7 Tips for Dealing with Morning Sickness

7 Tips for Dealing with Morning Sickness

So you’re pregnant.. YAY! Congratulations! I bet the first few weeks after you found out, you were buzzing around your local baby boutique, “Oooing” and “ahhhing” over the adorable outfits and daydreaming about how you were going to decorate the nursery. Then one morning (or maybe evening), BOOM.. you “felt like you were hit by a train.”  Now, all that new mommy excitement has come to a screeching halt and you’re laid up in bed (or so you wish!) without any energy, and maybe even physically ill (you poor thing!!).

HELLO MORNING SICKNESS!!

Unfortunately, about 70% of pregnant women experience some sort of morning sickness throughout their pregnancy, with the intensity peaking around the 8-9th week. What each woman feels varies greatly from woman to woman and even with each pregnancy. Thankfully, there are a lot of ways to help reduce the symptoms, and even better, most women report that symptoms are much less or even gone by the 14th week (can I get an amen??).

So keep reading sister, because I’m about to tell you the top 7 tips for dealing with that horrible morning (and sometimes all day) sickness.

START BY TRACKING YOUR NAUSEA

At first, it might seem like your nausea is totally random and out of control, but if you start keeping track of when it’s worse, you might find a trend. Is it intolerable when you get out of bed in the morning? Try keeping a few crackers at the bedside and setting an alarm for 30 minutes before you need to be up. Is lunch time at the office making you dive for the bathroom? Coworkers microwaving their lunches might be the culprit- take a walk and get some fresh air during the office lunch break. Once you can determine what’s triggering your nausea, chances are you can find a remedy to help alleviate it.

KEEP SOMETHING IN YOUR TUMMY

Although this might seem counterintuitive if you feel like vomiting, when your stomach is empty nausea worsens (I swear!). You can help prevent this by lightly snacking throughout the day. It doesn’t really matter what you snack on, as long as you can tolerate it. See the next tip for more on this.

FIND FOOD THAT WORKS FOR YOU

Every woman is different and some have food aversions during pregnancy. But if you can nail down a few choice snacks that you can tolerate, something is better than nothing. Typically bland foods rich in carbs such as crackers, pretzels, or dry cereal are the best. However some other ideas are nuts, dried fruit, or cold snacks such as popsicles. Fatty and spicy foods may upset an already queasy tummy, but if it works for you, by all means girl, have at it!

STAY HYDRATED

The more dehydrated you become, the worse your nausea will also be. It sounds like a daunting task to down the recommended 8 glasses of water a day, but there are ways to trick your body into drinking. Remember those salty crackers and pretzels we talked about before? Some women say those snacks soothes their stomach and also trigger their thirst. Liven up that Tervis tumbler of water at your desk with some fresh ginger (which also soothes stomachs), lemon, or other flavorful fruit you like. And not to mention, some fruit like watermelon is high in water content as well.

TAKE A NAP

Hallelujah! Something you can finally be excited about! Yes, sleeping will definitely help you deal with that morning sickness, as if you didn’t already know that! If you can, sleep in or adjust your work schedule so that you can start later in the day. Have kiddos at home? Hire someone to help out for a few hours in the afternoon so that you can get that much needed rest. And even if you’re a night owl, give yourself enough time to have at least 7 hours of sleep a night. After all, it’s hard growing legs and brains, but somebody’s gotta do it (and it’s not going to be daddy!)

CARRY A SURVIVAL KIT

No one likes to puke in public, but the truth is, sometimes it’s inevitable. Keeping a small bag with you at all times full of a few choice items can really save you in a “can’t hold it any longer” moment. Throw in some light snacks like pretzels or nuts incase your stomach starts feeling queasy. A plastic (barf) bag is a good idea for those stuck-in-traffic-no-bathroom-for-miles situations, and a new toothbrush, toothpaste, mouthwash, or mints will help freshen up your breath if you do happen to throw up.

CONSIDER MEDICATIONS/HOLISTIC TREATMENTS

For some women, nausea may become a heath concern if you’re losing or not gaining weight, which may be unsafe for the baby. In this case, it’s important to talk to your doctor about your options. Some over the counter medications are available, as well as stronger prescriptions that your physician may determine are right for you. Anti nausea wrist bands are also a holistic approach.