Coping Advice

Hi A.,

The best thing I found for nausea when I was pregnant was Mint Medley Tea (Bigelow brand in box). I tried it out of desperation, and it worked miracles on my nausea!! I drank it hot, with sugar to sweeten it a bit.
If you decide to try it, I hope it works as good for you! Take care,
V.

The Seabands didn't really help with my nausea, but some people swear by them. What did seem to help were these little pregnancy peppermints. I think they sell them at most maternity stores. They were called Belly Mints or something like that. You might also try the Preggie Pops. They're supposed to be really good.

Sour Patch Kids...I don't know why, but sour things "distracted" the nausea feeling for me. Try it if you need to!

A.,

If you don;t have a friend or family around who can help you in the evenings, perhaps there is a responsible older child who could be a "mother's helper" for an hour or two an evening, or however long you would need/like the mother's helper to be there. When I was pregnant with my second, my first had just turned 3, but she still was active and needed her mom, and I was exhausted. I had a sitter come a couple times a week, in the mid-afternoon (my daughter no longer napped), just so I could take a nap. Otherwise, my day was shot.

Good luck!

HI,

I know what you are going through. Have you trieed eating crackers with a glass of milk? That helped me the most. I will keep thinking of tips its been awhile scince I been pregnant my oldest just turned 13teen my second is 11 and my son is 7 so as youcan see it has been awhile.
Hope you find something to help you with your problem.

Good luck,
Aileene

Sounds like you're having a boy! I had the same problem. I was able to cope with the nausea by exchanging it for diarrhea. I ate ~3 bananas a day--1/2 at a time to help. Also, I drank Carnation Instant Breakfast--it's always helped me get my nutrients and keep the nausea at bay.

But small meals every 3-4 hours was the best thing. I wouldn't get too full and throwing up didn't feel so horrible!

I would say the best bet for your 14mo is to get her to have a little independent ritual/time for herself in the evening and get a good bedtime routine in place so that as things go along, they will get easier.

Good luck!

My first 2 are 14 months apart exactly and my 3rd will be about that as well. With all of my pregnancies I have had morning/afternoon/evening sickness for the entire duration, so I can relate. Also my husband works 16 hours a day so he is not around often. With that said...

I borrowed a mattress off of a single bed and cleared my living room floor, since I found laying down helped with the discomfort. We put blankets under the mattress with different colors sticking out and on each color was a specific game. I would tell patrick to find the "insert color" blanket and we would play "insert game on blanket" By the time I got resituated to face that game he was there too and loved running around the mattress to see if he could find it before me. Usually he got tired out and layed down next to me on the floor. We had blocks on one blanket, a 10 piece puzzle on another, one of the boxes with the different shaped holes on it and a few other things he loved best. We also had a blanket setup with duct tape racing stripes and he would push a toy car to me and try to keep it in the stripes and then I would have to push it back. we made a big deal when he did it and a really big deal when he did better than mommy and I would always ask for him to show me how he did it so well. He would run to his end and do it then run back to my side and help me. Wore him out pretty good.

It was a big deal for him that I was on the floor because I knew if I had to shut my eyes for a second and he climbed up with me there really wasn't a fall and also if I needed to head to the potty it was a quick line.

Hope this helps, it is always hard when you are exausted and sick and they just want to play and love you up.

AH how I feel what your going thru, my girls are 20 months apart, and I remember the neausa the second time around, my oldest would pretend to throw up in the topilet too after she seen me doing it LOL.. she was only 14 thru 17 months when she did that) the imitating stage LOL. So my suggestion on the nights when your alone is to try to confine to one room, if you can out gates up or what not, and maybe lay on the couch and have crackers at hand. I would suggest to sit with your child and do some things, like maybe lay her there with you and read to her the fun open the flap books or touchy/feely books, or you could also venture into letting her use big fat crayons to color a picture with mom, etc. if you have to lay on the floor. But whatever you do, include her. They love finding new things, so perhaps you can find some odd things around the house that she could play with that are not breakable and safe fo her and fill a basket with them and let her explore them, it would be hours of fun for her and you could talk to her while she's doing it asking what each thing is etc. I did use the bands for the wrists the second time around and it worked for me, as well as laying and nibbling slowly on crackers and not moving too quickly. My dr did presribe some meds for it but to me they were to risky so I skipped out on them, for my unborn's safety. And just dealt with it, I did end up losing 25lbs with the second one, but honestly I didn't loose that much after my first one that I should have after she was born, so I did end up gaining 15 lbs back the rest of the pregnancy so it worked out and she was bigger than her sister! Hopefully it will be over soon for you, I remember those days, not fun at all.

Hi A., I'm so sorry you're so sick. I'm pregnant with my third and I have morning/evening/night sickness my entire pregnancies. I've tried everything - ginger, lemon water, crackers, B6, sea bands, etc. - and some helped a little but nothing worked 100% of the time or was super effective. My doctor prescribed Zofran for me and it helped me survive - especially when I had other little ones to take care of. I didn't need a huge dose and it doesn't entirely take away the nausea but it gave me the ability to take care of my kids and took away that overwhelming urge to vomit. I felt like I could actually function. I've taken it off and on throughout my three pregnancies and it has been a life saver. (Of course, there are always baby einstein videos for your toddler - I just had to let go of the fact that my kids were watching more videos than normal and tell myself it was only for a short period so I could get through a pregnancy and in the long run they benefited too since they were getting a sibling for life.) Best of luck!

I think you've already received some GREAT advice here. I have O. small thing to add...I was told to eat a couple of crackers BEFORE I got out of bed in the morning and to get up out of bed SLOWLY. Keep that in mind. My niece was also told to take Flintstone vitamins because her pre-natals were adding to her queasiness. Good luck and congratulations!

With #3 I was sick all day long until about 14 weeks. I took B6, I forget the dosage, either 50 or 75 mgs. I had to buy the 25 mg pills online since the stores only sold 50 mgs. I also got a prescription from my dr for when I was really bad. The B6 didnt get rid of the sickness completely, but made me able to function a little bit.

Good luck! I hope your "morning" sickness subsides soon! I know it's NO FUN!

No to morning sickness tea was the remedy which worked wonder and settled my nausea which was killing me.

hi A.. im sorry you arent feeling well :o( im sure its hard to keep your little girl entertained and think about yourself too. is there anyone who can come over and help you during that time, like a mom or sister? just wondering. i will tell you, nothing worked for me with the morning sickness. it was all day and night. each meal, smells, all sorts of things. i missed so much work. luckily it was with my first pregnancy so i didnt have a little one to worry about. i threw up for 5 months straight. every day. no exxagerating. they put me on compazine, which is an anti nausea medication they say is safe to take during pregnancy. and i had frequent trips to the er for re-hydration where they put you on a drip b/c i was so dehydrated from getting sick. i couldnt keep anything down. nothing helped. they say eat crackers before you get out of bed, ginger is supposed to help? the only thing that worked for me is i stopped taking my pre natal vitamins. no lie... 3 days later i stopped throwing up and never did the rest of my pregnancy. they had me take flinstone vitamins and i got a prescription for folic acid which didnt bother me. i was like a new person then! the weird thing was.. after i gave birth, i was so scared to go back on my prenatal vitamins b/c i was breastfeeding, but they didnt bother me then. i guess it has to due with your hormone levels during pregnancy. but they never made me sick once i wasnt pregnant anymore. im not sure if its the vitamins in your case, but i just thought i would share my story and hope it helps you! good luck and i hope you feel better soon!

I still only have 1 bundle of joy, but I had nausea almost the entire pregnancy with him. Preggie Pops! The lozenges are much better than the actual lollipops. The lozenges are sour rasberry, sour orange, and sour lemon and they did the trick for me to keep the nausea at bay. I was able to find them at Motherhood/Mimi Maternity stores.

Hi A.

I suffered from hyperemesis with my last 2 pregnancies. If you are unable to keep anything down for 24 hours call your doctor right away, IV fluids will help so much at that point because of dehydration. Have you tried any medications? I know many people don't like to take medications, but sometimes they are necessary. Talk to you doctor about a prescription for something for the nausea and vomiting.
I am sure you have heard all the advice, small meals frequently, bland foods, fluids, fluids, fluids. I tried everything - from ginger root tea, sea bands to medications and nothing helped me. It is soo hard taking care of yourself and a little one. If there is anyone who can watch her that is probably what you need right now. Otherwise, save the evenings for her favorite videos and cartoons and indulge her so you can lay on the sofa and take it easy. There is no easy way of getting through it. My son used to follow me around with a bucket mimicking the vomiting sound when I was pregnant with number 2, this time he was more a concerned little fellow and wanted to hug me to make me feel better. I feel you pain. Hang in there.

We had a slightly different issue (I was on bedrest) but we had several young (age 10-13) girls in the neighborhood who were DYING to get some experience babysitting. I spoke with their parents first, set a low rate (so they would be responsible and show up) of $3 dollars an hour and scheduled them each once per week. They worked to gain experience and so they would have a reference when they began actual "babysitting" for others. The girls were very serious and excited to have such an important job (all under my watchful eye, of course). It worked out REALLY well. Our younger child is 2 now and we have two of these girls who have continued as occasional babysitters now for both children. Toddlers are such a handful. Good luck!

I feel your pain (and your nausea!). I had bad morning sickness with all 3, but dealing with my 2nd pregnancy was really hard because of my toddler. The best was when I was throwing up in the toilet, and he came in, leaned over the toilet, and imitated me. I didn't know whether to continue vomiting, or laugh. The small meals seems right on target. I also drank a lot of herbal tea and nibbled on crackers which I shared with my son when I was feeling sick. That seemed to soothe him and he wasn't up my butt so much when I had to run to the bathroom. Good luck!!

I was in the same situation with my last pregnancy. My husband was gone during that time and I was very sick. Preggie Pop Drops really helped me. You can get them at Maternity stores. I don't know how you feel about candy, but they really made me feel better and they taste good! Get some rest!!

Try to find a babysitter or a mother's helper to come over to play with your child while you deal with the effects of the pregnancy. A neighborhood child who may not be old enough to babysit, can still play with your daughter with you in the house. You train a future babysitter, and your daughter has attention. Win, win. D. Fletcher, www.mytotalhealthcoach.com

Try eating and drinking seperately..eat first then sip some weak sweet hot tea after. It helped me. Also, try Ginger tea or candy and Lemon water. Those also helped with the queasiness. I've also heard that preggie pops work but I haven't tried them myself.

You could try to structure the evening with your daughter so that there is less chaos. While you are feeling better earlier in the day try pulling out a few things for her to do and preparing for the evening. Crayons and paper, reading books, blocks, etc. Try to find things that she can sit with you can do so that you can sit or lie down next to her. You should not let her play with these things during the day so that they become a special treat in the evenings. Or you could invite a different relative/friend over each night to visit with her while you sit and relax.

Hi. What I did was sip on ginger tea. You can get the tea bags at heath food stores like gnc. I mad it pipping hot and put A little bit of honey in it. Also try drinking flavored sletzer water. sounds bad but it worked for me. Dont worry you will get through it. I know how you feel I got prenent when my son was 14 months old. they are 2 years apart now. good like hope you feel better soon

Hi A.
I am also about eight weeks preganant and definatly struggling from the "night" sickness verse the traditional morning sickness. I have four other girls and being sick at the time that I am expected to be giving baths, reading bedtime stories and putting them all to bed is killing me! I have become a cracker snacker but am not sure that is really helping me! My midwife told me to take my prenatals at night instead of in the morning, so you may want to try that out! If you find a solution- let me know!!!!!
Good luck!

unfortunately,every pregnancy is different. at least you know your hormone level is good. try some ginger, i was told this was good. after the first trimester,it will get better. a lot of things made me feel naseau my first trimester. once i hit about 14 weeks, i started to feel better.

I was in the same boat. I just had my second baby...so you WILL get through it! I found that as long as I was sucking on something, the nausea was 75 times better and I could deal with it. I could have bought stock in life savers and was getting lots of sugar, but figured, I was loosing a lot too! Also, Whole foods sells real ginger beer that helps too! Good luck and congrats!

I too was extremely sick in my pregnancy. The only thing that helped somewhat was a wristband (not the seabands) which looked like a watch. It had dials on it that you could control how much of a pulse it sent to ytell our brain to basically block the nausea. You put conductivity gel on your wrist (which is included) and then the "watch". My OB doctor actually recommended it so it is safe. It is expensive, it cost about $80.00 but was well worth it. At the time (7 yrs ago), the ony place that sold it was at the pharmacy in the Glassboro Shoprite. Sorry, I can't remember the exact name but perhaps if you explain it to the pharmacist, they will know. It was kept behind the counter. Hope this helps!

Hi A.! I am so sorry for your troubles! I agree with Amy M, vitamin B6 was what my OB's nurse practitioner recommended instead of a prescribed medicine. She said 25 (or 50) mgs up to 3 to 4 x's a day. The body will flush out anything unsuded. Take with or without a meal and drink lots of fluids (little sips). Feel better! Hugs xoxox L.

I think you kind of have to find the trick that will work for you. For me, sometimes crackers and ginger ale helped. I, also, found that I had gestational diabetes with my first (and then again with my 2nd and 3rd). I found that when my sugar made a major fluctuation the nausea got a lot worse. Try to keep track of it a little to see if there is anything consistent about when you get it (other than all the time ;) ). It may be that you are getting nauseous 3 hours after eating a meal. Or it could be 40 minutes after eating something really sugary. It could be tied either to a big drop in sugar (when you eat something really sugary, your sugar will jump up really high and then it will bottom out). It could also be tied to a really high blood sugar level. Or it could have nothing to do with your sugar levels. It is all worth checking into. If it is tied to your sugar levels, then you know that eating a small snack at a certain time after each meal may stave off the nausea.

Anyhow, I've also heard that sipping tea or some other drink throughout the day can help. Sometimes, deep breathing can stave off a vomiting fit caused by the nausea.

Anyhow, good luck. I know that having to chase a little one while dealing with this can really be hard. Unfortunately for me, with my first 2 pregnancies I had morning sickness all nine months. My 3rd pregnancy I wasn't nearly as sick. I still had morning sickness throughout the pregnancy but it was much easier to deal with than the other 2 pregnancies. I hope that my experience helps you a little.

I've had horrible "morning" sickness all day with all three of my pregnancies. I used Sea Bands and they helped enough that I never took them off, because it would get worse, but still didn't totally solve the problem. Everyone says ginger tea and dried ginger, but I don't like ginger at all, so I couldn't go that route. With this last pregnancy a midwife told me that there is some question if people who are naturally deficient in B12 may be more likely to have morning sickness. Either way, extra B12 can't hurt, so she suggested taking it daily. I got it at GNC and it seemed to help. I didn't start it til I was about 11 weeks pregnant, but I was sick til about 17 weeks with my other pregnancies, so I think it helped (versus the morning sickness passing on it's own). Good luck!

A totally different tack: how early can you put your toddler to bed? (Not because you're avoiding her, it's good for them to have an early bedtime anyway--a new study just came out that showed that kids under 3 who sleep less than 12 hours a day are twice as likely to become obese) If she's asleep by 7 or 7:30, you'll be free to take care of yourself...Good luck!