A Year With Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome

 It's been almost a full year since it began. It was only the occasional evening when I would vomit.  Going out shopping or visiting friends and family seemed to increase the likelihood that I would not be able to keep down my meal. 

I tried many different ways to control the vomiting. I had no clue of what was going on. I tried indigestion medicine, heartburn medicine and other tummy relief candies or chews. Sometimes they helped. Most of the time they didn't.  

After a few months the vomiting started to become more frequent and harder to fight down. I would lose sleep often just trying to avoid it at all costs only to lose the battle in the wee hours of the morning

Six months after it began I was struggling with frequent and intense nausea, severe headaches and increased anxiety. I was vomiting up to four times a week. My face was often dotted with broken blood vessels from the endless cycle of vomiting.

   Going out became a living nightmare for me because it made the chance of vomiting three times as likely. I began to eat very little and it soon became the same food every day. I started eating only crackers, dried fruit, yogurt and the occasional piece of toast. Anything else seemed to trigger the horrible vomiting.

Hardly anyone knew what I was going through. I was kind of embarrassed by the whole ordeal. I would be all bubbly and smiles when I was visiting friends or family but inside I was dreading later. There were times I couldn't even make it home before I lost yet again. 

After dealing with the vomiting for over 9 months enough was enough. I had tried dealing with it on my own by changing my diet, dealing with the headaches as quickly as possible and trying to decrease any situations that might trigger the vomiting. I was finally out of ideas and so off to the doctors I went. 

After talking to my doctor about what was going on he recommended that I keep a detailed journal for a couple months with the times, hour of day, and I was physically feeling before each episode happened. I kept record faithfully and boy was it heartbreaking to see it all written down. This problem was literally controlling my life.  

The follow up appointment with my doctor this past summer finally answered some questions. He diagnosed me with Cyclic Vomiting Syndrome mainly triggered by migraines. I had noticed headaches when I was vomiting but I mistakenly thought it was the vomiting causing the headaches not the other way around. 

My doctor prescribed a beta-blocker for the migraines and within a couple months the frequent vomiting was almost completely gone. 

In the following months since I began the beta-blocker I have vomited a total of three times. Three times in  SIX MONTHS. It used to be three to four times per WEEK.

I wish I had gone to the doctor sooner because I feel SO MUCH BETTER! I can't being to describe it. I can't begin to describe that first real meal I had when I could actually enjoy it and know that I wouldn't be regretting what I ate later. I still remember that meal- it was fish & chips. Something I would have never even dared to look at 6 months ago.

I'm writing all this to make a point, we never really know what someone else is going through in their private lives. Very few people knew what was going on for me. I appeared to be my normal cheerful self. During the darkest times with the vomiting I had someone tell me I looked the best I had in a long time. They remarked that I must be feeling so much better from my back injury. This person has no idea.

My thought to you that I want to give is this: Always Be Kind, and Don't Judge.

Love, Rebecca

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