The Truth About Morning Sickness

This was originally written on Thursday, October 25, 2007

Well, folks, today I have felt nausea-free ALL DAY. I'm scared to get my hopes up (yesterday was off and on) but I'd like to think that because this all started on a Thursday (September 13 to be exact) then maybe it has ended on a Thursday as well. I actually did a light, twenty-minute exercise video today. It was only the fourth time I've been able exercise, following the two days I did pilates several weeks ago. It was very nice!

Along with the book excerpt yesterday (which I hope you all enjoyed, hehe), I thought I'd post the facts for those who were clueless like me before I got pregnant :p (A lot of friends have expressed their surprise when hearing about my experience, which is how I felt when this first began for me. Who could blame us? On TV women with morning sickness might throw up once, but then they go on with their normal lives. Movies don't show the day in, day out TRUTH!) So here it is:

*75% of pregnant woman experience morning sickness in some form--although it can range from very mild nausea, fatigue, headaches, or reflux that lasts just a few days, to severe nausea, fatigue, headaches and/or vomiting that remains throughout the entire pregnancy. (Nearly half of these women have a moderate to severe case; I would say I fall on the borderline of severe. I haven't had trouble keeping food down [only two of the 8 or 9 times I threw up occured after a meal; the rest were in the morning before I'd eaten], but the nausea has been worse than any bad flu, requiring me to be bedridden for 21 of the past 42 days. There is a rare form that is past the point of severe, though, which affects 2% of women, called Hyperemesis Gravidarum. It requires bedrest for the entire pregnancy and medication, as it actually affects the health of both mother and baby because neither are getting the proper nutrients.)

*It is not harmful to you or your baby, in fact statistics show that women who experience nausea and vomiting generally have healthier pregnancies and babies than women who don't. (This does not include those with Hyperemesis Gravidarum.) The nausea is a result of increased hormones in the body. (Estrogen, Progesterone, and HCG.) The better the placenta and the baby develop, the more hormones are released. By the second trimester, there is not such a surge, and most women's bodies have grown used to the hormones.

*For most women, morning sickness begins around week 6 and ends between weeks 12-16. (Great, this means I could potentially have 3-4 more weeks--NO! My doctor did say I was a candidate for medication, so I am debating about going on it if I am not feeling better within the next week or two because, as you read above, there are some women who have the sickness all nine months. I couldn't bear it! I've tried to let it run its course the natural way, but the medication is supposedly safe.)

*Morning sickness can occur at anytime during the day, and may last just for a brief time or all day.

For me, the only thing I found to help was to have something in my stomach every hour. This doesn't necessarily mean meals--could be just a piece of cheese or a few saltine crackers or an apple, etc. Just one item seems to keep my stomach more settled than when I go a couple of hours or more without eating. This may be because morning sickness is known to be escalated by a drop in blood sugar. So, it is recommended that pregnant women eat crackers immediately before bed and before even getting out of bed.

Get this--my one, single food aversion has been vegetables. For several weeks I felt bad about this because I had no trouble eating pepperoni pizza, fried chicken, or cupcakes--however I couldn't force myself to eat veggies. But every time I so much as said the word "vegetable" I would start gagging. (Seriously--this happened when I was on the phone with my mom.) Well, it turns out it might be a blessing in disguise. Here's a quote from Wikipedia:

"Eating vegetables may be a turn-off for pregnant women. Vegetables produce a small amount of toxins to deter insect infestation and while these toxins are normally harmless to adult humans, they are potentially dangerous to embryos. This may be the body's way of protecting the embryo's health. For example, morning sickness begins at the point when the embryo's organ systems are being laid down and the embryo is most vulnerable to birth-defect inducing chemicals, but is growing slowly and has only a modest need for nutrients. By the 14th-16th week, when morning sickness is typically over, the organ systems of the embryo are mostly complete and the most prominent need is now nutrients."

Fascinating!!! Other women have found these tips helpful:

*Eating five or six small meals per day, rather than three large ones.

*Ginger, in capsules, tea, ginger ale, or ginger snaps

*Vitamin B6

*Lemons, particularly the smelling of freshly cut lemons.

*Accommodating food cravings and aversions.

*Trying the BRATT diet: bananas, rice, applesauce, toast and tea.

*Drinking liquids 30 to 45 minutes after eating solid food.

I tried all of these, as well as wearing wrist bands for people with motion sickness (because they have helped many pregnant women as well), however none of these provided relief for me. :-(