Morning Sickness (which is really a misnomer, as nausea due to pregnancy can occur
anytime) is most likely due to the rapidly shifting hormones your body is experiencing
combined with the natural rhythms of energy available to your body via blood sugar
content. Nausea is most commonly experienced from about 6 weeks to 14 weeks of pregnancy as your body ramps up hormone production to help your baby grow while the placenta is establishing itself fully.
To that end, the most important thing you can do to help alleviate the morning
sickness pattern of nausea, vomiting, and further nausea, is to try to keep your blood
sugar levels on as even of a keel as you can manage.
If you are unable to keep anything, including fluids, down, or are vomiting 10 or
more times per day, you may have hyperemesis gravidarum. Please call your midwife ASAP if you
suspect you have HG, as you may need IV rehydration and other interventions beyond
what is suggested below.
To Lessen or Prevent the Nausea/Vomiting Cycle:
Eat small meals often. This is by far the best remedy. Plan to put something nutritious
in your mouth at a minimum every 2 hours, even hourly if necessary. There should be a
balance of carbohydrates, fats, and protein. If you’re completely nauseous and simply
can’t handle the idea of anything other than crackers, then go ahead and eat a few
crackers. But 20 minutes later, eat a half a banana with peanut butter on it. Then in an
hour eat a Greek yogurt, then an hour later eat some grapes and almonds, etc. The goal is
to keep your blood sugar levels as even as possible. Keep nuts and dried fruit or fruit
juice by your bed and when you wake up in the middle of the night, eat a small snack.
Take a B vitamin complex supplement. Vitamins B1 and B6 are especially important.
Increasing iron intake either through foods (dark leafy greens, red meat) or a supplement
may also help.
To Deal with Nausea already Present:
- Sip Red Raspberry Leaf, Pregnancy, or Mint Tea. If hot tea isn’t your thing, try brewing the tea, then freezing it into ice cubes and sucking on them.
- Ginger: fresh ginger tea, candied ginger, and ginger capsules can help settle a queasy stomach. There are multitudes of ginger candies that can be more palatable than straight ginger.
- Lemon and other sour flavors can be helpful. Preggie Pops have a variety of sour flavors that include vitamin B6 in the candy.
- Wild Yam Root Tincture: take a dropperful in a glass of hot or cold mint tea twice a day.
- “Over the Counter Diclegis” is achieved by taking 10 mg Vitamin B6 (pyroxidine) and 10 mg Unisom (Doxylamine Succinate). This is sold as the prescription drug Diclegis, but the two ingredients are sold over the counter and can simply be taken together for the same effect.
- Antihistamines: with few exceptions like the prescription drug Zofran, all anti-nausea medications are antihistamines. To that end, over the counter Benadryl (diphenhydramine), Unisom (Doxylamine Succinate), Dramamine (dimenhydrinate), and Dramamine Light (meclazine) are all okay to use to help with severe nausea.