Nothing is as exciting as discovering that you are pregnant, and there is nothing that can dampen that excitement any faster than morning sickness. That constant feeling of nausea that can turn your pregnancy into the least enjoyable experience in the world.
Some experts have said that over 50% of women will experience morning sickness during the course of their pregnancy. Good news for some is that the symptoms often disappear at the end of the first trimester, not so good though if you are the 1 in 10 women whose morning sickness last well into the 20th week of pregnancy.
Unfortunately, there is no definitive cause of morning sickness, although some theories have been bandied about. These include:
- A much stronger sense of smell in pregnancy causes nausea.
- High levels of estrogen and the Hcg hormone in the early stages of pregnancy.
This doesn’t really help much though when you are in the throes of the worst bout of morning sickness yet. Many people swear by these simple methods of helping keeping the morning sickness at bay.
Ensure that you are eating little meals, often throughout the day
This will help to keep your blood sugar levels up. Don’t worry if the only thing you can stomach is not the most nutrient rich, there is time in the rest of the pregnancy for you and the baby to get all the nutrients you need, without you feeling sick. Also, making sure that you have something to eat when you get out of bed, will help to ease the nausea.
Ginger tea
Often, the best method of easing nausea is drinking ginger tea, or actually consuming ginger in any form. So make sure you stock up on those ginger biscuits!
Mints
Eating mints or drinking peppermint tea is a sure fire way of easing nausea and sickness.
Stay hydrated
Making sure that you are properly hydrated is important because it can help to ease the nausea. Try drinking water with a hint of lemon, or even flat cola and energy drinks can give you the extra boost of energy you may need.
Make sure that you are well rested, as this will help you to cope with the morning sickness.
Although morning sickness is a natural part of pregnancy, there is a condition called Hyperemesis Gravidarum, which is the most severe version of morning sickness and can seriously harm both you and the baby, although it affects only 2% of pregnant women. If you start vomiting numerous times a day, or find that cannot stomach any food or drink, please contact your doctor or midwife as soon as you can.