Need Remedies for Morning Sickness

Updated on January 16, 2017
B.A. asks from Kennewick, WA
27 answers

I am about 8.5 weeks pregnant and the morning sickness started to hit pretty hard this past week. I am just wondering what kinds of easy remedies other moms have had luck with. Thank you in advance! I look forward to having some new ideas to try!

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D.A.

answers from Portland on

I found with both of my recent pregnancies, that a protein drink first thing in the morning upon waking helped. I then sipped raspberry tea through the morning. At night, I took ginger capsules with water.

This sequence and especially the protein drink worked like a charm. If I missed a morning, uhgg.

Good luck to you,
D.

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L.G.

answers from Anchorage on

I agree with the Unisom. I suffered through my first three pregnancies and finally gave in and tried it with my last one. It worked wonders. I highly recommend it. I would take the half-tab once a day and it didn't make me any more tired than I already was. The doctor said it was perfectly fine to take a whole tablet, but I got by great on a half.

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L.S.

answers from Portland on

what worked for me was cases of saltine crackers by my nightstand so before I got out of bed I ate a few. Peanut butter, gingersnaps, watermelon and took my b vitamins. I used unisom at night that really helped!
Hope you get relief bc MS is awful.
L

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S.S.

answers from Portland on

I had fairly good results (not amazing but they did help) using the sea bands (acupressure) which you can get at most drugstores. Since my pregnancies, I have become more familiar with natural cures and wish I had had a few more tricks up my sleeve back then! Never-the-less, hopefully these can be helpful to you!

Homeopathy is gentle and safe during pregnancy but you need to try to find the right remedy that matches the most of your symptoms. Here is an article that might be helpful in finding a remedy that would help your nausea:

"Nausea during pregnancy can be miserable. At at time when many changes are occurring (enough to adapt to already), it is often very discouraging. Some women only feel ill or queasy in the morning, but for some it lasts all day and is even troublesome at night. Discomfort usually eases off by the third or fourth month, but not always. Homeopathic remedies can be very helpful to a woman with morning sickness and are safe to take during pregnancy.

For dosage information, please read the information at the end of this section. See also “Using Homeopathy With Professional Guidance” in What Is Homeopathy?

Asarum: This remedy is indicated when a woman feels very ill, with constant nausea and retching. She is extremely sensitive to everything—especially noise, which can aggravate the nauseous feelings. She feels best when lying down and resting. Cool drinks or food may help, but it is hard for her to even think of eating.

Colchicum: Horrible nausea that is worse from the sight and smell of food (especially eggs or fish) often indicates this remedy. The woman retches and vomits, and has a sore and bloated feeling in the abdomen. She has trouble eating anything — although she often craves things, when she tries to eat them they make her sick. She is likely to feel ill from many smells that others don’t even notice.

Ipecacuanha: This remedy is indicated for intense and constant nausea that is felt all day (not only in the morning) with retching, belching, and excessive salivation. The woman may feel worse from lying down, but also worse from motion. Even after the woman vomits, she remains nauseous.

Kreosotum: When this remedy is indicated, the woman may salivate so much that she constantly swallows it, becoming nauseous. She may also vomit up food that looks undigested, several hours after eating.

Lacticum acidum: This remedy is indicated for “classic morning sickness”: nausea worse immediately on waking in the morning and on opening the eyes. The woman may salivate a lot and have burning stomach pain. She usually has a decent appetite and feels better after eating.

Nux vomica: Nausea, especially in the morning and after eating, may respond to this remedy—especially if the woman is irritable, impatient, and chilly. She may retch a lot and have the urge to vomit, often without success. Her stomach feels sensitive and crampy, and she may be constipated.

Pulsatilla: This remedy can be helpful if nausea is worse in the afternoon and evening (often in the morning, as well). The woman is not very thirsty, although she may feel better from drinking something cool. She can crave many different foods, but feels sick from many things (including foods she craves). Creamy foods or desserts may be appealing, but can cause discomfort and burping or bring on vomiting. A woman who needs this remedy usually is affectionate, insecure, and weepy—wanting a lot of attention and comforting.

Sepia: Gnawing, intermittent nausea with an empty feeling in the stomach suggests a need for this remedy. It is especially indicated for a woman who is feeling irritable, sad, worn out, and indifferent to her family. She feels worst in the morning before she eats, but is not improved by eating and may vomit afterward. Nausea can be worse when she is lying on her side. Odors of any kind may aggravate the symptoms. Food often tastes too salty. She may lose her taste for many foods, but may still crave vinegar and sour things.

Tabacum: This remedy can be helpful to a woman who feels a ghastly nausea with a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. She looks extremely pale, feels very cold and faint, and needs to lie very still and keep her eyes closed. If she moves at all, she may vomit violently—or break out in cold sweat and feel terrible.
Homeopathy Dosage Directions

Select the remedy that most closely matches the symptoms. In conditions where self-treatment is appropriate, unless otherwise directed by a physician, a lower potency (6X, 6C, 12X, 12C, 30X, or 30C) should be used. In addition, instructions for use are usually printed on the label.

Many homeopathic physicians suggest that remedies be used as follows: Take one dose and wait for a response. If improvement is seen, continue to wait and let the remedy work. If improvement lags significantly or has clearly stopped, another dose may be taken. The frequency of dosage varies with the condition and the individual. Sometimes a dose may be required several times an hour; other times a dose may be indicated several times a day; and in some situations, one dose per day (or less) can be sufficient.

If no response is seen within a reasonable amount of time, select a different remedy."

The whole article can be found here: http://www.truestarhealth.com/Notes/2243000.html

Most of these remedies can be found at your local health food store or New Season's or Whole Foods if you have one nearby (or online of course).

Otherwise, I have had many clients tell me that wearing a hazelwood necklace helps reduce their nausea (the wood has the natural property of absorbing acidity) and a lot of times, morning sickness is exasperated by a lot of acidity in the stomach (which is why eating crackers can sometimes help as it helps to absorb some of the acidity so it's not upseting your stomach so much). The necklaces are also very helpful at reducing heartburn and acid reflux that is very typical especially later in the pregnancy. They are available at: www.hazelaid.com

Hope you feel better soon. Morning sickness is no fun at all!

1 mom found this helpful
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J.C.

answers from Medford on

I recommend 1/2 a unisom. My doctor was very conservative about what she would allow during pregnancy, but said the Unisom was perfectly safe. Since it's a small dose, it didn't totally put me to sleep during the day and really helped with the morning sickness. I also took the B6 (I think) that someone else mentioned. If the unisom makes you too sleepy, try just taking it at night and take the B6 in the morning. Good luck!

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M.M.

answers from Seattle on

Hi B.,

I'm about 16 weeks pregnant and went through several weeks of pretty miserable nausea/morning sickness. In the attempt to help another symptom, heart burn in the evenings, I stumbled upon a easy remedy for morning sickness. I noticed the nights when I had heart burn and I would drink a cup of milk to help that I would not be as nausious/sick the next morning. So I started making that part of my routine, a cup of milk before bed helped the next morning. I think it was simply having a few extra calories at night helped me from getting too hungry in the morning and feeling sick. A friend of mine doesn't really like milk so she used yogurt - had the same affect! If neither of these sound appealing find soemthing else, just a few calories (50-100) at night before bed could help - I would recommend they be high in protein, that seems to be the key.

Good luck!

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T.F.

answers from Seattle on

with my first pregnancy I could not keep anything down, not even water. I took 50mg of B6 and a unisom right at bed time every night for almost 6 months, this really helped. There was some lolly pops I saw at the maturinty store that had B6 in them that were supposed to be for morning sickness. Never tried them. Be sure to talk to your doctor before taking the unisom. but you could just try the B6 by its self.
Lemonade also helps settle the stomach. Weird right, but I found out it is what they give cemo patients to help with the nausea. also, eat something before getting up out of bed. drink lots of fluids. and never go more than 2 hours with out having something in your stomach. I kept the little packs of apple sauce in my car and granola bars and crackers. try to avoid things that made it worse. With my second and third pregnancies, it was spaghetti and lasagna. I could never keep it down long. Could be the acid in the tomato sauce?

In the last few years there have been some advances on this, so be sure to talk to your doctor about what is out there, the risks and also natural alternatives.

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J.N.

answers from Seattle on

Graham Crackers, gum, suckers, but the best was Reglin prescribed by the doctor :)

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A.B.

answers from Portland on

WATER! Water, water, water. Definitely try to keep hydrated. I don't know if this helps with morning sickness, but I found that if I was going to throw up, at least there was SOMETHING in my tummy besides stomach acid.

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M.F.

answers from Seattle on

preggie pops from motherhood maternity and saltine crackers in bed before you get up.
Lots of water and always have a healthy snack in your purse.
Good luck and if it does not get better by 3-4 months talk to your doctor.

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N.I.

answers from Portland on

Hi B.,

I have heard of Alfalfa and B-Complex. Here is some stories about Alfalfa and another person used Shaklee's B-Complex and said it worked great. Both alfalfa and B-Complex do lots of other things too.

Interested? go to http://nutritionproducts.myshaklee.com

I just got this from a midwife newsletter I subscribe to. My midwife recommended Alfalfa to me, especially as an alternative to Vitamin K shots at birth.

Excerpted from "The Amazing Alfalfa," by Lisa Goldstein, CPM, CNM; in Birth Wisdom: Tricks of the Trade Vol III (a Midwifery Today book)

Herbs and Natural Remedies

Many of pregnancy's discomforts are alleviated by the use of alfalfa tablets, including morning sickness, heartburn, constipation and anemia.
Alfalfa tablets raise the vitamin K level of pregnant women, reducing postpartum bleeding in both quantity and duration, and they increase the vitamin K stores in newborns, reducing bleeding problems for them as well.
They support success in lactation because they help increase and sustain milk supply. They frequently help alleviate nausea, almost always relieve constipation, and they bring up red blood counts in a beneficial way. They also seem to help reduce swelling and improve erratic blood sugar levels.

Because alfalfa tablets are very high in vitamin K, they could be dangerous to take for anyone who needs to be on blood thinners such as Heparin. Their use should be stopped temporarily if one gets a urinary tract infection and cut back, at least temporarily, if one gets diarrhea.

People who have very poor bowel flora may have temporary bouts of gas the first week or so when they start taking them, so they should start at a more gradual pace. I have postpartum moms take a few right after the birth to help with blood loss and bowel movements, then not take any more until the fourth or fifth postpartum day, gradually building back up to about four to eight a day depending on diet and need. They can use oat bran tablets if they need to for bowel function in the meantime. The reason for this course is twofold: the degree to which alfalfa promotes lactation can be too much for comfort until engorgement subsides, and newborn jaundice takes longer to go away if the mom is taking alfalfa tablets.

N.
Wellness Coach, SAH Nana

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C.R.

answers from Seattle on

I'm not sure why, but the only thing that worked really well for me was to suck on very, very sour candy. I always kept some in my car, my purse, at work, etc. That worked and sipping on extra cold Sprite with ice helped sometimes, too.

Congrats and good luck!

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M.T.

answers from Portland on

I had TERRIBLE "all day" sickness with my second. It was not manageable through just any usual method (like eating toast, etc..etc..etc). I even stopped taking my prenatal for short while which my OB said would be completely OK since I took it all the way through my pre-pregnacy (trying to conceive months) up to about 2 months. It was just plain BAD! So, I went on Zofran. WOW! World of difference. I wouldn't let the note from the other mom scare you. There is absolutely nothing unsafe or wrong with taking an Rx. Plus, it enables you to eat well, take your vitamins, and keep it all down for a healthy baby. My baby is perfectly healthy, all fingers, toes, etc. So, don't let that email scare you - there is no proof. Talk to your doctor and inquire specifically about Zofran. There is another common option that costs less, but it will make you so drowsy that it isn't worth it.

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R.C.

answers from Portland on

I found kefir to be the best remedy. I was surprised how well it worked, and it's extremely nutritious.

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K.P.

answers from Barnstable on

Congratulations on your pregnancy!

The thing that helped me was to eat something upon awakening--and I mean, the minute I woke up, before my feet touched the floor--it has something to do with being vertical all night. Also, I found out that my prenatals made me sick also and I started taking them at night before bed. Snacks help--it is crucial that your stomach is never empty and to make sure you stay hydrated. I used to grind ginger, mix it with honey and lemon and eat some of it--about a teaspoon, as much as I could tolerate since ginger is quite spicy.

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R.G.

answers from San Diego on

Prenatal vitamins before you go to bed. Peppermint gum through the day. Fresh air. Fresh air really does the trick! Food at regular intervals. Rest. I am battling it second time around. But this time, I have brought the retching down to only the mornings, and not every day either. Good luck. It's a terrible feeling.

M.B.

answers from Seattle on

B.,

When I was pregnant with my now six year old son and thought I had morning sickness I tried keeping some saltines or bread on my nightstand to eat when I woke up and before I got out of bed. Helped a little. I also go those SeaBand things. They go around your wrist, are kind of like a sweat band and have this hard plastic dome that goes against your inner wrist. It's supposed to help with sea sickness as well and morning sickness. Those wound up just hurting after a while though.

What i had was also heartburn/acid reflux. To this day I still can't drink plain water.

Hope this helps,
Melissa

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A.A.

answers from Boca Raton on

I had bad morning sickness and I was too afraid to take any RX the doc offered. There was a girl at my job with a very short arm, and missing one arm, because her mom took some meds for morning sickness that was later found to be the cause of birth defects. Steer clear of any meds. When my morning sickness hit I had a tin of butter cookies in my nightstand. I ate a few cookies before I got out of bed. Then I found that I had morning sickness in the car as well, thus another tin of crackers in the car. Eating is a great fix. this is not a time to worry about your figure. You need to get your vitamins and your baby is sucking them out of you. Your baby is going to take what he needs even if that leaves you short of nutrition and dizzy. So go for the cookies and crackers.The sugar and salt did me good. At night, I didnt want to go to bed with a belly full of cookies so I ate crushed ice and relaxed. Morning sickness is not just in the morning. Also, Cherry Coke was a godsend when nothing else would help. Take your time, dont rush anywhere. Good luck.

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S.N.

answers from Detroit on

Half burnt toast,green tea, tea with honey, peppermint tea. As well, try getting yourself a scented candle which smells like green apple and stick it directly under your nose for 5 to 10 mins. The smell of green apple is proven to soothe the stomach. Also, mild Gravol can help ease the quueze as well, but, I suggest trying the non medical rememdies first. I used atleast one with all three of my pregnancies and they really helped.

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J.B.

answers from Seattle on

Have you tried Unisom at night and B6 in the morning? It worked for me. And also check your prenatal vitamin for too much iron. Some of the iron additives in vitamins can make morning sickness worse.

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P.R.

answers from Seattle on

I haven't read all the responses but I had hyperemesis for all three pregnancies. I was on anti-nausea medicine for all of them and on one I was put on a short steriod treatment. Even after all that I still was sick for the entire 9 months. There are three old wives tale cures that I have heard about and one worked for me. They are ginger, cinnamon and lemon. My sister swore by cinnamon gummy bears but I had great luck with Lemon Heads. There was something with the lemon and the sugar that really helped. Good luck.

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H.M.

answers from Springfield on

Try No to morning sickness tea. It's an organic herbal supplement that helped alleviating my nausea which was killing me.

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S.E.

answers from Portland on

I recently saw an over-the-counter nausea medicine and asked the pharmacist about it (safety, effectiveness, etc). She looked at it and said it was really just sugar - that sugar syrup is an old-fashioned remedy that sort of went out of vogue with all the new Rx's, but a little sugar tends to settle the stomach and works really well for a lot of people.

I didn't buy it at the time b/c I wasn't pregnant yet. But a few months later, when I was pregnant (and sick) I saw those Preggie Pop Drops at Babies R Us - sour candies designed to help morning sickness. Bought some, they worked great, and the ingredients were - you guessed it - just sugar (and a little flavoring). Since they're expensive I went to the grocery store and bought a bunch of other hard candies (sour-ish ones, because I couldn't put anything too sweet in my mouth) and found JOLLY RANCHERS to work like a charm! I kept packages of them around all through my first trimester, and was not nearly as sick this pregnancy as last (and I'm pregnant with twins this time, which is supposed to be worse!).

I suspect the other thing that helped is gatorade. I was having a lot of trouble getting fluids down and my Dr. said to drink something with a little sugar or salt (or both) in it - like gatorade. I bought one of those powders and almost everything I drank for a few weeks had it in there. It really helped me stay hydrated, and I think the constant flow of sugary fluid probably also helped.

Good luck! It'll all be over soon!

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C.M.

answers from Seattle on

My chiropractor's wife recommended to me liquid collaidal minerals that you can get at the health food store or any GNC store. I took a capfull a day. You can just drink it or put it in juice. It just tastes like water. I NEVER threw up during my pregnancy. NOT ONCE! I hope that helps! :)

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M.S.

answers from Portland on

My Dr. prescribed A vitamin B6/B12 supplement. I snacked on nuts instead of crackers (as usually suggested) because the protein helps a lot. Also, ginger is very effective (ginger ale, ginger tea, etc).

http://www.revolutionhealth.com/healthy-living/pregnancy/...

"Studies suggest that taking vitamin B6 for morning sickness greatly improves nausea, though not vomiting, for many pregnant women. There has been no sign of harm to the fetus with vitamin B6 use. Experts do not yet understand how vitamin B6 affects nausea. A typical dose of vitamin B6 for morning sickness is 25 mg, 3 times a day.

Studies suggest that taking vitamin B12 improves vomiting for many pregnant women. There has been no sign of harm to the fetus with vitamin B12 use. In fact, a combination of vitamin B12 and folic acid is thought to prevent neural tube defects in the growing fetus. In studies, the dose of vitamin B12 has ranged from 4 mg a day to 25 mg twice a day."

http://www.morningsicknesshelp.com/morning-sickness-cure.... Here is a very thorough list on curing morning sickness.

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A.R.

answers from Yakima on

Hi B.,
I was just in your shoes...I'm now 21 weeks along and feeling much better. Hang in there, you will feel better soon!! With each of my pregnancies, my m.s. gets worse. I tried Zofran, which did nothing for me, and finally went on phenegran, which I had to cut into 1/4's because it would knock me out. I also relied on real ginger ale, seabands (walgreens) cheese and crackers, jolly ranchers,and lemonheads. I consumed a lot of water, ginger tea, and some caffeine-free coke. Remember to eat before you feel hungry, even if it's just a little bit.

I was on phenegran with my last child and she is perfectly healthy....I was very reluctant at first to take any meds, as I, too, heard the horror stories, but the new meds are tested like crazy and are safe.
Hope you feel better soon and congratulations!!

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N.M.

answers from Portland on

I agree with Jaime C. My doc told me the exact same things. 1/2 Unisom in the morning, 1/2 at lunch and a whole one at night if needed. She suggested to take a B6 with it as well. Also, those motion sickness bracelets work wonders. My sister swears by those, you can get them at any pharmacy. And never let yourself get hungry, the acid builds up too much. Just nibble on cereal, nuts, crackers, etc always. And if you happen to wake up in the middle of the night, eat then too. Good luck. It will pass.

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