What to do about Morning Sickness?

Morning sickness (ok, all day sickness) can be a real bear.  Here’s my list of things that help:

• Eat often.  Even if it’s just a bite or two, it makes a difference because it keeps your blood sugar level and helps tamp down the stomach acid.
• Eat whatever tastes good.  Some smells or foods are off-putting, so skip those.
• Eat before you even get out of bed.  Have a small snack before you even sit up in bed in the morning, and that will help keep nausea at bay.
• If your prenatal vitamins are heavy on the iron (and most are) try switching to a regular multi-vitamin, or even children’s chewables.  Too much iron makes more nausea.
• Wear “Sea Bands”.  They are available at drugstores and they are commonly used for motion sickness.  They use an acupressure point on the wrist – and they do work really well.  It’s OK to wear them as long as you like.
• Ginger – Raw, candied, powdered, tea – all will work well to help with nausea.  Ginger ale doesn’t because it isn’t made with real ginger.  Check the natural food stores, you can get real ginger ale there, and that will help also.
• Peppermint – tea, mints to suck on, gum, etc. all help.
• Note – with both ginger and peppermint, don’t take capsules or supplements – too intense for pregnancy.
• “Preggie Pops” – they are lollipops, with ginger in them.
• Extra sleep – your body is working hard to keep that baby by increasing your hormones.  Rest as you need to.
• For most women, morning sickness is gone by 13-16 weeks, the end of the 1st trimester.  Yay, light at the end of the tunnel!
• If the morning sickness is so bad you are becoming dehydrated and/or losing weight, see your OB or midwife.  You may need a perscription for Zofran, an anti-nausea drug that’s safe for pregnancy.