I've been thinking the same thing about timing of an NJ tube for my next pregnancy.
With my 1st pregnancy, I got my tube in around 10-11 weeks, which was WAY TOO LONG!!! I was in really bad shape and needed immediate hospitalization and a whole bunch of meds, IVs, steroids, etc.
With my 2nd pregnancy, I got the feeding tube closer to 7 weeks. It made a HUGE difference! I never spiraled down as far as with the first pregnancy, and so my body didn't have to play the "nutritional catch-up" game for so long.
For my next pregnancy, I'm seriously considering finding a doctor who will insert the tube as soon as I have bad nausea. I considered asking for the tube as soon as conception had taken place, but I'm sure that would be an uphill battle!!
Do you think it's possible to get a feeding tube before actually vomiting? Well, I'm going to try for it! I honestly think that I would have a much better time of things if I had the tube even earlier than 7 weeks. I'm going to fight for it. (We're not ttc quite yet, by the way, so it may be a while before I test all of my plans.)
Also, the next time around I am going to insist on regular tests to determine my levels of potassium - and maybe other levels as well. I have never felt better during HG than the night I started on the feeding tube and received potassium supplements as well. I honestly could have done almost anything that night. The combination worked better than any drugs have ever done. I almost felt "normal."
Oh, and when I was on the tube I mostly took zofran by mouth. I did the dissolving kind when I was too sick to swallow even a pill. And I did get IVs occasionally to use for IV zofran.
Hope this helps and I wish you luck! I wish everyone could have the tube...even though HG still stinks, it is much easier getting all the nutrition you need every day. The nutrition nurses at my hospital said that HGers who get NJ tubes feel much more relief from nausea/vomiting than the women who get nutrition through PICC lines. Good luck!
- Anna
"The little reed, bending to the force of the wind, soon stood upright again when the storm had passed over." - Aesop