If you've had a tough time with morning sickness, nausea or food aversions, avert your eyes because from what I've discovered, I've been extremely lucky so far!
I've heard tales of the name morning sickness being a myth because it lasts all day, vegans turning carnivorous, the feeling of constantly being hungover, not being able to stand the smell of your partner, friends being bedridden for the first three months...the list goes on. And I've experienced none of it. Yep, I'm that smarmy person who woke up bright eyed and bushy tailed throughout my first trimester, apart from the one week where I experienced an aversion to most food and coffee. Oh and the one vomit I had in week 12. But that's it. Seriously.
Unfortunately is not totally known why women experience morning sickness. Some causes could be attributed to: It may be caused by low blood sugar or the rise in pregnancy hormones, such as human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) or estrogen. Morning sickness may be worsened by stress, being overtired, eating certain foods, or having sensitivity to motion (motion sickness).
It's estimated that up to 85% of women experience morning sickness of some kind during their first trimester; commonly manifesting as nausea, vomiting a general feeling of being unwell and food aversions.
Common food aversions include coffee, dairy, meat, spicy foods or anything with a strong smell. I put it out to the Growbright Instagram following to ask what theirs were and some include; lamb, tomatoes and coffee also came through pretty strongly. On the list of foods our followers could stomach; bread, fries and spicy chicken!
A friend of mine from Book Club said she would/could only eat Cocoa-Pops for a month.
If you've experienced or are experiencing nausea, chances are you've already looked this up, but some tips on combatting nausea include:
- Eating little and often
- Consuming ginger in the form of capsules, tea, ginger ale
- Plain or bland foods such as crackers, toast, bananas, rice
- Including protein into your meals
- Avoid triggers such as fried, fatty or spicy food
If you're battling through morning sickness currently, lean on those around you for support and go easy on yourself, you're doing such a great job. You've got this! xx