Everything You Need To Know About Morning Sickness

To the layman, morning sickness happens as soon as a woman gets pregnant and it occurs as soon as she wakes up, hence the name “morning sickness.” But are these facts? Let’s find out in this exposé on everything you need to know about Morning Sickness.

1. It’s not really a morning thing

The name “morning sickness” is a right misnomer. It doesn’t occur only in the mornings, it also occurs in the afternoon and the evening too. Now, this must really be a worrisome experience.

2. Triggers

Morning sickness is triggered by various conditions including hormonal increase, stress, strong smell and a sensitive stomach. Fatigue and genetics are also major role players in the occurrence and severity of morning sickness.

3. It’s not a standard pregnancy symptom

Contrary to popular belief, it’s not every pregnant woman out there that experiences morning sickness. It’s not also every woman that feels morning sickness that feels it the same way. Some women don’t feel these symptoms at all while some feel it more than others.

4. Differences in response to hormonal changes

People are different and respond differently in a given situation. Some women don’t respond to hormonal changes at all. Some respond more than others and that’s why morning sickness is not experienced by every pregnant woman. It’s also why some women only feel nausea, some feel nausea and vomit little while others vomit all through the day.

5. Morning sickness: a defence mechanism

Although the reports aren’t conclusive, studies point to the fact that morning sickness may be the body’s way of protecting the growing fetus from unwelcome food eaten by the mother. The food may not be necessarily “poisonous”, it’s just that the baby’s digestive system is not in the mood for such food.

6. The season of the sickness

In most cases, women start feeling the symptoms of morning sickness shortly after the first month of pregnancy. Some start a week earlier. The symptoms carry on, peaking around the second month. From the ninth week, it starts diminishing until sometime between the third month, give or take. Like we mentioned earlier, women are different, so don’t swear by these time line projections.

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7. Prevention vs coping method

For those who experience morning sickness, there’s no way to prevent it from occurring. You can only cope with it by reducing the occurrence/severity of the symptoms. There are a number of ways. You can either eat small but nutrition-packed snack-meals frequently throughout the day or consume ginger flavoured goodies like ginger ale, ginger-spiced water or the ginger bread man. Even the smell of a slice of ginger can settle the nauseous feeling. Lemonade is another helpful drink. You can also stay away from strong aroma/odours, try and relax or ask your doctor for those vitamin B6 fortified drugs.

8. The worst that could happen

Morning sickness can pass away without any serious damage except if it gets to its worse stage. At this stage, it is called Hyperemisis gravidarum. It affects up to 5% of women that experience morning sickness. This stage will leave you not being able to keep anything down, whether snack-meals, lemonade or ginger muffins. Dehydration and depression are consequences and when it gets to this stage, a hospital admission is the next best thing.