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Tips for Dealing with Morning Sickness

I’m currently pregnant with my 4th child and “enjoying” all the 1st trimester joys of morning sickness. Luckily for me, my morning sickness (all day sickness) is only in the 1st trimester. I’m not sure what would happen in my house if it lasted any longer.

As I’m lying on the couch sick, I comfort myself with the fact that morning sickness is a good sign. Or it’s supposed to be. It means my baby is busy growing (i.e. making me sick). Doesn’t make me actually feel any better. It’s just nice to know.

With 3 kids and a pretty full schedule, I do often have to just muscle through the nausea, back pain, and exhaustion.

Though, by 4 I have gotten a little better at just rolling with it. If you’re struggling with morning sickness, here’s a few things that might help.

1. Find a good prenatal vitamin – I don’t mean find the one with the most iron or the biggest pill you can find. Find something that your body can stomach, and that actually helps you. I really struggle with this. I need a vitamin without iron and have you seen the amount of iron is most prenatal vitamins! I’ve resorted to taking children’s vitamins every couple of days because that was all I could handle.

Finally, after my 3rd pregnancy I discovered Premama Vitamins. They also have vitamins for fertility and lactation. You can get a flavorless powder that you mix in any drink (juice is recommended, I tried it in a carbonated beverage once and it foamed up and bubbled out of the cup and all over the counter!). Or you can get a citrus flavored powder.

Either one works great. It has all your folic acid, DHA, etc. and while it has some iron, it doesn’t have a ton. Plus, my morning sickness is actually less when I’m taking it. It’s the only prenatal vitamin I’ver ever taken that has helped me feel better.

This might not be the one for you, but if you’re struggling like I was because prenatal vitamins were so hard on my stomach, you should give this one a try. It’s making handling my morning sickness so much easier!

They’re available on Amazon and in most drug stores like CVS and Walgreens.

img_20160702_1822212702. Rest – I know you want to keep getting everything done. But listen to your body and get some extra sleep. I always have oodles of energy in the 2nd trimester to make up for my exhaustion 1st trimester.

A good prenatal vitamin can help some with the exhaustion. But, listen to your body and get some extra rest. And don’t feel bad about your messy house. You are growing a baby.

I find that taking some time during the day to just sit helps a lot. I’ll read a book, answer e-mails, work on my blog, etc. Anything that’s non-stressful. But just stopping and sitting for a few minutes here and there really helps.

3. Ginger, Lemon, Citrus – All 3 are great for helping settle an upset stomach. For me, Ice water with lemon is super helpful. Helps me stay hydrated and the lemon helps settle my stomach a bit.

I also like a ginger tea. It’s nice and warm and also helps me stay hydrated. You can get ginger chews as well if you’re not a fan of tea.

Oranges are great for digestion. Plus they have vitamin C and some fiber. You really can’t go wrong with these. Get the little mini oranges and you’ll have something perfect for a midnight snack or really a snack any time you’re needing a little something.

img_20160801_1224452474. Pace your eating – Take your time. You’ll do better if you don’t eat random large meals. Start your morning with a few crackers by your bed, make a cup of tea, etc. Something small. Then move on to breakfast. Oatmeal or something else easy on my stomach is my preference.

Keep healthy snacks on hand like celery sticks, peanut butter, cheese, or fruit. And snack on something good for you when you start feeling a little hungry. You might not eat as large a lunch or dinner as you did pre pregnancy because you’re snacking. Don’t worry about it. You honestly don’t need many extra calories the first trimester. Just focus on eating small meals with foods that are good for you.

And remember, there’s a tiny human growing inside you. Your body is working hard. So, don’t feel bad about taking it easy and listening to what your body needs.

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Caring for Myself in My First Trimester

Aside from the actual delivery. First Trimester is by far my least favorite part of pregnancy. I have morning sickness – really all day sickness – from about 4 weeks until week 13. And with 3 kids, homeschooling, and a small business, keeping up while I’m sick is a challenge to say the least.

This is my 4th pregnancy, and if there’s anything that I’ve learned about my first trimester it’s to give myself permission to just take it easy.

Here’s just a few ways I take care of myself – and of course the new little baby – during my first trimester.

  1. Extra Sleep – Something about the hormones, I’m way more tired than normal. As in 10 hours of sleep at night and a nap tired. Of course, the more tired I am, the more sick I feel, so if I want to get anything done, I do actually need to sleep. And, technically, I’m sleeping for me and the baby, and everyone knows that babies need lots of sleep.
  2. Special Snacks – Another fun thing about the first trimester. I’m hungry all the time. Because I get less sick if I perpetually snack (rather than eat all my food in 3 meals a day) I do go ahead and purchase snacks that I’m craving. This pregnancy I’m craving oranges and avocados (eaten separately), both snacks that are definitely good for me. I’m not actually craving any unhealthy snacks this time around (one pregnancy it was krispy kreme doughnuts) so I’m pretty much allowing myself to snack as much as I want on what I want. I do limit the unhealthy snacking to my normal snacking limits. It’s important to eat well.
  3. Frequent Snacking – I feel better if I snack frequently. So I keep nuts and/or granola bars in the car for when I need a snack while on the go. What I have depends on how many of my snacks my kids “stole”. My kids just love all this extra snacking! Normally, I don’t do this, but, in the interest of feeling well, it’s good for me to do.
  4. Relaxing – I like to be on the go and I like to be busy. I also really want to rearrange the kids bedrooms. But all that stuff is going to have to wait until the second trimester when I have the energy to do it. I do manage to keep the house picked up – most of the time – which I think is pretty good with 3 kids. I constantly have to remind myself that it’s perfectly ok to take a break and finish the laundry tomorrow (guess what I didn’t finish today). A lot of times relaxing just means that I’m sitting down working on my blog, catching up on e-mails, or reading a book. Just something that lets my body rest.
  5. Vitamins – For some reason I don’t handle multivitamins very well. They make me sick. So, combine morning sickness with prenatal vitamins making me sick, and well, let’s just say that every pregnancy so far I’ve just given up on the vitamins. Whenever I discover a new prenatal vitamin I try it out for a week (even when I’m not pregnant) just to see how I handle it, and it never goes well. This time around I found a brand called Premama that actually works for me. Horray. It does actually help some with the morning sickness and energy. So I’m finally able to get those extra vitamins that I’m supposed to have without making myself sick.
  6. Pregnancy Brain – So I explained the concept of pregnancy brain to my 8 and 5 year old. I was having a really bad day forgetting things. And now, I’ve basically been given a pass to forget any and everything the entire time I’m pregnant. If you have kids, I highly recommend you do this. It’s honestly a great way to get away with things and have them be ok with it.

So, Mommas, tell me in the comments below, what are some special things you’ve done for yourself during your pregnancy? Or tell me about your favorite food craving?

This #BloggersTalkingAbout series features amazing bloggers writing from the heart. Continue reading more by following these links. Loving Yourself by Joanne | Loving Yourself This Valentine’s Day by Traci | New Routine & New Doctor by Karen | Care For Yourself By Reducing Anxiety & Worry by Karen | Permission To Cry by Brandy | Caring For Myself In My First Trimester by Jenny. If you’re a mom/female blogger, join us in our group, Bodacious Bloggers

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Did I Brush My Hair Today?

So, we all have those days. Actually, I’d say more than 50% of the time is one of “those mornings”. You know, the morning where you start to get ready, get interrupted, try again, get interrupted again, try again, and somewhere around 2 when you need to run an errand you really can’t remember if you brushed your teeth, washed your face, or brushed your hair, and while you seem to have clothing on, you don’t really remember how that came about.

Like, this morning, I put in a movie for the kids and hopped in the shower, hoping the toddler didn’t notice my absence for a little while. Well, of course, he heard me turn on the shower, so he appeared in the bathroom hot chocolate in one hand, and waffle in the other, crying about my absence before I even had time to get my hair wet. He also felt the need to supervise the entire shower time, lest I somehow disappear from sight while in the shower and am never heard from again. Hmmm…that is tempting…

Or, like two days ago, I got up, and the two littlest were up, so I gave them hot chocolate and turned on their morning show then went back to the bedroom to get ready. I was halfway through changing out of my pjs when one of them appeared in need of breakfast, so I finished dressing and then fixed them breakfast (also had to hunt for my coffee around this point because I couldn’t remember where I’d left it). Once they were eating, I returned to my room and brushed my hair, my oldest woke up at this point and needed an unspecified item for breakfast, so I had to help her look through the fridge and pick out a yogurt. I returned to the bathroom to brush my teeth and in the midst of this little man who had finished his waffle decided to steal his sister’s. Which did not make her happy, so I had to go make another set of waffles, at which point I got distracted on getting schoolwork started for the kids, and a few other things I had to do for the morning (like cleaning the kitchen, picking up toys, checking e-mail, etc.). Baby boy went down for his nap, we finished school, and around noon I decided that since I couldn’t remember washing my face, I should probably go do that, just in time for the toddler to wake up for lunch…

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Lots of Theories

I commented to my husband the other day that first time parents (and those without children) have a lot of theories but experienced parents have no theories at all, just lots of practical advice. He thought it was funny.

But, really, it’s true. We share all our helpful tips for surviving life with 3 or more little kids and laugh at each other’s stories and no one feels compelled to tell anyone else how they could have done it better, we’ve all been there and we know how it is. We may give practical suggestions if we have them and if we don’t have any practical suggestions we just laugh and share our own funny story.

For example, I was complaining about how hard it is to get the straws clean on those Take N Toss cups with straws because the straws fall through the silverware basket in the dishwasher. She pointed out that she just leaves the straw in the cup lid and sticks them on the top rack in the dishwasher…brilliant! Why didn’t I think of that? That just saved me 5 minutes washing dishes every day! Actually, my middle child likes to chew on straws so she ruined all my straws by chewing on them. I just threw them away and started buying the red striped disposable straws. I notice when I was at my friends house the other day that she has also switched to the disposable straws, she must have had the same problem I did. You’ll note though, not once did we discuss our theories for getting our child to stop chewing on all the straws, we just switched to disposable. Very practical.

And the question of how to keep your kids from waking you up at 5 am convinced that it’s morning. I tell my oldest 2 that they can’t get me up until it’s light outside. The’ll play barbies in their room for an hour waiting for it to get light and then come get me and ask for hot chocolate, and a host of snacks for breakfast. There’s no, “you just tell them to stay in their room and punish them when they don’t” talk, we discuss how we explain to our 3 yr old in a way that they can understand when it’s considered “morning” and they are allowed to wake us. One of my friends uses a timer on her kids lamps and when the lamp turns on they can get up. Another mom just sends them back to bed if they get up too early. And someone else just has them join her in her bed until it’s time to get up. But, not one of us is convinced that our way is better than the others, it’s just what works best for us and our kids.

And potty training, we all just smile and nod. So which candy did your child prefer? Did you use a sticker chart? You still using pullups at night? And then we launch into our most embarrassing/funny stories thus far. My kids love public restrooms. If they even think there might be one at a store they instantly have a need to go to the bathroom. The other day, I was shopping with the kids and headed into a dressing room. My girls were ecstatic, I had, without being asked decided to go into a public restroom. I had to leave my two sweaters with the nice ladies running the dressing room and take my kids to the bathroom and then come back to the dressing room and try on my sweaters. Now, I don’t try on a lot of clothing with all three kids along so up until this point the girls had not realized that there was such a thing as a dressing room at a store. According to my kids, next to public restrooms, dressing rooms are the greatest thing ever invented by stores. And our Sam’s has a child sized sink in their bathroom. Thanks a lot guys… I have to plan an extra 20 minutes in Sam’s just so the kids can go play in the sink. (they always have to urgently go to the bathroom the minute we step into Sam’s).

And the number of times our kids have removed their clothing at inappropriate times, and said things we just didn’t want them to say…don’t even get me started…we all just smile, laugh, and know that that’s just how life goes.