A Bit about Me

[PamelaRose]

My name is Pamela, and I've been through HG 4 times. My husband and I have been married for 9 years and have been blessed with 3 beautiful children. In 1996, we got a crash-course in HG with our first pregnancy. After a month of undiagnosed HG ("Morning sickness is mind over matter," I was told), I miscarried our baby at 12 weeks. My second HG was treated with Phenergan and Reglan and hospital rehydrations. The illness let up after 14 weeks, and I was off of the meds by 25 weeks. Our son Brody was born 8-11-98. With our second child, the standard approach to antiemetics did not work, and I survived the first 14 weeks with frequent clinic and hospital rehydrations. Daughter Avery was born 1-24-01. My last bout with HG was my most difficult, but I was proactive and coped so much better with a PICC and daily home rehydration, along with Zofran and meclizine. HG kept its grip throughout the pregnancy, but daughter Reilly, born 12-16-02, was worth every second of it. Now that our family is complete, we spend our time at home in Minnesota working on our farmsite and 1918 home. I am a high school English teacher during the school year and wanna-be decorator and gardener during the summer.

I have left HG behind me, but I am committed to helping others through their illnesses. I vividly recall the nurse who came into my hospital room to check my IV back in 1997. "Don't worry, you're not the only one," she said. "We see a few women like you every year." WHERE? To this day, I have yet to speak with another HGer face-to-face, let alone someone from my area. I vowed then and there that I would not be silent, that I would speak out so no one else suffered alone. I have wonderful family and friends who helped in every way they could, but only another survivor can truly touch the heart of HG. Working with HER and HuGS, I have journeyed through HG again with several moms, and I look forward to supporting others. I did not choose to have HG, but I can choose to use my experiences to make a positive difference in someone else's life.
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Pamela - Forum Moderator
4-Time HG Survivor
*Brody (8-11-98 )
*Avery (1-24-01)
*Reilly (12-16-02)