Morning Sickness

When I first learned I was pregnant I was beyond excited.  I was even more excited by the fact that I didn't feel sick at all.  "Wow, I am so lucky," I thought.  I have heard many horror stories and couldn't believe how fortunate I was.

Ironically, one of my first jobs as a dietitian was working in a high risk OB clinic.  I can vividly remember this nice young woman and her husband coming in to see me one morning.  She looked like death warmed over and he looked scared out of his mind.  About 5 minutes into our conversation, the lady turned green and gave the universal signal (hand over mouth with eyes wide open) that she was going to be sick.  My advice?  "There's a sink!  Puke in there!" Not the best idea, but the trash can just didn't seem logical at the time for some reason.  Anyway, that day changed me forever...pregnancy is serious business.

The joke was on me though.  Around week 6 I started to feel just like that lady in the OB clinic.  Fortunately I never had to puke, but man I was I nauseated.  Now, before I start with my (what may sound like) complaining, I want you to know that I am beyond grateful for my little one and know that I am so lucky.  But here it is...morning sickness...which is a dumb name for it as mine was all day sickness...is the opposite of a good time.  If you have ever been sea sick or car sick, than you know what this type of nausea feels like.  It's like you are on a boat holding on for dear life as the waves swell and crash into you.  Sure, there are moments that you feel like yourself, but most of the time anything will set you off.  I can remember the husband eating a very healthy snack of sunflower seeds and I had to leave the room.  I couldn't even cook!  Yes, that is why there was such a cooking gap in my blog.  :)  I had to rely on the husband and I ate a lot of macaroni and cheese and crackers.

I made it though and now at week 16, I am feeling much, much better and I am so so so happy about it.  I missed enjoying food and now I am making up for it.  :)

For those of you going through morning sickness, here are my recommendations for you:

1) Don't cook!  Seriously, it just makes you feel worse.  Instead, have someone else make or get you things you can tolerate.  Trust me, it's worth it.
2) Potato chips and lemonade.  This was amazing advice given to me by my very amazing boss.  It sounds so wrong, but it totally works...try it.
3) Eat all day long.  I know, that sounds so scary, but this also works.  If you always have a little something in your belly, the nausea doesn't feel as strong.  Bland foods are great.  I personally ate my share of crackers, pretzels, bran flakes (I know, that one's a little weird), cheese and toast.
4) Give ginger a try.  I found that ginger really seemed to help with the really strong bouts of nausea.  Those ginger chews are a little wonder.  Keep them stashed in your purse or in the desk at your office.
5) Tell people that you don't feel well.  Otherwise, you will be worried what they will be thinking about you.  I knew that I might need to "step out and get some fresh air" during work, but didn't want my boss to think I was trying to manage my twitter account or something.  So, I told her the truth.  I know this isn't always an option, but at least tell them you're not feeling well...to explain your weird reactions to every smell in the office.

Good luck and hopefully you'll start feeling better soon!