Pregnancy is an unforgettable phase of every woman’s life. To make this a happy phase you need to know a few things that affect pregnancy and how you can cope up with it.
During pregnancy women’s body changes in ways to make an appropriate environment for baby’s growth inside the womb. Even though this causes discomfort to the mother these changes are normal and they subside after delivery. It is advised to avoid taking medications during pregnancy as fetal growth can get affected.
Knowledge about these minor disorders and their available treatment options can make pregnancy less stressful.
5 Most Common Disorders Of Pregnancy
1. Nausea and Morning sickness
This is seen at the beginning of the pregnancy. Morning sickness is seen during any time of the day and not only in the morning.
Causes – during pregnancy, pregnancy hormones are released to maintain pregnancy which causes nausea and vomiting. Certain foods and smell also trigger nausea in some women.
Symptoms – inability to eat food, weight loss, severe discomfort, dizziness, fever, and vomiting. These symptoms usually subside by 12 weeks but some women have it throughout their pregnancy.
In a family, it becomes difficult for women to deal with nausea and vomiting all day. Doing daily household work becomes a big task.
Tips to avoid nausea – Avoid eating fried and spicy food. Eating a small amount of food at regular intervals is advised. Rest and sleep can reduce these symptoms.
2. Heartburn
Heartburn is burning sensation in throat and stomach while eating, commonly seen during pregnancy.
Causes – hormones acting on smooth muscles like stomach and esophagus leads to this condition.
Symptoms – burning sensation in the throat.
Heartburn makes women feel uneasy to eat or drink.
Tips to avoid – avoid spicy food and caffeine drinks. Drinking milk can give some relief. Use of pillows while sleeping is advised.
3. Increased urination
During pregnancy women, experience increase in the frequency of urination.
Causes – hormonal changes affecting the smooth muscles of the urinary tract is one of the cause and also growing baby puts pressure on bladder making the mother feel full all the time.
Symptoms – frequent urination.
Tips to avoid – drink plenty of water but limit fluid intake before going to bed to avoid disturbed sleep.
4. Leg cramps
It is a sharp sudden pain which occurs during rest or sleep.
Causes – decreased calcium and potassium level in the blood due to severe vomiting can cause these cramps. Tired muscles produce lactic acid which is also one of the causes of leg cramps.
Symptoms – sudden sharp pain in legs and foot.
This can cause disturbed sleep and tiredness.
Tips to avoid – drink plenty of fluids to replace salt and nutrients in the body, doing some leg exercises are also advised to avoid leg cramps.
5. Emotional problems
During pregnancy, a woman experiences an emotional roller coaster. It changes her body, food requirements and even affects her work efficiency and family life.
Symptoms – sudden changes in feelings, anxiety, insomnia, strange dreams and forgetfulness.
Pregnant women worry about many things, especially about the baby’s health, family issues, and labor. Sometimes they experience mood swings or emotional changes. Emotional changes and disturbed sleep makes women irritable. This can lead to misunderstanding in families. These worries and feelings are normal. During these conditions, family needs to provide emotional support and encourage them to be positive.
Pregnant women face problems in sleeping. Lying on one side and keeping a pillow between knees can make sleeping comfortable.
Conclusion
Many women do not understand how to deal with pregnancy-related problems. Hence it is required to create awareness among pregnant women and their families about these minor disorders. Simple exercise, changes in diet and some home remedies can make the mother feel better. If the condition worsens it’s better to take doctors advice.
By educating people about pregnancy-related disorders we can help minimize the complications and make pregnancy a happy pregnancy.
