A whopping 75-90% of women experience morning sickness during their pregnancy. And while morning sickness is never easy, it’s definitely harder when you’re clutching a wastepaper basket and feverishly finishing up a report for your boss. Keep up your pre-pregnancy productivity –and avoid an office pity party – by following these tips to manage morning sickness at work.
Food Cures
Stop illness in its tracks with snacks such as crackers, peanut butter, nuts, yogurt, peppermint and ginger. (Taking Vitamin B6 and smelling citrus essential oils can help, too.) And remember that the time to eat is before you start feeling nauseous.
Pressure Principle
Travel sea bands – which provide pressure on the wrist and restore your sense of balance – can also decrease waves of nausea. Don’t have one? Try applying pressure to the inner part of your wrist. It can help you manage your morning sickness until it dissipates on its own.
Take It Slow
Jumping up from your chair and dashing to your 10 AM meeting can wreak havoc on your already-sensitive stomach. Slowly change your seated-to-standing position to give your body time to adjust. After all, if you get up to quickly, you could become light-headed and possibly pass out.
Readjust Your Work Schedule
Let’s say that your morning sickness comes like clockwork around 11:00 a.m. Try to avoid scheduling anything important during that time period, like an all-staff meeting. You can either stay seated at your desk and wait for the nausea to pass, or go to your company’s wellness room and take a breather.
Communicate Your Needs
Just because you’re at work doesn’t mean that you have to suffer in silence. If you’re having an especially tough time, you can talk to your boss about what you’re going through. Maybe you can come up a solution (such as working remotely a couple of days a week) until your morning sickness subsides.
Learning how to manage morning sickness at work might be a challenge, particularly when you want to keep up your productivity. But learning how to take care of your pregnancy while working is important, so that you give your best to both your boss — and your baby.