Feel Like Puking Your Guts Out?

That's kind of an intense title I understand, but for someone who is experiencing a bout of the stomach blues, there's just no other way to describe it.  What if I told you that I could prepare a gel that you rub on to your wrist to stop the queasies and prevent episodes of nausea and vomiting?  I can and do. :)
Read on.......... There's nothing worse than being sick at your stomach and this time of the year we typically see a surge in cases of nausea and vomiting as people's immune systems succumb to the pressure of the winter flu bug.  Entire families begin to drop like dominoes as they pass the illness from one person to another.  Moms begin to worry that their kids are going to become dehydrated as they struggle to keep enough fluids on board their sick little bodies. You rarely have warning that it's coming and unfortunately most people's medicine cabinets are not stocked appropriately to handle the invasion and insult.  There are a few good things to have on hand that might just prevent a trip to the convenience store at 2am on a Sunday morning.  Those would include:

Pepto Bismol for upset stomach
Imodium for diarrhea
Tums for gas and indigestion
Emetrol for nausea and vomiting
Pedialyte Popsicles and Liquid
Chicken noodle soup and Sprite (that's for my mom who thinks it's the cure all.  Thanks Mom!)

I also want to mention a prescription remedy for nausea and vomiting that we make in the lab all the time.  It's called Phenergan Gel and you simply rub it on your wrist every 4-6 hours.  Phenergan gel makes it nice for those that are too sick to keep anything (food or medicine) down for any length of time.  We always have phenergan gel on hand and prepare it in various strengths to allow treatment for those 2 years of age and older.  (It comes in a dispensing syringe with 10 doses of medicine contained within.)  I should also share that Phenergan Gel is also very helpful for women who are experiencing nausea and vomiting with pregnancy.  Yep that's right, pregnancy!  Many women have intense nausea with pregnancy and Phenergan Gel helps tremendously in controlling episodes of vomiting.  Pregnant moms think its the BOMB!! For me, it's nice to be able to offer a treatment that is safe and effective for all ages and nausea conditions. 

Remember to check your medicine cabinet for the winter season, and don't hesitate to call if I can answer any further questions on this topic.

To your good health,
Dr. Sonja