If your pregnancy was anything like mine, the first trimester is brutal! I breezed through this trimester my first pregnancy with nothing more than some fatigue. But this time…. it’s been a whole different ball game. The minute I turned six weeks I had crippling all day nausea. It felt like there was no end in sight, and it was definitely frustrating. Pregnancy is such a beautiful thing and I really wanted to enjoy it, but I felt miserable pretty much 24/7. I’m not going to lie, nothing I tried made me feel fantastic, but when I combined different tactics and stayed consistent with it, I did notice an improvement.
I want to share some of the things that helped me survive the first trimester. And I promise you, you will start feeling better eventually, and at the end of the day when you hold your sweet little baby for the first time all of the negative symptoms you experienced will be worth it!
Ginger or Peppermint
Usually one of these two options will help you feel a bit better. If you find that you have a warmer constitution (run warmer, have a temper) then you will probably feel best with peppermint. Otherwise, ginger is a great one. You can diffuse either of these in an oil diffuser, drink them as a tea, or keep some candies on hand for a pick me up throughout the day. When I was really feeling sick during the first trimester I would drink a cup of ginger tea in the afternoon and again in the evening, and I always had ginger chews on hand (you can buy ginger chews at most major grocery stores).
Keep Hydrated
This is such an important one, and one that is so easily overlooked. You need to up your water intake during pregnancy as your body has more blood than normal to provide nutrients to your baby. Staying hydrated can also help prevent unwanted pregnancy symptoms like hemorrhoids, UTIs, and headaches. Make sure to keep water with you to sip on throughout the day so you never get too thirsty. I swear I felt the worst when I wasn’t keeping up on my hydration. If you live somewhere really warm it can also be helpful to add in some electrolytes in your water. I like the nuun electrolyte tablets that dissolve in your drink.
Sour flavors
For some reason citrus really helped me when I was feeling nauseous, and I’ve also heard this from both friends and patients. I craved lemon water in the first trimester and sipping on it helped a lot with the nausea.
Small Frequent High Protein Meals
Never allowing myself to get hungry was so so so important for me during the first trimester (this is actually still true in the second trimester). I didn’t have a big appetite when my nausea was at the worst, but constant snacking definitely helped. You need more protein during pregnancy and sufficient protein intake can help keep your blood sugar stabilized (drops in blood sugar will cause dizziness, fatigue, and nausea). I found that keeping small high protein snacks available throughout the day was really helpful in terms of how I felt. The minute I started feeling hungry, I would feel absolutely horrible. That’s why I tried to always make sure I had small protein rich foods available for snacking.
Some of my go-to snacks are:
Nut butter with apple slices (Wild Friends Almond Cashew Super Butter is my favorite)
String cheese
Raw veggies with hummus
Go Macro Bars (my favorite flavor is peanut butter and chocolate chip)
Roasted Chickpeas (Sprouts has a bunch of options)
Vitamin B6 and Unisom
This combination was honestly a life saver for me. Vitamin B6 is one of your basic B vitamins that’s included in most prenatal and multi-vitamins. Sometimes a higher dose than what’s included can be effective at reducing morning sickness. Unisom is a sleep aid that has been shown to be very safe during pregnancy, but make sure you get the tablets, not the gels.
The general recommended dose:
10-25mg of B6 every 8 hours (when you wake up, after lunch, and before bed)
12.5-25mg of Unisom every 8 hours. Keep in mind that Unisom is a sleep aid and can make you drowsy, so start by just taking it before bed and that may provide enough relief for you.
***Ask your doctor or midwife before starting any supplements or medications during pregnancy.
Acupuncture
Acupuncture is amazing for morning sickness and can really help improve your quality of life. Check out an acupuncturist in your area and try a few treatments to decide if it helps. You can also try the sea sickness bands that can be bought at most stores. The bands are designed to apply pressure to an acupuncture point that is commonly used for nausea, and I found them to be helpful.
Rest
Sometimes the best thing you can do for your body is to just get extra rest. Pregnancy can be really taxing, your body is working in overdrive all the time to grow a little human. It’s normal to feel more fatigue, especially during the first and third trimesters. If you have the chance, take that afternoon snooze, even if you only have a free twenty minutes. Go to bed early and sleep in a bit if it’s available.
What things did you find to be the most helpful for surviving the first trimester?
These are great tips! My first pregnancy I was sick almost all day and my second was rough but not quite as bad.
It’s the worst when you feel that sick because it feels like it’s never going to end!