Yesterday I posted my blog about body care tips for your pregnancy. Today’s blog is more about food and pain relief. Everyones pregnancy is different so again what worked for me may not work for you. Dr. Kappenman and the staff at Sanford Women’s health gave me lots of great recommendations before I needed any prescriptions.
Morning Sickness= Almost the death of me
By far this was my worst symptom. I spent the first four months of my pregnancy with my head in a toilet and even today at 6 months I will have the random day where I just throw up a few times. This is what got me through it:
- Unsalted crackers in the studio at work
- Lots of water
- Pony tails to hold my hair back 🙂
- In the beginning I would bring my make-up to work and would touch up every time I got sick but it just became too much of a hassle and I gave up. But if you’re a stronger person than me I would recommend bringing it with you.
- Get a haircut. Long hair gets in the toilet…
- Guacamole and Salsa were pretty much the only things that wouldn’t upset my stomach and somewhat healthy.
- Stay away from acidic foods or drinks. I found every time I had a smoothie with acid in it, it would come right back up. I still haven’t worked up the courage to drink a smoothie again. Thanks oranges!
- Sometimes your prenatal vitamins can make you sick so I always took them right before I went to bed.
Hemorrhoids= Almost the death of me again…
I tried to figure out away to deal with the pain without getting a prescription. These are some of the things that really helped me before I gave up and asked Dr. Kappenman for a prescription.
- Dr. Kappenman recommended sitting in warm baths which actually helped a lot. It relieves a lot of the pain and also gives you a chance to just relax.
- Witch hazel whipes were a natural way to get instant pain relief and keep the area clean.
- Metamucil helps keep the hemorrhoids away but doesn’t do much once you already have them.
Heartburn= Still might be the death of me…
- Tums! Taking too many can have some really negative side effects but when then burn hits and you feel like you might go into cardiac arrest it truly is the best relief. Just make sure you stay under the allotted amount your doctor tells you.
- Milk was good for instant pain relief…. Or ice cream!
- I found that some of the breathing exercises I took in prenatal yoga really helped with heartburn.
- Sleeping on my left side with my head raised.
- Eating smaller portions.
The Uncomfortable Baby Belly & Sleeping or Lack of Sleeping
I thought the sleepless nights are supposed to start after the baby comes. Not during your pregnancy.
- All the baby books say to sleep on your left side and I found that it was also the best position for keeping the heartburn away. If your like me and sleep every which way besides your left side than a pregnancy pillow will definitely benefit you! I use mine all the time. Get one that has a detachable arm so that you can sleep with it between your lefts.
- Don’t even try to do the zipper up on your jacket. You will feel like a swollen Oompa Loompa and you will look like it too. Get a zipper extension or do what I did and get a really long thick scarf and rock the, “I’m cool and casual with my jacket un zipped look”.
- Try not to drink a lot of water before bed because you will have to pee anywhere from 50 to 500 times a night.
Pelvic Pain= Bad but not Horrible
- Sometimes if it’s really bad I will sit on my yoga ball and bounce for 10 minutes and it slowly gets better.
- While your still able too.. STRETCH! Not only did the stretching help with the pelvic pain I had but it helped loosen me up so I didn’t feel stiff.
- My favorite stretches are the cat/cow and the simple stretch of touching your toes until your belly gets in the way.
Now if you have any great pregnancy tips for me PLEASE let me know I will try almost anything! Also hopefully some of these work for you. Even a little relief during pregnancy can feel like the world has been lifted off your shoulders!