Family & Friends

Welcome! We know it's very hard to understand what to do when someone you love has hyperemesis gravidarum (HG).

You may feel helpless and frustrated because she is so sick and you don't know how to help her. Sometimes you may even wonder if she would get better if she tried harder, or if she is exaggerating how she feels. It is natural to have these feelings because it's hard to "see" nausea and understand how sick she really is. HG affects many parts of her life and may make her unable to do most of her normal activities for a time. Doing more often will make her sicker.

Know that she does not have control over her symptoms and cannot make them go away sooner. It's hard on everybody to deal with HG, but most of all mothers. They feel sick all day and endure so much misery and invasive medical care for months.

Imagine having food poisoning for months. This is what she feels like. Some moms feel like they are dying because they are starving and have high hormone levels (GDF15) that literally make them feel like they are dying.

Please don't underestimate the suffering and offer as much compassion and support as possible. Research finds your support is a major factor in the health of mother and baby!

You will find information to answer these questions and give you resources to confidently support her and ensure she gets the best care available.