Almost every woman would experience sleeping problems during pregnancy. The severity of the sleeping problems may vary but there is no way to avert the discomfort and lack of quality sleep. During pregnancy, the female body undergoes numerous physical and hormonal transformations. These affect the quality of sleep and can prevent you from getting adequate sleep as well. Additionally, there are emotional stress, increased body weight and certain specific medical problems.
The first trimester and the third trimester during pregnancy are the hardest phases. The second trimester is relatively more conducive to getting good sleep. In the first trimester during pregnancy, you would need to wake up many a times because of frequent urges to urinate. You would feel fatigued during the day which induces sleep and this can make way for insomnia, preventing sleep at night.
In the third trimester during pregnancy, the increased size of the belly, the frequent urge to urinate, increased body weight and movements of the baby within the womb would create sleep problems. Muscle cramps and several other physical conditions would also contribute to existing sleep problems. Heartburns, sinus congestion and many other factors would create sleep problems during pregnancy, through every trimester.
Although you would face the aforementioned problems, there are some ways you can manage them, lessen them and still get some sound sleep.
How To Counter Sleep Problems During Pregnancy
You should always speak and consult with your doctor to find the best remedies to your sleep problems during pregnancy. Here are a few tips that can help you to get some sound sleep.
– Using extra pillows can be very helpful. You can take a few pillows to support your belly and the back. You can sleep sideways and place a pillow in between your legs and one at the side of your lower back for additional support. You can buy some special pillows which are ideal during pregnancy. Having full length body pillows or wedge shaped pillows can be very helpful to counter sleep problems.
– It is essential to provide adequate nutrition to the body as that would be necessary to get sound sleep. A glass of milk before going to bed, eating breads or crackers which are high on carbohydrates and can help with getting sleep, some snacks that have high protein contents to keep up the blood sugar levels can also be sufficient to cure sleep problems.
– Since the body is fatigued and stressed, it is essential to relax the body, the muscles and the bones. Massages, relaxation therapies and pregnancy yoga can help with sleep problems.
– Being active is a requisite to get sound sleep. You should exercise, be physical active and high on energy so you can fall asleep quickly and get some sound sleep.
– If these remedies do not work to improve your sleep problems then you can opt for over the counter medications or prescription drugs. The latter is more recommendable than the former.