CANNABIS CULTURE – “When I was pregnant with my son, there was a lot of fear,” says Tati, “I was experiencing just extreme nausea to the point that I was in the bathroom on the floor all day. I couldn’t even think about eating. It was extremely challenging to get them to give me a diagnosis.”
Tati was eight months pregnant when she finally got her diagnosis: Hyperemesis Gravidarum (HG).
HG is likely caused by the rapid increase of hormones during pregnancy. HG affects at least 1-2% of pregnancies. The disease is characterized by severe nausea and vomiting that persists beyond the first 12 weeks of pregnancy and leads to dehydration and malnutrition, even starvation when patients can’t access treatment.
Other symptoms include food aversions, weight loss greater than 5% of the pre-pregnancy weight, decreased urination, dehydration, headaches, confusion, fainting, jaundice, extreme fatigue, low blood pressure, rapid heart rate, skin weakness, and secondary mental illness, such as PTSD.
HG pregnancies are high risk with a 34% fetal loss rate, as reported by the HER Foundation.
“With all of my previous pregnancies, I just assumed there was something wrong with me. That I just wasn’t able to carry a child to term,” Tati says. “I started to look more into it and educate myself on my own I was like OH MY GOD. Every single pregnancy that I have ever had, this has been a problem.”
Common treatments for those who are able to get diagnosed with HG are Reglan (metoclopramide), Zofran (ondansetron), Kytril (granisetron), and Diclegis (doxylamine/pyridoxine). Other treatments can include rehydration, acupressure, and supplements such as ginger. Many of these treatment options have little to no research on fetal development when used beyond the first trimester.
Tati had been prescribed Zofran.
“I confronted the doctors about it and they basically told me that if I didn’t want to take the Zofran, my symptoms were obviously not that bad.” She says she was given no other options.
Tati decided to find her own solution: cannabis.
She faced harsh criticism and even threats of having her child taken away. Still, with cannabis her symptoms eased. She was able to eat again and says her child continues to thrive.
And Tati is not the only one.
“I couldn’t believe what I had just survived,” says Tori a Canadian mother and activist from Edmonton, Alberta.
Tori was diagnosed with HG and shares her journey to cannabis under the name @goldenteachertori on Instagram and TikTok.
Tori shares her story through her instagram and tiktok under the name @goldenteachertori
“The pharmaceuticals didn’t work and even made me suicidal.” She says. “I still live in a very highly stigmatized place. I am the first one in my entire family to use cannabis.”
Before her prgnancy, Tori was new to cannabis. Once pregnant she says she feared the stigma of using the plant while expecting. “I would walk into the dispensary and kind of hide my belly. I would wear a black hoodie so no one could see me.”
Shame and fear are unfortunately common emotions for cannabis patients, especially those who are pregnant or breastfeeding.
“When he was born, I told that staff he wasn’t feeding properly. He was having a hard time latching. His jaw was clenched.” Tati said, speaking to her first experiences of attempting to breastfeed, “fast forward to the morning I had a pediatrician come in guns a blazing. She was like ‘you’re not feeding your child, you’re a pothead, I’m going to take your child from you if you don’t feed him right now.’” Tori says she burst into tears.
Many cannabis patients risk losing their child entirely to the government if their child is born with THC in their system, even in states where cannabis is legal. Beyond the obvious harms, 82.8% of HG patients experience negative psycho-social change such as job loss, relationship changes, fears around pregnancy, and other mental illnesses.
Tati still experiences severe nausea daily and food aversions, stating, “The issues that I had before having my son with nausea are a lot worse than it ever has been before. It’ll be to a point where I’m, like, starving, I feel super hungry, like I’m about to pass out, and I’ll go to make myself some food and I’ll get totally turned off in the middle of making it,” she says.
“I’m just not hungry anymore. It’s so weird. There’s a few safe foods that I can revert to like, I dunno, rice? It has to be arroz rojo, the Mexican rice. If it’s not like that spicy tangy flavor, I can’t do it.” It doesn’t just affect her, but her family as well.
“It makes making food for my family really challenging sometimes too. Sometimes my son will refuse to eat dinner because I’m not sitting down and eating with him, so I force myself to sit down and eat a few bites for him.” Tati said, “people say it will be easier because he is a boy, but I disagree. He sees that I’m not
eating and doesn’t want to do it either.”
Patients who report they were ignored or unheard by their healthcare providers were nearly twice as likely to report psychiatric complications during and after their pregnancy. Tori experiences Avoidant Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) and PTSD from her HG pregnancy.
“There was a bit of a betrayal of trust for me with medical professionals,” she says, “I ended up losing ten-ish pounds during pregnancy. I was a lucky one. A lot of HG moms lose much more.” Tati credits cannabis with allowing her to keep food down and eat, especially the eating part.
Tati’s trouble didn’t end there though. She lost 60 lbs postpartum.
“The pregnancy was horrific but the fact that I just watched my body wither away before my eyes, but I couldn’t eat, but I was also taking care of a child and breastfeeding…” In addition to cannabis, she uses psilocybin mushrooms as part of her postpartum recovery program.
Both of these mothers, like many others faced with this condition, are challenged with the lasting effects of HG and the impacts of medical neglect.
These women are raising awareness for HG and all the treatment options available. Tori is determined to keep HG patients from being ignored, imploring us all to, “go to the women in your family and ask about their pregnancy. They may not have had the space to even talk about it.” HG is likely hereditary, and having these conversations is the first step to ensuring proper care is available for future generations.
“If you think you have it, bring it up to your doctor as soon as possible, because they aren’t
going to bring it up,” Tati says. “As for child loss, the number one thing I would say is it’s not your fault. It’s
not your fault. Just because you’ve had a few losses, or even a lot of losses, I had seven losses
before my son, you don’t have to give up hope.”
