Mom, 26, Scheduled Abortion for Second Pregnancy After Severe Morning Sickness: ‘I Was Unable to Care for Myself and My Son’

A woman nearly terminated her pregnancy after dealing with severe morning sickness that left her unable to eat or drink.

Chloe Roberts, a 26-year-old infant holistic sleep coach from Newport, Wales, recalled being hospitalized for dehydration during her first pregnancy.

“I literally spent the whole of my first trimester in bed on ice cubes, because I couldn’t eat or drink,” she told BBC. “I struggled to shower, my partner would sometimes have to bathe me; I physically could not care for myself.”

Roberts was dealing with hyperemesis gravidarum (HG), a severe version of pregnancy sickness with which Kate Middleton famously struggled.

The debilitating condition causes extreme nausea and vomiting several times daily that can last until birth, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Other symptoms include constant dizziness, fatigue, headaches and an inability to keep food or liquids down. It often leads to weight loss and dehydration. HG can be managed with prescription medication at home but in extreme cases requires patients to be hospitalized and given IVs.

Roberts’ condition was so severe that she had to limit her duties at work until she gave birth to her son in 2023. The morning sickness stopped immediately after. 

Due to the debilitating pregnancy, Roberts decided she didn’t want another child. However, she later had an unplanned pregnancy.

“I remember when I found out I literally turned around to my partner and I was like, ‘what do we do?’ ” she told the outlet.

Roberts said the nausea and vomiting got so bad that her mental health started to deteriorate. She was also unable to take her antidepressants due to the severe sickness.

“It got to the point that I had an abortion booked for her because I was unable to care for myself and my son, and I literally said to my partner, ‘I’m worried about my own safety,’ ” she said.

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

Many people who suffer from HG can take a prescription medication, Xonvea. However, it’s not routinely available in Wales due to its higher cost, and is usually only prescribed after other treatments have failed.

It took an ectopic pregnancy scare for Roberts’ doctor to prescribe her Xonvea. She said the medication completely changed her pregnancy experience, and she finally felt well enough to cancel her abortion.

“At the start, it just meant that I was able to take my antidepressants, which then helped level my mood. I was able to eat a little piece of toast. And then as time went on and my hormones started to settle, I was then able to eat a proper meal,” she explained.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Roberts — founder of Nos Da Baboon — ultimately gave birth to her daughter in June 2025.

Now, the mother of two is preparing to get her tubes tied, which she called her best option. She recognized how difficult it would be to get prescribed Xonvea again and admitted that she’s unable to face another pregnancy.

“I want to be sterilized after struggling to access HG medication,” she said.

Dr. Georgina Forbes, a specialist doctor in sexual and reproductive health, told BBC that HG can be devastating for women and she often sees patients in their most vulnerable state.

“My experience is that women were coming for abortions and had not actually been able to access that drug freely or were struggling to get it, and by the time they come to me, they are entirely at their wits’ end,” she said. “They are broken.”