Morning Sickness - Pregnancy - Knowledge Area

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PREGNANCY - MORNING SICKNESS

Not the best thing about being pregnant, that's for sure! And why do you feel so rubbish when your friend is absolutely fine? Because life is like that and every pregnancy is different, even for the same woman with different babies.

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The Basics

About 50% of pregnant women will experience some kind of morning sickness (although it can occur at any time of the day).

This can range from a slight and occasional feeling of nausea to severe vomiting (which is unusual).

Morning sickness can start before you miss your first period, is usually worst during weeks 9-10, is over by the 14th week but can continue through the whole of your pregnancy (also unusual).

You are more likely to suffer if you are carrying multiple babies.

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What is it?

The exact cause of morning sickness is not known but it is believed to be linked to natural changes to hormones in pregnant women.

There is a theory that morning sickness is related to healthy pregnancies with a lower rate of miscarriage - although if you don't suffer from morning sickness, this doesn't mean you will definitely miscarry.

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How bad can it get?

Extreme pregnancy sickness (hyperemesis gravidarum) can cause severe weight loss and dehydration which may require hospital treatment to keep fluid levels up.

Morning sickness, even this severe, should not harm your unborn baby.

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How can I relieve the symptoms?

If your symptoms are as severe as described above, please consult you GP.

For less severe symptoms here are some tips:

Nausea is often worse on an empty stomach & low blood sugar - make sure you eat something every couple of hours
Eat small and frequent meals, avoiding high fat content which will put a greater strain on your digestive system
To help prevent sickness in the morning, keep light snacks by your bed and eat something before you get up in the morning or even if you wake in the night (such as fruit, crackers, dry toast)
Get plenty of rest
Vitamin supplements B6 and B12 can help - ask your GP for advice on dosage
Avoid foods and smells that might trigger your symptoms
Drink plenty but avoid caffeine and alcohol which cause dehydration
Ginger can help relieve nausea for some people - such as root ginger, ginger capsules, ginger tea, ginger ale, ginger biscuits
Some people find acupuncture can help, and even acupressure bands, usually for travel sickness

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Personal Experiences

Ali in Somerset, who is pregnant with her 3rd child, sends in this:

I had no sickness with Number 1 (a boy), some with Number 2 (a girl), masses with this one!
Wrist bands maybe helped a bit, although I didn't use them until about 12 weeks so was starting to feel better. Tiredness is most definitely linked - even though I feel better than I did, I threw up violently yesterday (15 weeks) after breakfast and I'm sure its due to exhaustion at the moment.
Ginger did not help me - I vomited after ginger biscuits! I found some peppermint boiled sweets which I think helped a bit - they seemed to mask the taste in my mouth and so took my mind off it a bit. I tried boiled sweets in general as I was advised to, but no help there. I have regular acupuncture - I think it helps me generally but I can not say it had a direct link on the nausea. Basically nothing really helped!!!

Please do let us know (good or bad) about your morning sickness experiences.

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