You may have anticipated your pregnancy without understanding all the changes that can occur during these 9 months. For some women, an early symptom of pregnancy is nausea, with or without vomiting. It may begin around week 6 and last until week 12 or 13, when it starts to subside. You may feel ill during the morning (that’s why it’s called morning sickness); you can also feel sick any time during the day or evening. Hang in there–the condition is temporary.
There is no completely successful treatment for morning sickness. Medication, acupressure, acupuncture, massage and hypnosis may prove helpful. This is an important period in fetal development, so don’t expose your unborn baby to herbs, over-the-counter treatments or any other “remedies” for nausea that may not be safe during pregnancy.
There are some measures you can try to help deal with the problem. Dry crackers, dry toast or rice cakes can help settle your stomach. Keep up your fluid intake to help you avoid dehydration. Dehydration is more serious than not eating for a while. Eat small meals more frequently so you don’t have a lot of food in your stomach, and eat foods that appeal to you.
Ginger may help–it seems to interrupt the message the stomach sends to the part of the brain that controls nausea. Nibble on raw ginger, or pour boiling water over it and sip the “tea.”
Salty foods help some women. Lemonade and watermelon may also help alleviate symptoms. A high-protein snack or a high-carbohydrate snack before bed may be good. Find out what foods, smells or situations make you nauseated; avoid them when possible. Don’t drink coffee because it stimulates stomach acid.
Keep your bedroom cool at night, and air it out often. Cool, fresh air may help you feel better. When you get up, get out of bed slowly.
A morning-sickness emergency traveling bag, especially if you suffer from nausea and vomiting throughout the day, may come in handy. Pack together some opaque plastic bags without holes (like grocery sacks), wet wipes, tissues to wipe your face and mouth, a small bottle of water to rinse your mouth and teeth, a toothbrush and toothpaste to brush away stomach acids, and a small bottle of breath spray or breath mints. With your bag along, you’ll feel confident you can handle this temporary side effect of pregnancy, no matter where you are.
If morning sickness is wearing you down, call your doctor’s office and ask if they have any suggestions for dealing with the problem. Reassurances the situation is normal and your baby is OK can be comforting.
If your symptoms are extreme, call your doctor’s office as soon as possible. If you experience severe nausea and vomiting, if you cannot eat or drink anything or if you feel so ill that you can’t carry on daily activities, call your physician immediately. Call if your urine is dark, you have little urine, you feel dizzy when you stand up, your heart races or pounds, or you vomit blood or bile.
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By the authors of Your Pregnancy Week by Week available from Da Capo Press. For more information, visit
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Comments: 36
My all day "morning sickness" started at about 6-8 weeks and lasted until week 20! Your last paragraph explains what I went through--also, I was really weak and could barely walk. I've had 2 PICC lines for vitamins & fluid plus a line for Zofran. Thank God all of that finally ended.
Baked potatoes was the first food I found that stayed down--I only put some butter on it, and ate it very slowly.
I'm at 35 1/2 weeks now (due August 13th), and have been getting sick each morning for the past few weeks. I was told it's because the baby is taking up so much room it's pushing up on my stomach.
But again, wonderful suggestions and information. 10!
Judi, great and helpful information for any expectant mother. Thanks!
I started having children late so just a grandma, Elsie is telling off on herself. HUH.
This is Norma of the donaldandnorma duo.,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Norma
Glad you liked the info. Hope it helps your friend.
You're right–some women suffer much longer than others with morning sickness. When I was pregnant (27 years ago!), I had a co-worker who had morning sickness until the day she delivered her baby.
Good point–eat what appeals to you and what you can keep down.
As the baby grows larger and larger, sometimes the encroachment on your stomach can cause problems in late pregnancy. Eat small meals when you can (up to 6 a day), and eat foods that don't settle heavily in your stomach. Remember to keep up your fluid intake. And good luck with all that lies ahead!
I hope it is helpful. Enjoy Faith Olivia!
At this time, we don't have any information about a connection between morning sickness and a colicky baby. I'll keep my eyes open for anything that comes along about this subject.
You were lucky. In the years we've been writing our books, I've heard lots about the subject from many women who suffered from the problem.
Ginger has been proved to help women with morning sickness–it seems to interrupt the message the stomach sends to the part of the brain that controls nausea. Along those same lines, ginger ale might work in a similar way. I know when I was little, my mother always gave us ginger ale when I had the flu.
I guess lime is akin to lemon, so maybe that's why it helped. Studies have shown that lemon helps many women, whether it's sucking on a piece of cut lemon or sucking on a hard lemon candy. Even lemon water can be helpful. If lime works, go for it.
I'm glad you added your comments–it's always nice to hear from a "pro"!
I have heard from other women (not just pregnant ones) that the wristband is very helpful when they experience nausea from morning sickness or from car sickness. Some people wear the bands when they are going through chemotherapy. Glad it worked for you!
Hyperemesis gravidarum (severe nausea and vomiting) causes a great deal of vomiting, which results in loss of nutrients and fluid. If you're unable to keep down 80 ounces of fluid in 24 hours, if you lose more than 2 pounds a week or 5% of your prepregnancy weight, or if you vomit blood or bile, you have hyperemesis gravidarum. Fortunately, only 1 to 2% of all pregnant women experience this problem. Very high levels of nausea-inducing hormones produced by the placenta may be one cause. In severe cases, a pregnant woman may need to be treated in the hospital with intravenous fluids and medications. Hypnosis has been used successfully in treating hyperemesis gravidarum. I personally know of a psychologist/certified hypnotherapist who has had extraordinary luck helping women deal with hyperemesis gravidarum. If you get pregnant again, ask your physician about a psychologist/hypnotherapist in your area who might be able to help you with the problem.
But wasn't pregnancy fun sometimes? And look at the end result!
For my second child, I did not have nausea per se but i was very suggestive. If someone mentioned something disgusting, I would nearly vomit. I oculd not eat a fair number of foods, such as most hot foods, but could eat them cold. The mere thought of all this made me nauseous. This lasted tne entire 9 months, but it was not difficult.
I'm glad you were able to deal with your nausea with a simple remedy like crackers and milk. As to the situation with your second child, I've heard similar stories from other women. In addition to hearing something about food setting off nausea, smelling food really affects some women. I had a friend who couldn't cook or even think about cooking because the smell of food made being in the kitchen unbearable for her. The best advice we can give is to treat your morning sickness seriously and deal with it in whatever way helps you and makes you feel comfortable.
I was warned that my baby might not be okay if I didn't stop vomiting. As if I did it on purpose! My veins were collapsing by the end of 6 months because of so many needle pricks. Well, eventually I did stop vomiting and regained some of my weight to a whopping 95 pounds by full term. And to top it off, my son decided to delay his arrival by 25 days after the due date.
I must say, it was worth every minute of it. And I assured the doctors that my baby would be just fine. And of course, he was and is a strong, healthy, smart young man today. However, needless to say, he is an only child.
I hope the information will prove useful for your friend in a future pregnancy.
Thank you; we always appreciate hearing from people who like what we write.
Morning sickness and hyperemesis gravidarum can be very difficult for some women. And, as you point out, it can last far beyond the first trimester. I have heard about other women, like you, who have had very severe problems during pregnancy. Glad to know that everything turned out well, and your son is a healthy adult. It makes one believe in miracles!
Ten unsolicited points from the world's worst connection. Merry whatever you celebrate!
I am currently 8w1d pregnant with baby # 2 and have been sick since probaby 4-5weeks. It wasn't so bad at first and was mostly just in the morning but now it is all day sickness and nausea. Not so bad every day and it comes and goes, but over the last week I have also started gagging a lot and dry heaving. Hopefully throwing up doesn't follow soon...