thank you

[megs4413]

Dear Dr. Phil,

I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to you for giving HG sufferers a voice on a national stage. Many of us have suffered in silence and many more are still suffering because of the lack of understanding and awareness that currently exists even among medical professionals. It is imperative that we spread the word about this devastating illness.

I was young, unmarried and facing an unplanned pregnancy. Far away from home in a rural, college town I picked a doctor out of the phone book after I peed on that stick and made an appointment for ASAP. Just a week later I started to get sick. By six weeks along I could no longer attend class. By eight weeks along I couldn’t bathe myself and had stopped being able to eat. I remember crying to my mom on the phone asking her how other women did this. Everyone kept telling me it was normal, as I descended deeper and deeper into depression, dehydration, and malnutrition. I started going into the hospital for fluids regularly and we tried all kinds of medications. One morning at about eleven weeks along, I woke up in horrific pain and had to be rushed to the doctor. I passed a kidney stone in the office from a massive infection due to dehydration.

I still hadn’t even heard the words “hyperemesis gravidarumâ€Â