it's really like learning life all over again. I can't believe how easily I forget things - how I did cleaning routines, how I planned meals, etc.
So thankful to be this far along!!
Have a great evening, all!
Life over here in the parched desert is going well. Feeling better by ever-so-slight increments every day. There is no doubt that I have been so very, very blessed with this pregnancy. Still tired all the time and nauseated to various degrees constantly (everywhere from "minimal" to "hibernating in the bedroom" types of nausea), but on the whole this has been much easier than my last pregnancy (which was much easier than the one before that).
* Serious TMI alert *
If you're still reading, you have been warned.
This past week I realized, with a sigh, that my body is - once again - coming apart. Specifically, my pelvis is loosening up to the point where I can tell that the bones are moving. This is not something I noticed during my firstborn's pregnancy, but last time it showed up in force. The most noticeable part (this is really gross) is that I could notice the bones of the symphisis pubis rubbing against each other when I rocked back and forth between feet. At the time, I thought that it was beyond cool. That was before I realized how much discomfort I was going to be in! Now it creeps me out, and I am doing everything I can do to walk so that I can be in denial that it's happening again - i.e. so that I don't feel it. I need to get back to my chiropractor! (But being that I barter for adjustments with meals, that means I have to start cooking. Oh, my.)
Additionally, breastfeeding has gone from "mildly uncomfortable" to "yeouch!" It's not at serious pain levels, and I'm hoping it stays that way. This is pretty much the point where we ended up weaning last time, due to discomfort and loss of supply, so it will be interesting to see if we can muscle through this or not.
* End TMI alert *
The other day I went outside during the evening to play with our son, pretty much for the first time since I started feeling yucky. Didn't last long, because it is brutally hot, but it was interesting. Saw some of our neighbors whom I haven't seen for months.
Again, I find it interesting how easy it is to forget how life used to be pre-NVP - even though that was only three months ago! Every time I recuperate, it's really like learning life all over again. I can't believe how easily I forget things - how I did cleaning routines, how I planned meals, etc.
So thankful to be this far along!!
Have a great evening, all!
Sunday, August 21, 2011
Sunday (15w5d)
Hello, world!!
Made it to church today!! Third week in a row!!! The world is my oyster.
And it is so very lovely to be back among church family!!
Of course, we got there late.... only to realize that not only had we forgotten something (the kids' sheet I mentioned yesterday), but I'd forgotten that I'd left some whites soaking in an absurdly strong bleach solution at home..... so after spending a moment in undecided angst, we headed right back home again to right the wrongs and then return. Made it for the sermon, at least! (Though we missed the hymn sing.)
This afternoon I had my first post-diet dessert - we went out for ice cream!! Hurray!! A lot of fun, but sheesh! When did going out for ice cream become akin to investing in gold bullion? Almost fifteen dollars for three small ice creams? YIKES! If that is the way ice cream is going, we definitely can't do that very often!
Have dropped from seven diclectin down to six. I can definitely tell the difference, but I am holding the line, so I'll stay here and then try to reduce again in a week or so. Still on 24 mg per day Zofran.
As I slowly but steadily continue to feel better, my mind is turning to the more cheerful and exciting thoughts of later pregnancy, birth plans, and new baby things! So much fun!! I don't need to start prepping birth supplies yet, but it's just around the corner. Planning for a birth is so much fun. As of now I'm planning for a water labor, maybe a water birth.... we have a fun birth team, and it's going to be a lot of fun. Especially if I manage to get that birth cake made before labor kicks in for good! Yum.
Well, enough mooching - back to life. Feeling too nauseated to want to do anything, but I need to go shower and straighten up the house. Only 10 days before I have to start cooking.... yuck-o!! :)
Love to all!
Made it to church today!! Third week in a row!!! The world is my oyster.
And it is so very lovely to be back among church family!!
Of course, we got there late.... only to realize that not only had we forgotten something (the kids' sheet I mentioned yesterday), but I'd forgotten that I'd left some whites soaking in an absurdly strong bleach solution at home..... so after spending a moment in undecided angst, we headed right back home again to right the wrongs and then return. Made it for the sermon, at least! (Though we missed the hymn sing.)
This afternoon I had my first post-diet dessert - we went out for ice cream!! Hurray!! A lot of fun, but sheesh! When did going out for ice cream become akin to investing in gold bullion? Almost fifteen dollars for three small ice creams? YIKES! If that is the way ice cream is going, we definitely can't do that very often!
Have dropped from seven diclectin down to six. I can definitely tell the difference, but I am holding the line, so I'll stay here and then try to reduce again in a week or so. Still on 24 mg per day Zofran.
As I slowly but steadily continue to feel better, my mind is turning to the more cheerful and exciting thoughts of later pregnancy, birth plans, and new baby things! So much fun!! I don't need to start prepping birth supplies yet, but it's just around the corner. Planning for a birth is so much fun. As of now I'm planning for a water labor, maybe a water birth.... we have a fun birth team, and it's going to be a lot of fun. Especially if I manage to get that birth cake made before labor kicks in for good! Yum.
Well, enough mooching - back to life. Feeling too nauseated to want to do anything, but I need to go shower and straighten up the house. Only 10 days before I have to start cooking.... yuck-o!! :)
Love to all!
Saturday, August 20, 2011
Saturday (15w4d)
Happy weekending, all!
Life here is going well. I am officially off the diet but am doing really well, all things considered. Yesterday morning, for the first time in a long time, I felt like a normal person. Still nauseated, but it was just wonderful. In fact, on Friday I actually cleaned our half-bathroom! I was so happy about that.
I've been wanting to clean that bathroom for about a week.... ever since one of our therapists asked to use the bathroom, and afterwards I went in to see what she must have seen..... ladies, it was ugly. Last time I was pregnant, I had only one child in diapers, so I had no idea what little boys are capable of doing to an ordinary bathroom when there's no mum around to do damage control. It's ugly. But much better now!
Today I really overdid it and am paying for it in subsequent exhaustion.... but life is still good. I am so thankful to be on the upward swing.
And yesterday DH and I sat down and went through the three months of neglected mail! Even better.
Tomorrow is church - hurray! And I am going to be trying these sheets (the younger version) to see if they interest our five-year-old. Hurray for wonderful bloggers who come up with such splendid ideas! I receive a world of inspiration from such godly, creative and devoted women who take the time to blog about their homemaking and parenting. (My favorites are on the sidebar!!)
Happy Sabbath!
Life here is going well. I am officially off the diet but am doing really well, all things considered. Yesterday morning, for the first time in a long time, I felt like a normal person. Still nauseated, but it was just wonderful. In fact, on Friday I actually cleaned our half-bathroom! I was so happy about that.
I've been wanting to clean that bathroom for about a week.... ever since one of our therapists asked to use the bathroom, and afterwards I went in to see what she must have seen..... ladies, it was ugly. Last time I was pregnant, I had only one child in diapers, so I had no idea what little boys are capable of doing to an ordinary bathroom when there's no mum around to do damage control. It's ugly. But much better now!
Today I really overdid it and am paying for it in subsequent exhaustion.... but life is still good. I am so thankful to be on the upward swing.
And yesterday DH and I sat down and went through the three months of neglected mail! Even better.
Tomorrow is church - hurray! And I am going to be trying these sheets (the younger version) to see if they interest our five-year-old. Hurray for wonderful bloggers who come up with such splendid ideas! I receive a world of inspiration from such godly, creative and devoted women who take the time to blog about their homemaking and parenting. (My favorites are on the sidebar!!)
Happy Sabbath!
Friday, August 19, 2011
Interesting Post
Hi, everyone!
I copied this post from www.helpher.org into my HG research document about six months ago. Unfortunately, I can no longer find the original post (if anyone else has it, let me know so I can link). However, I wanted to share it with you all because the diet that this HG mama devised for herself - very successfully - bears an eerie resemblance to the diet that I have done this time around. This mother has no ties to Dr. Fox, so this is a case of the same conclusions arising from two separate lines of research.
I also wanted to post this because this mama, unlike myself, is a severe-HG mama, so the evidence of her testimony bears more weight than mine does (being that the HG I experienced with our firstborn was of a "milder" type).
According to a later post on this thread (that is, according to my best memory), the baby from this pregnancy was lost at 16 weeks. However, that was not due to viability issues but to an immune condition of the mother's. Thus, the mother was able to avoid HG (having had severe HG repeatedly in the past) using only the diet she devised for sixteen weeks, which is a pretty good testimony!
So... let me know what you think! Here it is:
(Later note: Here is the link (thanks, Jen!) - make sure to go through the comments too.)
***
ok friends, maybe it is to early to say, but I think I have a miracle here and you guys need to hear it. I have had 9 HG pregnancies, 5 landed in late first trimester miscarriages, and one was born premie at 35 weeks due to a placenta abruption.
I suffered terribly as you all have, throwing up nothing but blood and bile week on end, no bowel movements for weeks, key tones coming out my ying yang, heart palpitations, lungs filling with fluid, swelling in my brain and skull, having to use a bed pan, unable to walk or stand, black and blue arms, blown veins, etc, etc.
Unfortunately I never had good docs and the nurses were most often terrible, crackering me and accusing me of being lazy and causing my own suffering.
Anyways, I spent this last year preparing for my next pregnancy, I was determined I would not have HG this time (bet you all been there) and because I do medical research and freelance writing (mostly naturopathically) I decided that no one was better able to help me than myself. The hospitals sure were no help!
I came up with a very strict care plan that I figured just may work to keep me out of hospital.
I am in my sixth week of pregnancy, and guess what? I have not thrown up once! By my 5th week I am usually hospitalized I am SO sick. Today, I am going to visit friends, going for walks, etc. I am having my HCG monitored, so I will keep you posted as I hear back each week. I know it may be too early to say that what I am doing is the cause for how well I am, but I am hoping this is a viable pregnancy and my program is in deed working. I will share it with you guys now in the hopes that it may help, even one person. Please pass it along, as well I am not sure if I can post this to other threads?
First I will explain a few things about the body.
1)When our blood sugar spikes, even when we are not pregnant, it can cause a variety of symptoms, hot flashes and nausea are a few common ones. The most important thing a HG girl can do is make absolutely sure your blood sugar stays level all the time. Once out of control it will be some hard work to regain that control but it can be done. You may crave sugary treats, ice-cream, etc. Do not do it - it is not worth it - it will set you way back. Any ways, it does not taste so good coming up as it did going down!
2)During pregnancy our bodies need protein, and when we do not give it what it wants it will tell us it is not pleased in a variety of ways. HG is the way our bodies are telling us we need far more protein and a balance in blood sugar levels.
3) Hunger with HG ladies is usually not felt in the tummy with typical hunger sensations, we feel hunger in the sensation of nausea, weakness, dizziness, shakiness, etc. One of the most important things for us to do is never, never, never allow more than 1/2 hour to 1 hour go by without eating at least 5 grams of protein. One boiled egg is about 6 grams protein. If we keep our tummies constantly digesting protein, our bodies will naturally re-stabilize and count on the level blood sugar, and the nausea will subside. At first I forced myself to eat protein, now I can do it without the fight.
4) When we get dehydrated our nausea will get out of control as our blood concentrates with pregnancy hormones and the like. We need to find ways of staying hydrated and the IV unfortunately causes imbalances in electrolytes and this causes worse nausea. I have found whey protein isolate shakes with frozen fruit and water every 1-2 hours keeps me feeling awesome! (1/2 cup frozen fruit, 25 grams protein (1 large scoop), water to liquefy and stevia)
Here is what I recommend:
1)Absolutely nothing sweet (no banana's, sugar, honey, syrup, etc) with the exception of things slightly sweetened with Stevia.
2)Every single thing I eat must be well over 50% protein. That means I am living off of unflavoured whey protein isolate shakes with frozen fruit, almonds, almond butter, hemp protein shakes, chicken, eggs, beef, baked fish, canned fish, lots of cottage cheese, and a few multigrain corn chips to nibble on between shakes.
3)No high carb foods at all, no bread, cereal, treats, potatoes, rice, pasta, etc. No sauces of any sort, no preservatives, flavors, colors, sweeteners, etc. Just protein, that is the key here. At least until the HG is under control and lessened.
4) 2x500 mg ginger root pills every 4 hours during the day totally no more than 4 grams ginger root a day.
5)3x50mg B6 pills a day, and do not start day with it. I am doing this, but have not found when I miss it there is much difference. But if I miss my protein, I get hot, queezy and sick.
6) 1 tbsp certified pharmaceutical grade fish oil and 1 tbsp organic flax oil per day (maybe around bed time). A lack of Omega 3's will really mess us up, this is important. Baby takes stores from our brains if we do not get them ingested, this can lead to depression and worse ppd (postpartum depression).
7) Sleep with 2 drops of spearmint essential oils on pillow.
2x100mg progesterone x2 daily (vaginally)
9) 4-5 x 1000 IU's vitamin D drops
10) 250mg magnesium
11) When you sleep, sleep with a sleep mask on so you are in pitch black. You will feel welly rested when you wake up. Having a fan blowing on you helps as well.
That is what I have been doing, and even though I am not feeling perfect, I am not throwing up and I can be up and about a lot. I am not nauseated. I will let you guys know if my HCG levels are rising. If they are, we are on to something here - likely my next success book in the making!
I copied this post from www.helpher.org into my HG research document about six months ago. Unfortunately, I can no longer find the original post (if anyone else has it, let me know so I can link). However, I wanted to share it with you all because the diet that this HG mama devised for herself - very successfully - bears an eerie resemblance to the diet that I have done this time around. This mother has no ties to Dr. Fox, so this is a case of the same conclusions arising from two separate lines of research.
I also wanted to post this because this mama, unlike myself, is a severe-HG mama, so the evidence of her testimony bears more weight than mine does (being that the HG I experienced with our firstborn was of a "milder" type).
According to a later post on this thread (that is, according to my best memory), the baby from this pregnancy was lost at 16 weeks. However, that was not due to viability issues but to an immune condition of the mother's. Thus, the mother was able to avoid HG (having had severe HG repeatedly in the past) using only the diet she devised for sixteen weeks, which is a pretty good testimony!
So... let me know what you think! Here it is:
(Later note: Here is the link (thanks, Jen!) - make sure to go through the comments too.)
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ok friends, maybe it is to early to say, but I think I have a miracle here and you guys need to hear it. I have had 9 HG pregnancies, 5 landed in late first trimester miscarriages, and one was born premie at 35 weeks due to a placenta abruption.
I suffered terribly as you all have, throwing up nothing but blood and bile week on end, no bowel movements for weeks, key tones coming out my ying yang, heart palpitations, lungs filling with fluid, swelling in my brain and skull, having to use a bed pan, unable to walk or stand, black and blue arms, blown veins, etc, etc.
Unfortunately I never had good docs and the nurses were most often terrible, crackering me and accusing me of being lazy and causing my own suffering.
Anyways, I spent this last year preparing for my next pregnancy, I was determined I would not have HG this time (bet you all been there) and because I do medical research and freelance writing (mostly naturopathically) I decided that no one was better able to help me than myself. The hospitals sure were no help!
I came up with a very strict care plan that I figured just may work to keep me out of hospital.
I am in my sixth week of pregnancy, and guess what? I have not thrown up once! By my 5th week I am usually hospitalized I am SO sick. Today, I am going to visit friends, going for walks, etc. I am having my HCG monitored, so I will keep you posted as I hear back each week. I know it may be too early to say that what I am doing is the cause for how well I am, but I am hoping this is a viable pregnancy and my program is in deed working. I will share it with you guys now in the hopes that it may help, even one person. Please pass it along, as well I am not sure if I can post this to other threads?
First I will explain a few things about the body.
1)When our blood sugar spikes, even when we are not pregnant, it can cause a variety of symptoms, hot flashes and nausea are a few common ones. The most important thing a HG girl can do is make absolutely sure your blood sugar stays level all the time. Once out of control it will be some hard work to regain that control but it can be done. You may crave sugary treats, ice-cream, etc. Do not do it - it is not worth it - it will set you way back. Any ways, it does not taste so good coming up as it did going down!
2)During pregnancy our bodies need protein, and when we do not give it what it wants it will tell us it is not pleased in a variety of ways. HG is the way our bodies are telling us we need far more protein and a balance in blood sugar levels.
3) Hunger with HG ladies is usually not felt in the tummy with typical hunger sensations, we feel hunger in the sensation of nausea, weakness, dizziness, shakiness, etc. One of the most important things for us to do is never, never, never allow more than 1/2 hour to 1 hour go by without eating at least 5 grams of protein. One boiled egg is about 6 grams protein. If we keep our tummies constantly digesting protein, our bodies will naturally re-stabilize and count on the level blood sugar, and the nausea will subside. At first I forced myself to eat protein, now I can do it without the fight.
4) When we get dehydrated our nausea will get out of control as our blood concentrates with pregnancy hormones and the like. We need to find ways of staying hydrated and the IV unfortunately causes imbalances in electrolytes and this causes worse nausea. I have found whey protein isolate shakes with frozen fruit and water every 1-2 hours keeps me feeling awesome! (1/2 cup frozen fruit, 25 grams protein (1 large scoop), water to liquefy and stevia)
Here is what I recommend:
1)Absolutely nothing sweet (no banana's, sugar, honey, syrup, etc) with the exception of things slightly sweetened with Stevia.
2)Every single thing I eat must be well over 50% protein. That means I am living off of unflavoured whey protein isolate shakes with frozen fruit, almonds, almond butter, hemp protein shakes, chicken, eggs, beef, baked fish, canned fish, lots of cottage cheese, and a few multigrain corn chips to nibble on between shakes.
3)No high carb foods at all, no bread, cereal, treats, potatoes, rice, pasta, etc. No sauces of any sort, no preservatives, flavors, colors, sweeteners, etc. Just protein, that is the key here. At least until the HG is under control and lessened.
4) 2x500 mg ginger root pills every 4 hours during the day totally no more than 4 grams ginger root a day.
5)3x50mg B6 pills a day, and do not start day with it. I am doing this, but have not found when I miss it there is much difference. But if I miss my protein, I get hot, queezy and sick.
6) 1 tbsp certified pharmaceutical grade fish oil and 1 tbsp organic flax oil per day (maybe around bed time). A lack of Omega 3's will really mess us up, this is important. Baby takes stores from our brains if we do not get them ingested, this can lead to depression and worse ppd (postpartum depression).
7) Sleep with 2 drops of spearmint essential oils on pillow.
2x100mg progesterone x2 daily (vaginally)
9) 4-5 x 1000 IU's vitamin D drops
10) 250mg magnesium
11) When you sleep, sleep with a sleep mask on so you are in pitch black. You will feel welly rested when you wake up. Having a fan blowing on you helps as well.
That is what I have been doing, and even though I am not feeling perfect, I am not throwing up and I can be up and about a lot. I am not nauseated. I will let you guys know if my HCG levels are rising. If they are, we are on to something here - likely my next success book in the making!
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