pre-pregnancy advice?

[dgirl]

Hello! I just joined this today and I am looking for as much advice as possible. I have been suffering from this phobia since I was 10 years old (I am now 35). It started as a fear of vomiting and as I age, it is getting worse and beginning to impact other aspects of my life as well. Such as; how I prepare food, washing my hands before I eat anything, only ordering certain items that I feel are "safe" from a menu, not eating the part of the food I've touched with my hands, not traveling abroad to lower 3rd world countries (which I would LOVE to do), fear of boats (i recently had an unpleasant experience) and now.... fear of pregnancy.

I have been married for almost a year and my husband and I are talking about starting a family. I am terrified! Does anyone have advice on how to handle the first trimester? (every woman in my family gets sick) - or on treatment success so I may do some therapy before we try to get pregnant.

I haven't had success with traditional therapy (I've been to 3 different behavioral therapists over the past 15 years), but I have had some success with hypnotherapy and EMDR therapy. I am considering accupuncture. Any recommendations?

[alisha27]

Welcome to IES and I wish you good luck on your journey to start a family. I have one child and was never sick one time during my pregnancy. Most members here didn't experience anything more then nausea. There are quite a few women on this forum currently pregnant and hanging in there. I personally have never done any therapy because I cannot afford it but if you can that would be helpful for you. Make sure you tell your ob/gyn any concerns you have, anxieties, fears ect. I can't say there is a sure way of preventing morning sickness ahead of time. You could start by taking pregnancy vitamins now, I do and I'm not preggers. I find prenatals to be more gentle on my stomach and I need iron. You should start early with the prenatals because folic acid will help aid in nausea. Some women start to feel morning sickness around 5-6 weeks and ends around 12ish I think. Morning sickness doesn't mean you wake up v* or v* any time of the day, you could just feel "off" or slightly nauseous but eating light meals, snacks, fluids, rest and staying comfortable will help you a lot. You can also ask your doctor for a prescription of antiemetics, wear sea bands or order you some preggie pops to help with nausea. Getting through pregnancy is the easy part to be honest. Once the child comes along there are whole new worries!

[zipity]

I have a son and I was never sick during my pregnancy. I never really got nauseated either. I had about a week or two where no food looked good. I just didn't have an appetite, but I wasn't gagging at the sight or smell of food or anything. A lot of nausea in pregnant women is in the morning because your blood sugar drops overnight and that causes nausea. A friend of mine gave me a tip to eat first thing in the morning, like before you got out of bed. And also stick to dry crunchy foods. I kept granola bars on my nightstand and would eat one in the morning. And throughout the day as a snack I would eat dry cereal (target has archer farms brand cereal with little pieces of chocolate in it that's SO good)
I also made it through labor without getting sick, which was another thing I was worried about. I had a c section and that can make you nauseated or vomit. I was in labor for 32 hours and finally opted to have a c section, which was something I did NOT want to do. And honestly, I never thought this would EVER cross my mind, but at that point, I didn't care if I got sick. Truly. I just wanted to see my baby so badly.

[kristylee86]

Hey there!
Hubby and I have been trying to conceive for just about 3 years so i know some of the emotions you will be going through since i am an emet too

I have done Acupuncture in the past and it has help with general nausea etc and can also help to get your cycles on track too and if you explain to your acupuncturist that you are looking to conceive there are some points in which they will focus on, and also acupuncture can be used as an aid to reduce and even banish morning sickness... However, because you are pregnant doesn't mean you have to be sick!

With stats etc theres figures that say this percentage of people experience morning sickness - But morning sickness is defined as nausea and/or vomitting... however if you look deeper into the figures they provide its only the smallest amount out of them who actually v*... It's a huge thing in media/tv/movies etc that when someone is pregnant to get the point of them being pregnant across they show them being sick.. but that's definately not the case at all..

I was once told by a therapist that "being pregnant doesn't mean you have to be sick, It's a beautiful experience that brings you harmony and happiness" - maybe she was a little hippy but hey what she said had truth to it.. And like everything i believe it's mind over matter...

Not that i can speak from experience but i think the whole snacking regularly thing and first thing in the morning which Zipity speaks of is the way to go as i have heard it recommended millions of time!

Good Luck on your journey and remember It's a wonderful time and when it does happen it doesn't mean you will be bed ridden with fear and illness !

[lisalulu]

There actually ARE things you can do to prevent/lessen morning sickness before you get pregnant. Stay away from animal fats (like fatty meats and cheeses) or foods with a lot of chemicals (like bacon, hot dogs, processed foods) for a couple months before and eat LOTS of citrus (water with lemon, grapefruit, ect). It will cleanse your liver and give you a bit of a head start on dealing with the hormones once they hit.
Also once you are pregnant sea bands really help as does ice water and sniffing lemon peels and fresh air and anything that helps you relax/laugh. I am doing all this stuff now because I'm planning to try for #2 soon!!!