Hello. I bet you're here because you're suffering from morning sickness. Am I right?
Yeah, it's not fun.
I'm Clare and I'm a midwife, and I have looked after hundreds of women who have suffered from morning sickness. As well as suffering from it severely myself.
We're going to go through some of the dos and don'ts and hopefully give you some advice to manage it.
I know all you want to do is to make it stop.
But unfortunately it's not quite as simple as that.
For most women it starts off in the first trimester, when you're around 6 weeks pregnant.
It's because the hormone human chorionic gonadotropin - which gives a positive pregnancy test.
It also supports and grows a pregnancy.
It doubles every other day until around the 13 week mark, when your placenta takes over.
From there the hCG levels start to drop, which is why you hopefully start to feel better.
Unfortunately, there is no magic cure. But there are loads of natural remedies that you can use that you can help alleviate the symptoms.
All of these have been tried by women suffering from morning sickness.
They include: lots of rest,
Plenty of fluids,
Ginger, including capsules, tea and low sugar ginger beer.
The sugar in the ginger beer if you have full fat will probably make you feel worse.
Acupuncture works for some people.
Travel sickness wristbands,
Vitamin B
Sucking on ice lollies or blocks of ice.
... And fresh air.
There is a little bit of science behind some of these.
Ginger is fantastic for settling the stomach, and eating little and often is really good to make sure you don't feel too full.
If ginger doesn't work, then it might be worth trying grapefruit.
Sometimes the acid in the grapefruit actually settles your stomach.
However it's not for everyone. But if you're suffering, it's worth a go!
Fruit and herbal teas like peppermint may help.
Other than that, some work for some people, and some don't.
It's definitely a guessing game.
The important thing is you are probably going to have to adjust your diet.
It's not plausible to keep eating curries all the time any more!
When you are suffering, bland, non-greasy food are the best bet.
That's plain carbs: rice, pasta and potatoes.
Dry things to snack on like oat cakes, rice cakes and digestive biscuits.
Yes, they are really good to settle your tummy!
Avoid those smelly and spicy foods - they are not going to do you any favours!
Don't try to be a culinary whizz in the kitchen... Just keep things basic.
I know this all sounds so boring, but you won't suffer for long, hopefully, this is just to help get you through.
If you have tried all the natural remedies and none of them are working, it might be worth popping to your GP.
You can have sickness tablets in pregnancy that are safe. They are called antiemetics.
They may prescribe a short course just to keep you going.
Alternatively, they may prescribe an antihistamine. They are usually used for allergies.
They have the same effect as antiemetics.
They help with any pregnancy sickness if it is severe.
If you can't keep any food or drink down for 24 hours, then you must see someone.
If it's the weekend you need to go to your out of hours.
If it's during the week you need to go to your GP. They have to make sure you are getting on OK.
Try not to be too downhearted.
It can be really difficult to get through these early weeks.
Also, why don't you head over to the Mumsnet site, to see a wealth of support and information.
There is lots there that can help. You can get support when you feel at your worst.
Good luck and I hope you don't spend too long with your head down the toilet!
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