Managing Nausea During PregnancyMorning sickness doesn't just happen in the morning! For a lot of women (myself included) nausea during pregnancy is an all day treat. The fancy medical term for it is hyperemesis gravidarum--whatever you call it, it is NOT fun! For many women nausea during pregnancy is just one of those things that goes with the territory. Hopefully, it will lessen for you after the first trimester. While nothing will completely take away your morning sickness, several things can help to lessen it at least for short periods of time. Most of these remedies you can find at your local health food store. Red Raspberry Leaf infusion --- See how to make an infusion here. --- Get your Red Raspberry Leaves and all your herbs as fresh as possible. Teabags in a box are okay, but the fresher you get your herbs the more potent they will be. Mail order herbs can be good. If you can get them locally--even better! I purchased several batches of RRL from my midwife who is an herbalist and grows her own herbs. The taste was phenomenal compared to that of herbs from the store. I have also purchased from Mountain Rose Herbs and have had good experiences with them. They have a huge selection of quality organic herbs as well as skincare products to choose from. I have used RRL in teabag form, in loose leaf form from a company on line, and I have purchased locally. The fresher loose leaf herbs are definitely preferable to anything in teabag form that has been sitting on a shelf for a long period of time. Peppermint or Spearmint infusion Anise or Fennel infusion Ginger Eat ginger candies,or drink ginger beer (it has no alcohol). Reed's makes excellent ginger candy and ginger beer. You can also make an infusion with the root. Adding ginger to your food is a simple way to use ginger. It goes well with Thai food and other Asian cuisines. Yummy, if you like the spiciness of ginger. Keep your blood sugar even. This can be one of the best ways to deal with nausea during pregnancy. Low blood sugar even when not pregnant can cause nausea. Eat small meals often. Snacks like crackers and cheese or toast and peanut butter help to keep your blood sugar from dipping. Make sure they do not contain hydrogenated oils and eat the healthiest bread you can find. Whole grain and sprouted breads are best. Make sure to eat breakfast. Always carry snacks with you. If you need to--carry candies that you can pop in your mouth at will. You may not feel like eating things that are healthy. Many healthy foods may sound very unpleasant and might make you more nauseated. I ate a lot of Honey Nut Cheerios is my first trimester--not something I would normally do, and not something that is particularly healthy! Eat as well as you can at this stage. For some women getting anything down is a challenge. Exercise Exercise can be very good at quelling morning sickness--if you can coax yourself to get out of bed or off the couch that is! Try it and see if it makes a difference. Some people swear that vigorous exercise such as running makes a big difference. Apple cider vinegar One teaspooon of apple cider vinegar (of the good organic raw variety like Braggs) in 8 oz. of warm water. Homeopathic remedies Ipecac 30x, Nux Vomica 6x, or Cannabis 30x. I have tried the Ipecac 30x and interestingly enough it works very well for nausea when I am not pregnant, but not so well for my pregnancy morning sickness. Sour sour sour --this is what worked for me and what I craved. Lemons, oranges, sour green apples, and lemon drops. Wild Yam Root You can use an infusion or a tincture of 1/2 a dropper full twice daily.
Use one ounce of dried leaves (usually two or three handfuls) in a quart jar (a glass quart canning jar works well). Fill the jar with boiling water, cover, and let it steep for four hours. Sometimes I let mine steep for eight hours with no problems. |
