Kate is just 7 weeks pregnant and already seems overwhelmed by her pregnancy symptoms of exhaustion and morning sickness.
“I am only 7 weeks pregnant and I have begun to feel so tired all the time. The other day at work, I had quite a hard time and found myself longing to just put my head of my desk for a few minutes. Of course I fought this impulse for fear of falling fast sleep, only to be awakened by a co-worker. I am concerned because I am planning on working right up until the baby is born and at the moment I just don’t see how I’m going to make it. I’ve heard that expectant mums get tired but feeling this way so early makes me wonder how in the world am I going to keep my eyes open for the rest of my pregnancy. I have been getting about 7 hours of sleep and it still doesn’t seem to help… I really don’t know what do…are there certain foods I should be eating for more energy? Additional vitamins maybe…other than the prenatal ones I’m already taking? I plan to do my usual workout each day but I hardly ever manage to do it and end up on the sofa sleeping instead. As if the exhaustion wasn’t enough, I’m suffering from nausea as well. I don’t know why they call it morning sickness because it happens to me all day long. I really haven’t been eating much and I think this might add to my exhaustion. I’ve been told that these symptoms are normal during pregnancy but would love to know how long they’ll last for. I don’t think I can take another 7 months of this. I might as well just stay in bed for the duration of my pregnancy”.
We asked all our members to fill in a quick survey and we found that Kate’s not alone! The results of our morning sickness survey reveal that 63% of respondents have faced some kind of pregnancy nausea ranging from mild sickness just lasting a few weeks to severe hyperemesis requiring hospitalisation and a drip.
Of those surveyed who did experience morning sickness, the vast majority reported their nausea ending before 20 weeks. There is hope for those who may be currently suffering morning sickness and wondering if it will ever end…unless you are unfortunate enough to be like one of the 10% of morning sickness sufferers surveyed who coped with nausea for the entire duration of their pregnancies.
Remedies for pregnancy nausea ranged from sucking on mints to steering clear of strong smelling air fresheners but the majority of those who responded reported some success with eating little and often and keeping busy to try and distract themselves from the feelings of sickness. Eating sweets helped a number of sufferers, particularly sugary or fizzy sweets and ginger was also reported to have some beneficial effects.
Here are some of the advice our members gave Kate:
“Force yourself to try and eat something to line your stomach” – Stephanie, Scotland
“I’ve tried all sorts of things and have found the following things helpful (but not cures): wearing seasick bands, drinking cooled boiled water as it's soothing, eating ginger biscuits in bed and nibbling them throughout the day, drinking warm (not hot) ginger tea, eating little and often” – Rachel, Switzerland
“Eat crackers or plain biscuits and have a cup of tea before getting out of bed” – Karen, Scotland
“Eating sugary sweets helps. Fizzy jelly sweets are the best!” – Beth, Scotland
Overall, it appears that morning sickness is extremely common during pregnancy but with a few strategies it can be manageable in most cases!