Friday, April 06, 2012

Unisom and B6 During Pregnancy

Oh what morning sickness can do to a poor, unsuspecting person!  It's absolutely debilitating to not be able to tolerate food, smells, or anything remotely dizzy-making.  Your whole perspective on life starts to change, and not in a good way.  Working, caring for children, driving, and all sorts of other major life activities become very difficult as your super nose and queasy stomach take over.  Ginger tea, saltines, applesauce, and all those other supposed remedies work for some people some of the time, but they are not at all sure. 

During my first pregnancy I just rode it out.  It was always worst during the mid-morning hours, so I would just take a long walk until the worst of it passed.  This time around I was not so lucky.  Not only was the nausea worse, but it came most strongly in the evening when I was trying to prepare dinner for the family.  My poor toddler suffered a change in diet because I could not stand to cook some of her more favorite dishes.  Asparagus, broccoli, onions, and garlic were all on the instant gag list.  My husband started doing deli runs on the way home from work just to keep vegetables on our girl's plate. 

Then I visited the doctor.  When I saw this doctor for my first pregnancy, she was just getting married, and we chatted about fun things wedding.  This time, she had just had her first baby, and I think this helped change her perspective on one or two issues.  This time when I mentioned being green, she said I should take Unisom and B6.  Both are over-the-counter and considered extremely safe for pregnant women.  The FDA has even recognized them as "effective and safe" for this purpose.  My dear husband picked them up for me, and I took them at night as the doctor suggested.

OH MY GOONESS!   It was like the morning sickness was GONE!  I felt like a more or less normal person.  There were still certain foods that did not appeal to me, but they no longer made me feel like puking.  I stopped losing weight.  My daughter started to eat normal foods again.  It was like a miracle cure.  I kept taking the combo for the next few weeks, and by time I was twelve weeks pregnant, I was able to stop without feeling sick at all.  A side benefit was the mild sleep aid effect of the Unisom actually helped me to feel less tired as well.  I hope more doctors will recomend the mix because it makes a world of difference to moms. 

No comments: