I had what is not-so-affectionately called “morning sickness” during the first trimesters of my two previous pregnancies, and I am currently in the throes of it now with my third. I have been lucky enough thus far to have had the nausea subside by week 13-14 or so, and going through it now I hope it stops soon (9 weeks at the time of writing). Of course most preggos will tell you that this “discomfort” as you might call it isn’t confined to the morning, but rather rears its ugly head any time it dang well pleases. I have found strategies that have helped for me to either ease it, postpone it, hold it off, diminish it or downright eliminate it at times, and I am going to share those below:
- EATING UPON WAKING- I’m talking while still in bed if you have to. At times I am able to brush my teeth first, but if you can’t, that’s okay too. We are just getting by, here.
- Protein helps the most to stave off feeling very gross- if you can’t bring yourself to eat food, make a protein shake the night before with water and keep at the bedside. It’s saving my life right now.
- Collagen Powder– I have used Vital Proteins or any other grass-fed collagen powder. 20g animal-sourced protein per serving and the unflavored is COMPLETELY unflavored, it’s great because I just mix with water and it tastes like water (and still has water consistency).
- Juice Plus Protein Powder– I am a JP consultant, so if you want this feel free to reach out to me or click here and I’ll hook you up. This is non-GMO soy-based protein (with pea, chickpea and rice protein as well) and comes in vanilla and chocolate. I mixed with water but you can do almond milk or whatever you want. It is 13g protein per serving.
- Saltines, sandwich crackers, fat bombs/protein bombs, and granola bars are all things that have helped me in the past to have at my bedside as well, though this time around no so much. Experiment and find what works for you!
- I should add that EATING BEFORE BED is also important, as I often found myself waking up hungry in the night or even going to bed hungry if I didn’t eat enough that day. For 2-3 weeks I added a protein shake an hour before bed in addition to first thing in the morning and that helped a TON. Once my food tolerances and calorie intakes were better, I was able to stop the night shake.
- Protein helps the most to stave off feeling very gross- if you can’t bring yourself to eat food, make a protein shake the night before with water and keep at the bedside. It’s saving my life right now.
- EATING THROUGHOUT THE DAY– Keep snacks on you; don’t leave the house empty handed. For me, hunger during this time was always accompanied by nausea and I would start gagging if I didn’t get food within minutes of wanting it. The need would come on so suddenly I would have to leave patient’s rooms to go eat at times.
- My go-to snacks were granola bars, crackers and caloric drinks (ginger ale, juice, smoothies)
- HERBAL TEA- calms the stomach, fills up the stomach (temporarily).
- VITAMIN B6– I take these ones which are sublingual melties (great bc you don’t have to take a pill and they work faster). These help with nausea. I usually took one per day, after my morning protein shake, but on bad days I took them in the afternoon too (just be mindful of dosing on the bottle).
- PREGNANCY LOZENGES- I used these at work all the time and they were really helpful. They do have B6 in them, so just watch how much you are taking if you also take the melties.
- Preggie Pop drops
- Pink Stork brand (they have a few flavors)
- Once the nausea wasn’t so bad, it still helped to be swallowing throughout the day to keep the lump-in-throat sensation away, so I also used Jolly Ranchers (though you could definitely find a healthier option if you wanted).
- ALOE VERA WATER– This is a good one. Tastes like plain water but it’s from aloe plants. It helps with acid reflux, bloating and overall indigestion. Instructions say to drink 2 oz at a time a few times per day, so one bottle lasts a while.
- NAUSEA RELIEF WRISTBANDS– These are for motion sickness but some have found them helpful for morning sickness too. I couldn’t tell too much if they really helped, but these are the ones I got.
- ESSENTIAL OILS- They can help with nausea and indigestion, as well as alleviate aversion to certain smells by smelling oils you like. I am a Young Living consultant, so feel free to reach out with questions or if you need access to oils. I believe strongly that therapeutic grade essential oils are by far the best, compared with cheap knock-offs.
- Peppermint supposedly helps with nausea. Can put wherever you’d put perfume or diffuse.
- Orange is a pleasant, fresh scent that can overcome smell aversions. Can wear or diffuse
- Digize (A Young Living product) helps with stomach upset and indigestion. A drop on the top of my belly and rubbed in clockwise, the direction of digestion.
- Ginger calms the stomach
- CBD has been used with chemo patients for nausea and is calming overall. It does not contain THC (except trace amounts to activate its effectiveness) and therefore is not a danger to the baby.
- AromaEase- is comforting and calming
- I’m sure there are more! Any tips I receive I will update here.
- HAZELWOOD AND AMBER NECKLACE– I have not tried this yet, but it is intriguing to me. I have an amber necklace because, besides supposedly helping teething babies, they are supposed to relieve symptoms caused by inflammation. I wear mine when I have neck pain. I just recently read about Hazelwood, though, which is supposed to improve the acid/alkaline balance in your body by absorbing extra acidity through the wood itself. Hey, I haven’t tried it yet, but desperation opens minds so I may be trying this (update: I never did but please let me know if you do)!
As I think of more items or receive feedback, I will add more tips! I figured there was no better time than while I was LIVING this to write about it. At time of first publishing, I am now 13 weeks pregnant with my 3rd. For me, it was worst during weeks 6-9, a bit better weeks 10-11 and notably better weeks 12-14. By the time I reached the second trimester, I have been lucky enough to feel much better all three pregnancies.
Be well and please don’t hesitate to comment with your tips!