Week 15: Morning Sickness Nightmare

I was so excited for my first trimester to end. I was tired of keeping this wonderful secret to myself.  I had been cursed with every pregnant girl’s worst enemy…the dreaded morning sickness.  This wasn’t the typical you wake up, feel nauseated, eat something and feel better type of morning sickness. This was full on 24/7 nausea, vomiting, and everything else! I felt terrible making plans, and canceling last minute, without telling my friends the real reason why I couldn’t accompany them to lunch!

Many of my friends back in the states had given birth this past year and most of them told me their morning sickness had disappeared around Week 12. I didn’t think it was possible, but when I hit Week 12, mine got worse! Eager to feel ‘normal’ again, I tried every remedy I read about on websites and in books. Here is a list of the things that worked for me!

10 Ways to Combat Morning Sickness

1. Eat every 2 hours. I would even wake up every two hours in the middle of the night to munch. It saved me lots of trips to the bathroom!
2. Ginger, Ginger, Ginger. Ginger gum, (sadly you can’t find this anywhere in Hong Kong) Ginger Candies, Ginger Tea, Ginger ale.  Ginger has become my new best friend. They can all be found at City Super.
3. Take your Pre-natal vitamins or Folic Acid on a full stomach.
4. If the thought of putting anything in your mouth makes you queasy, suck on a lemon candy from Nature’s Village or even suck on a lemon. The lemon taste can be soothing.
5. Wear Sea-bands! They look like wrist sweatbands, and they are usually used for motion sickness on boats, but I swear they work! A little piece of plastic on the inside of the wristband puts pressure and stimulates the P6 acupressure point. The bands can be purchased at Laissing & Co. in Kowloon.
6. Vitamin B6. YOU MUST CHECK WITH YOUR OB FIRST.
7. Saltine Crackers don’t always do the trick. The last thing you want to eat when you are feeling so nauseated is a salted piece of cardboard. I preferred Jatz crackers, Almond Nut-Thins, or TLC Honey Sesame Crackers.
8. Keep cool. The heat only exacerbates the sick feeling. Keep the room cool or take a wet wash cloth and pat it on your face, chest, and back of your neck under your hair.
9. Avoid fried or greasy foods unless you want to continue tasting them all night long.
10. When morning sickness strikes, it strikes hard. Thank goodness Hong Kong malls have some super nice bathrooms!

If you still are feeling sick at Week 15, you are not alone. Maybe Week 16 will be the magic week where it all disappears for good!