From 9 o'clock in the morning until after 6 o'clock in the evening, Spewing Mummy and I talked, and talked, and then talked some more to the delegates as they wandered past our small stand. I soon lost count of the number of times I had explained that PSS gives support and information to sufferers, has a volunteer peer support network and online forum, provides education to healthcare professionals, carries out research into the condition and so on.
By the end of the day my legs ached from standing up all day (with only a quick sit down for lunch and to fold more information cards when we ran out of supplies) and my mouth was dry with talking. But it was a day very well spent. The Conference was a fantastic platform for the charity. We were able to speak to hundreds and hundreds of midwives and student midwives and increase awareness of hyperemesis gravidarum (HG) and the charity.
Spewing Mummy |
Charity Chick |
I am well aware that many sufferers encounter such unsympathetic and ill-informed attitudes from medical professionals but I had been fortunate not to have witnessed them myself. Thankfully though, these moments were few and far between at the Conference and the positive conversations by far outweighed the negative ones.
And in a strange way, even the negative attitudes have a positive side to them in that they reaffirm the need for the work that the charity is doing. They demonstrate that we do need to increase awareness of the condition and how to treat it; they demonstrate that we do need to do more research into HG; and they demonstrate that we do need to work with the medical profession to push for more HG day centres and home IV fluid services across the country.
None of these changes, which the charity is working so hard to achieve, can happen without financial resources. Sadly, the charity does not have very many resources, in fact it is largely run on a shoe-string by a small number of individuals in their spare time. This is why the charity campaign currently being run by Ebay could give us a much-needed financial boost.
If you would like to help us, you can do so by making a few clicks and "favouriting" Pregnancy Sickness Support on Ebay during November or December. It won't cost you anything but it could help us win one of the three cash prizes (£7,000, £3,000 and £2,000) that are up for grabs in Ebay's "My favourite charity" campaign. You will also stand a chance of being one of ten people selected at random to win £250. It's very simple. All you need to do is click here for the Ebay leaderboard, scroll down until you see Pregnancy Sickness Support and then select the charity as a favourite.
Please do it now! We need your help!