Morning Sickness

The first important thing about morning sickness is that it is not limited to mornings. In fact it can be evening sickness or all day sickness.

Some women do not realise they are pregnant because they think morning sickness is just limited to mornings.

The curious thing about morning sickness is that it is a pregnancy symptom with no real reason as to why it occurs. Not every mother-to-be experiences morning sickness.

For those of us who do, it affects us in different ways. What are morning sickness symptoms?

  • You may have a general sick feeling in your stomach
  • The sick feeling may make you want to wretch but you are not being physically sick
  • You are being physically sick

The sickness may calm down after 12 weeks because this is generally when the pregnancy hormones have settled down relatively. However, some women experience sickness throughout their pregnancy.

Why does it happen?
  • The huge increase in hormones during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy can leave you feeling sick
  • Upon waking in the morning, your stomach is empty and the hormones are in full swing as your body gets active. This is a main reason why feeling sick is more intense in the morning
  • Your heightened sense of smell (see Smelling) could make you feel nauseous

Recommendations

  • Listen to your body and eat what you feel like eating. Even if it is chips and bread!
  • Eat small amounts and slowly. Experiment with different foods in the morning. Perhaps some dried toast at first. My personal favourite was sipping Fanta. Most mornings I couldn’t face eating but small sips of Fanta made me feel slightly energised and not sick.
  • Don’t put pressure on yourself. You can make up for it afterwards when you start to feel like eating properly again.
  • Do your best to continue with everyday life. Distraction is good. With my second child, I had to continue as I was looking after him as well. I remember giving him his breakfast and then turning around to wretch into the kitchen sink on some mornings!

The hardest part is hiding morning sickness from work colleagues and friends, if you are waiting until the 12 week mark before telling people.

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