Episode 7

Explicit content warning

09/16/20 • 48 min

This is the seventh episode of the Hyperemesis Files. A podcast presented by Hyperemesis Campaigner Charlotte Howden. Each episode Charlotte talks to HG survivors about their personal story with Hyperemesis. In this episode, Charlotte talks to Petra, a Swedish Londoner mother of 2 girls, who suffered with Hyperemesis in both her pregnancies. Her second daughter was born just 6 weeks ago so her experience is obviously still very raw. Petra is a freelance producer and writer and has spent the last 10 years of her career delivering live broadcasts, campaigns, and factual programming. Petra talks openly about her battle to get access to medication, intrusive thoughts about termination and also how a trip to Los Angeles is how she finally got a diagnosis of HG!!!!! Given her profession, Petra and Charlotte also take this opportunity to discuss how pregnant women are portrayed in Film & TV and how the back story of most pregnant characters is often misrepresenting the real experience of pregnancy. Petra also talks about how she managed to cope (or not) during a pandemic/lockdown and giving birth in her car!

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Episode 6

In 2018 Charlotte interviewed Dr Marlena Fejzo for the Sick - The Battle Against HG Documentary. Marlena is a faculty researcher with joint appointments in the department of Medicine at UCLA and the department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at USC. Her primary focus is in improving women’s health. She has published papers on her genetic studies of many diseases of women including ovarian cancer, breast cancer, and multiple sclerosis and she discovered the first genes linked to nausea and vomiting of pregnancy and Hyperemesis Gravidarum. Here is her full interview.

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Episode 8

This is the eighth episode of the Hyperemesis Files. A podcast presented by Hyperemesis Campaigner Charlotte Howden. Each episode Charlotte talks to HG survivors about their personal story with Hyperemesis. In this episode, Charlotte talks to Danielle, a mum of 2 from the UK. Danielle works as an employment solicitor and is part of the legal team for the Pregnant Then Screwed Charity. She has set up legal clinics along the North West to help women who find themselves discriminated against purely because they are employed and pregnant! Danielle has taken on cases for women who have suffered with Hyperemesis, and speaks openly about one. Danielle provides invaluable advice in this episode about our rights when pregnant and crucially for Hyperemesis sufferers, our rights when pregnant and suffering with a pregnancy related illness. Topics include redundancy, maternal leave and pay, sick pay, when to tell your employer you are pregnant and what to do if you think you have been discriminated against.