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Nausea relief?

Hi, I'm just wondering if anyone has any effective relief for nausea? It seems like I'm almost always nauseous (especially at night). I'm usually mostly healthy (just sick lately with possible ulcers and a possible chest infection - both at once no fun!), but I have chronic non-life threatening "problems" that seem to cause nausea such as very severe migraines which I've had nearly all of my life, very severe menstrual cramps, and a slow digestive system. And of course lately with the stomach pain and illness, more nausea. With all of this, I feel more often nauseous than not.

I haven't slept at night for more than 4 hours for a very very long time because of this and I'm now an insomniac. If I ever get a good 6 - 8 hour sleep, it has to be in the evening or daytime on weekends. I go to college in the week and I've already missed one important assignment because I was just so exhausted (awake for at least 3 days). I really don't have time at all to go to the doctor and going again and again pushing for more answers for the source of the current abdominal pain (though she said at my last appointment ulcers were a likely source) because it would mean failing this course and I can't afford to retake it. I've already missed too much.

Sorry for the long complaint! But I get very severe nausea. I can handle a very high level of pain, but nausea that accompanies is the one thing I can't. I've tried ginger tea, coca cola, chewable acid reducers, maalox, nexium (acid neutralizer), heat application, and just sipping warm water with baking soda. Nothing seems to work... Please help! What works for you?
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Avatar universal
Hi Ella!  
I've had gastroparesis for five years now (btw, that basically means "slow stomach" - have you been checked out for this?) and I'm afraid I've only got two tips:
- when it gets really bad, I take warm foot baths.  For some reason if I burn my feet (like it the water is way too hot) I get super nauseous, really fast - maybe this is true for everybody?  I've found though that so long as it ISN'T actually burning me, hot water on my feet is about the only thing that helps when the nausea gets really bad.  Plus, gives you something to do when you're hanging out in the bathroom.
- the only thing that's really helped me is domperidone.  Oh my god, a lifesaver.  It messes with your hormones, I think sends your progesterone up pretty darn high but I don't care, it WORKS, oh my god, sweet jesus.  You have to get a written prescription from your doctor, and then fax it (through an internet site) overseas; I do it to Scotland, and all this means that you have to pay out of pocket but I think it's about 30 cents a pop, which might be doable?  It's over the counter in a bunch of countries (Germany, Japan) and I think it just never made it in to the US because the timing was bad; they were starting up FDA trials at the same time that cisapride went bust and so domperidone rode down on cisapride's bad press - which is such a shame because the drugs are actually nothing alike, chemically-speaking!  Domperidone is pretty much Reglan (don't know if you've tried this - my experience: awesome on nausea, side effects are hell!) except domperidone stays out of your brain so the only side effects you get are hormonal (light/irregular periods, bigger boobs - bad if you're a guy! - and, yup, breast milk sometimes, ha, oh boy).  Oh, and when you start up on domperidone, a lot of people notice serious stomach cramps, but from what I've heard it pretty much always passes in a couple weeks.  It did for me, and it was SO worth it!  It's just a bummer, because I think that means that this drug doesn't work so well as an as-needed kind of deal - I mean, you have to be on a regimen... but oh my god, it's good.

Ooookay - I'm really sorry; I didn't mean to go off like that!  I sound like I'm making a sales pitch - oh yikes :P  I just love this drug so much, and so I guess, once I get started, I just go off...  Ha, well, in any case, I really recommend checking it out, seeing if it might be right for you.  Maybe check around your doctor's office, see if anyone there specializes in out-of-country prescriptions?  

I'm sorry about your nausea :(  I hope - in some form - you find some relief!  Best of luck to you -
Louey
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Avatar universal
Try ginger ale?
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Avatar universal
Headaches with nausea can also be caused by vasopressin hormone, which affects fluid balance.
Most cases of nausea are probably not endocrine related, but if symptoms persist for weeks, (especially if there are also digestive problems) I would definitely want to see an endocrinologist to check out the possibility of a pituitary disorder. My son's GP had no idea what was causing his nausea. I took it upon myself to get him to an endo, after doing a little online research. Thank goodness, the endo knew what to test for. The tumor was squashing his pituitary gland! No wonder he was so easily stressed and nauseous.
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Avatar universal
How old is your son?  My son is 18 and has IBS and some days are better than others.  He went to a gastronenterologist and is taking OTC Digestive Advantage for it.  But he has been feeling really nauseous the last few weeks (comes and goes) but the last few days have been bad.  Just wondering if I should take him to an endocrinologist instead of just going back and forth to the doctor and getting no real results.  He is away at college and even though he is stressed I don't feel that this is caused from that.

Thanks for your input.
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Avatar universal
Have you ever gone to an endocrinologist, or have you had a morning cortisol test?
My son's plague of nausea turned out to be from secondary adrenal insufficiency - due to a pituitary tumor. He also had headaches and digestive problems.
Nothing would relieve his nausea while his cortisol was low. He was put on hydrocortisone, which helped a lot, but when he was switched to dexamethasone, that really took care of it. No more nausea.

You might have adrenal fatigue and a low cortisol level. Just a thought.
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Avatar universal
My son also experiences daily nausea, and we have not found a thing to help him.  He has not gone to school in a year because of the nausea.  We have tried every over the counter med, and almost every prescription med, so far nothing.  They have determined his nausea is neurological (migraineous process), so we are trying yet a new med (takes 30 days for full effectiveness).  He has been on it for 2 weeks and no change yet.

So we are also looking for something to get rid of or decrease the nausea.
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