the preggy sleep guide
"Statistics show that about 78 percent of pregnant women suffer from insomnia"-fit pregnancy.com
Luckily, being pregnant hasn't been too bad for me. The first time around with my Ace wasn't what I thought it would be. I found myself sympathizing with other pregnant women and making up symptoms that I didn't even have! I kept thinking, "is this normal?" I threw up once in bed with Ace and so far (12 weeks) with this lil peanut, I have had zero nausea. The tell-tale signs that let me know I was "with child" was rapid breast growth and having to pee more than normal. But once I took the pregnancy test and verbalized I was expecting, i seemed to lose even more sleep. See, I don't sleep like most normal humans. My body could be on empty but my mind never stops working. I constantly go over my next day plans, grocery list needs and even what I'm going to wear! My husband on the other hand... knocked out. So insomnia plus pregnancy was a bad mix for me. I had to find ways to kick the sleeplessness. Did you have the same problems?
So if your exhausted and run down, these are some of my natural ways to get back to counting sheep!
Sweat preggy girl, sweat! Exercising can actually boost mental and physical health enabling you to sleep better at night. Plus, when those baby kicks start to keep you up, a short walk will help put baby to sleep so you can get some snoozes too!
Pillows, Pillows and more Pillows! Propping with pillows helped a lot with the third trimester heartburn. A 15 degree angle (with pillows) not only keeps down the heartburn but even those pesky first trimester puking urges. I was lucky enough to receive a maternity pillow as a gift. These pillows are designed for supporting different parts of the pregnant body. I'd like to kiss whoever created these bad-boyz! I found that they work great even after the baby and just last week I dry cleaned mine in preparation for the next 6 months.
Sleep on your left side. This helps alleviate pressure on the vena cava, a blood vessel that can be pinched when your uterus weighs down on it. I found it best when I started to side-sleep early. It helped me to get used to it for the later months.
Extra vitamins you can take in case you are cramping: folate, iron, vitamin c and magnesium but ask your Doctor first. I tended to run a little low on iron and even fainted once so please make sure you are getting all the nutrients you need!!
Take a warm shower to relax your muscles. this might seem like a no-brainer but even I have to remind myself that a shower can do wonders and not to skip them at night.
Things you might want to avoid..
Stop the greasy, sugary and spicy foods before bed. These specific foods can keep your baby up which in turn, keeps you up. Some foods are okay to indulge in before bed like tart cherries which are loaded with the naturalsleep aid known as melatonin. One of my favorite go-tosleep aids is a bit of fresh mint tea to help calm my mind. Im actually drinking some right now!
Avoid looking at your phone in the dark or watching TV right before you call it a night. The lights on these devices can actually trigger wakefulness. I learned this the wrong way. I used to stare at my phone thinking it would make me sleepy. What i should have done was read a book or my InStyle magazine.
Is there anything you did while pregnant to sleep better? thoughts? tips? I'd love to hear :)
Happy Sleeping!
((photos: me and my maternity pillow//tea from traditional medicinals))