From dealing with an ever-growing stomach to bouts of morning sickness, pregnancy can be tough on the body - but one mum in the US was dealing with such severe morning sickness that she was vomiting an average of 80 times a day.
Breanna Schroeder, 19, was diagnosed with Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG), a rare medical condition which causes nausea and vomiting in pregnant women, after she developed symptoms within the first three weeks of being pregnant.
Breanna originally went to her local hospital with crippling stomach pain which was making her sick a few times a day, where she discovered she was pregnant.
Advert
When doctors ran some routine tests, they informed her she was suffering with morning sickness, and she was sent home to rest.
But by week seven of her pregnancy, Breanna was vomiting an average of 80 times a day, and was finally diagnosed with HG.
At its worst, Breanna was vomiting up to 130 times a day and unable to eat anything other than a plain frozen waffle once every three days.
Breanna, from Greeley in Colorado, says she was completely ravaged by sickness and could spend entire days sat by the toilet, unable to move or eat.
Advert
"I couldn't comprehend what was happening to my body," she explained.
"On my worst days I would lose count of how many times I'd been violently sick at around 130, at which point I was throwing up bile and blood.
"The vomiting got so bad that I permanently damaged the lining of my stomach and tore my oesophagus."
Eventually, after being unable to keep anything down, she started receiving fluid injections and was prescribed several different medications.
At one stage, the teen was taking 15 different medications at once, but doctors still couldn't find the right combination to help her.
Advert
She was admitted to the hospital over 50 times during the course of her pregnancy, sometimes twice a day, and, during the later stages of her pregnancy, Breanna was so dehydrated and malnourished that she entered the early stages of multi-organ failure.
She was also diagnosed with anaemia due to a severe iron deficiency in her blood, and her potassium levels were extremely depleted leaving her with permanent heart damage.
Now Breanna has spoken out about how unhelpful some of the medical professionals were while she was suffering with HG, explaining that one doctor was particularly cynical about her condition.
The doctor, she reveals, told her to "cut the dramatics, drink some water and go home".
Breanna also had to drop out of nursing college due to the severity of her symptoms and hasn't been able to return so far.
Advert
Thankfully, Breanna and her boyfriend, Adrien, welcomed daughter Adela five months ago, at 39 weeks.
The mum says she hasn't forgotten just how bad her HG was and now wants to raise awareness of the condition.
She adds: "When I look back on my pregnancy, my immediate thought is I wouldn't wish that upon anyone.
"I want to raise awareness about HG as well as funding for research that will help medical professionals understand more about the condition.
Advert
"I hope that in the future other pregnant women with HG receive better treatment than I did, and they don't suffer as I suffered.
"The most important thing now is that Adela is happy and healthy, and having her as my wonderful daughter has made it all worth while."
Featured Image Credit: SWNSTopics: Pregnancy, Life News, Life, Health