Natural Remedies for Morning Sickness

I remember the times when I was pregnant and people around me were on a never ending quest to point out how beautiful I was. I was "glowing" they would say. But, in my 40 weeks of pregnancy, I can honestly say there were only a handful of days that I felt well. After suffering through two pregnancies, I decided to give my body a rest and never pursued having any more children.

As a woman who is expecting your first child, you may be experiencing this same pregnancy phenomenon. While the outside world truly believes you have a glow about you, inside, you are a total mess. Rest assured, this is a normal part of pregnancy. One of the greatest challenges for many pregnant women is the complications associated with morning sickness. For many, morning sickness is limited to a relative few number of weeks after conception but, for others, morning sickness can linger for the entire pregnancy, resulting in an inability to even enjoy one moment of the pregnancy experience.

There is no true and definite cause of morning sickness; it is simply a phenomenon of the pregnant woman's body. While some would say morning sickness is attributed to hormonal changes, others would argue this is simply not the case. Whatever the basis, morning sickness will, undoubtedly, play a key factor in making this wonderful experience a total disaster if it is not placed under control.

Because morning sickness can lead to dehydration, weight loss and general malaise and fatigue, it is important to discuss your complications with the obstetrician. For me, this discussion with my obstetrician did not go well. In fact, he did nothing at all. As a result, I would lie in bed many mornings suffering with morning sickness, unable to go to work.

If you are experiencing the same complication with your obstetrician, with no apparent assistance in alleviating your morning sickness, there are some home remedies you may want to consider. First, try modifying your diet and consume less of chocolate, spicy foods, foods that are greasy, meat, vegetables and, of course, consume no alcohol or caffeine. In fact, you may want to go one step further and consume only those foods that you can eat without inducing morning sickness. For me, this consumption consisted of, mainly, water and crackers.

Another natural way to resolve morning sickness, when your obstetrician is uncooperative, is to consider the use of acupressure. Practiced by many acupuncturists, acupressure may help to alleviate morning sickness and, oftentimes, can be taught for use in your home.

While there are some prescription drugs that can be used for morning sickness, the fact remains that many obstetricians simply refuse to prescribe these medications out of fear of lawsuits and birth defects. While most of these concerns are unwarranted, women who experience morning sickness must find ways in which to alleviate the complication naturally. In fact, some women have gone so far as to combine vitamin B6 with half of a tablet of the over-the-counter sleep aid, Unisom, as a way to alleviate morning sickness during desperate times. While this concoction was once sold as a prescription medication, it is no longer on the market so many pregnant women are using desperate measures to alleviate morning sickness.

As a woman who is expecting a child, you will want to take every possible measure to ensure that not only your health but also the health of your infant is protected. While morning sickness is a complication that is frustrating, it can usually be alleviated, to some extent, with a few simple home remedies and the application of acupressure. Before mixing any over-the-counter medications and vitamin supplements, be sure to discuss your morning sickness complications with the obstetrician in an effort to encourage other options during your pregnancy.