Insomnia during pregnancy: what to do, how to fight

2024 Author: Priscilla Miln | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 00:21

Insomnia during pregnancy is a problem that only two tens of percent of women managed to avoid. For the majority, falling asleep turns into real torment, adversely affecting the he alth of the expectant mother and fetus. It is noteworthy that insomnia during pregnancy can be encountered at almost any time. Some women begin to suffer from it from the very moment two cherished stripes appear on the test, while others begin at a later date, when the growing belly and the baby begin to deliver a number of unpleasant sensations.

Reviews about insomnia during pregnancy give an idea that doctors take this problem quite seriously and try to help their patients cope with it as quickly as possible. And this is natural, because a woman exhausted during the night caninadvertently harm herself by performing the simplest actions, she has a noticeable lack of energy that is required for the development of the baby, and the psychological state gradually becomes more and more oppressed. Therefore, if you are familiar with such a problem as insomnia during pregnancy, then our article is just for you.

Let's talk about insomnia

If you look in any of the medical reference books, you can find out what a given physiological state of the body is. According to this information, insomnia can be called any sleep disorder, expressed in its insufficient quality, short duration and problems with immersion in it.

Insomnia during pregnancy often becomes a constant companion of women, regardless of the timing. With a good combination of circumstances, she may stop tormenting the expectant mother on her own, but many write that it was the lack of proper sleep that became the most serious problem for them throughout the entire nine months.

It is difficult to say what to do with insomnia during pregnancy when you are not familiar with the mechanism of this phenomenon and its types. And this information can be extremely important, because at each stage of bearing the crumbs, sleep problems have their own understandable reasons. If you are aware of them, you can find for yourself several effective ways that will help alleviate the condition of the pregnant woman and return her to the opportunity to fully rest at night.

Let's try to figure out the types of insomnia together. It will help you during pregnancycorrectly determine the causes of your condition and report them to the doctor, who will select a list of the most effective recommendations.

Classify insomnia

Medics divide insomnia during pregnancy, as at any other time, into three types. They are described in medical reference books, where their detailed characteristics are given:

• situational;
• short-term;
• chronic.

Regarding pregnant women, each of the above classifications has its justification and reasons.

In the first trimester of pregnancy, insomnia is most often situational. It occurs after a serious emotional outburst, and it can be both positive and negative. Since the hormonal state of a woman expecting a baby is extremely unstable, any strong emotions instantly deprive her of sleep. Insomnia in this case can last for several days or weeks. Usually it passes by itself, when the impressions gradually fade, and the emotions cease to be so significant. In order to avoid such conditions in the future, relatives and friends of a pregnant woman should protect her from negativity and surround her with care. If this can be done to the full, then you will not have to treat insomnia in the first trimester of pregnancy.

Short-term sleep disturbances have very real physiological causes. For example, at the 35th week of pregnancy, insomnia may occur due to the rapid movements of the fetus. Also, a similar disorder manifests itself as a result of stress, cardiovascular problems and the use of certain drugs. Short-term insomnia may well last for thirty days, and this is the period during which serious harm can be done. The body of a pregnant woman is extremely sensitive to lack of sleep, so you should not hide this problem from your doctor. Even two weeks in this mode can be very dangerous for the expectant mother.

Chronic insomnia is the most complex type of sleep disorder. It rarely occurs in connection with pregnancy. Most often, a woman suffers from it for many years, and while waiting for the baby, insomnia only gets worse. In this case, the problem requires serious treatment, but the doctor in the antenatal clinic must necessarily correct it. Since drugs taken regularly before the conception of a child may be strictly contraindicated for the next nine months.

Dangers of insomnia for pregnant women

It may seem to many from the outside that if the expectant mother suffers from insomnia, then pregnancy is not in danger. In fact, this is a wrong assumption, because doctors have long identified all the dangers of this condition.

Lack of sleep experts quite often put on a par with such signs of pregnancy as drowsiness and morning sickness. Every woman knows that from the moment of conception, all the forces of her body are directed to its hormonal restructuring. Therefore, insomnia during early pregnancy does not allow the expectant mother to fully relax. The body, forced to work for two, is depleted twice as fast. Any day to day business becomes difficultdoable, concentration drops several times. As a result, a woman can harm herself because of her own absent-mindedness.

In addition to physical fatigue, which increases with each new stage of pregnancy, insomnia adds psychological discomfort. The expectant mother becomes irritable, tearful and prone to depression. She loses control over her actions and is unable to make the right decisions. This is especially dangerous when a woman drives a car or does something that requires increased concentration.

Features of insomnia in pregnant women

What to do with insomnia during pregnancy, we will tell readers a little later, and now we will try to classify the problems of sleep disorders that expectant mothers most often face.

Many women meet with a starting type of sleep disorder. Starting insomnia during late pregnancy is the most common occurrence. It is expressed in the fact that a woman cannot fall asleep for a long time in the evenings. The expectant mother tosses from side to side, solves a lot of problems, thinks about the upcoming birth and suffers from excessive night activity of the baby. In the later stages, women can lie awake until the morning, they are hindered by a large belly and other physiological changes that have occurred with their body. As a result, they cannot replenish their reserves of strength and feel overwhelmed and exhausted in the morning.

Other pregnant women fall asleep perfectly, but wake up regularly, which significantly reduces the quality of the nightrecreation. A similar disorder can occur at any time: in the first, second and third trimester.

During pregnancy, insomnia can be of a different order. It lies in the fact that a woman wakes up in the morning and can no longer fall asleep. Thus, the rest is not complete, and the expectant mother will feel as tired as possible.

Physiological causes of insomnia

Every specialist is able to name a lot of reasons that cause sleep disorders. Among them are physiological and psychological. There are situations when just one reason deprives a woman of sleep for a long time. And in some cases, it is necessary to neutralize a number of causes that caused insomnia.

Most often insomnia occurs during pregnancy in the third trimester, and therefore the reasons for its appearance are mainly physiological. First of all, they include the inconvenience due to the large belly. It is difficult for a woman to find a comfortable sleeping position that she can spend most of the night looking for.

An enlarged uterus also causes pulling pains, they often manifest themselves in full in the evening and last until the morning. Naturally, falling asleep in this state is quite difficult.

Kids often begin to actively behave with the onset of evening twilight. The baby can twist and turn for several hours, during which the mother will not be able to even try to sleep.

Belly growth causes stretch marks on the skin. They are accompanied by itching, worse at night. Getting rid of it is quite difficult, sowomen suffer from insomnia for a long time.

In the last trimester, pregnant women often suffer from heartburn, cramps in the calf muscles and back pain. All these symptoms do not allow a woman to rest and feel well enough in the morning.

Towards the end of pregnancy, the baby begins to put a lot of pressure on the bladder, so often the expectant mother gets up several times a night to go to the toilet. No wonder getting out of bed so often makes it hard to get enough sleep.

Psychological causes of insomnia

Any woman expecting a baby has a lot of reasons to lose sleep. At a certain stage of pregnancy, she begins to experience chronic fatigue and stress. To them is added fear for the unborn baby and the upcoming birth. Thoughts about this can deprive even the woman who will give birth not for the first time.

Some expectant mothers complain of nightmares, they make the rest incomplete and cause real stress that is difficult to overcome even during the day.

If you also suffer from insomnia, then you urgently need to learn how to cope with it. Because otherwise the situation will only get worse.

First trimester: what we know about insomnia

Hormonal restructuring of the body is a huge stress that not every mom passes without a trace. The fact is that in the first months of pregnancy, progesterone produced in large quantities allows you to save the future baby.

Because of this, the body literally goes into combatreadiness and fully focuses on its main task - to create conditions for the full development of the child. Naturally, at night, the amount of the hormone does not decrease, and this, in turn, deprives the woman of sleep.

At the same time, the expectant mother begins to think about her he alth, thinks about different situations and starts planning for the future. These psychological prerequisites are complementary to the changed hormonal background and increase insomnia.

Of course, nothing can be done about the amount of progesterone in the first trimester, but it is quite possible to protect yourself from stress and other emotional outbursts. This will contribute to a good night's rest and sleep disturbance will gradually recede.

Second trimester: what happens to the body of a pregnant woman

In the second trimester of pregnancy, insomnia usually recedes. This is due to the fact that by this period the body has already adapted to the changes that have occurred. The nervous system copes well with the growing load, and the kidneys and liver easily adapted to the gradually increasing size of the uterus. She, in turn, has not yet reached such a size as to squeeze the internal organs and cause discomfort to the woman.

If at this time you still have insomnia, then most likely its cause lies in increased nervous excitability and stress levels. In this regard, it is worth learning to control your emotions and protect yourself from unnecessary problems.

3rd trimester insomnia

Onin the later stages, the sleep disorder usually returns, many women complain that they cannot fall asleep for a long time, constantly spinning and waking up often. Some wake up long before dawn and then suffer for hours.

It can be said that there are a lot of reasons for this condition and it is very difficult to correct the situation in the later stages. Experts believe that another hormonal storm is the culprit for insomnia. By the upcoming birth, the level of progesterone begins to decline sharply. This causes an unstable psychological state, accompanied by fears, nightmares, increased excitability and constant expectation of contractions.

To this condition is added physical discomfort caused by pain in the lower back and lower abdomen, heartburn, pressing on the internal organs of the uterus and actively moving baby. In the third trimester, almost eighty percent of women experience insomnia, and if earlier it was caused by one or two reasons, now the prerequisites add up to a whole complex. Therefore, solving the problem of a night's rest is becoming increasingly difficult, but still possible.

So, how to deal with insomnia during pregnancy? Let's do this together.

Help yourself in early pregnancy

Since the causes of sleep disorders at different stages of waiting for a baby vary, the ways to deal with it cannot be identical. If you are experiencing insomnia in the first trimester, you can help yourself by adjusting your sleep and wake patterns, as well as paying attention to your daily diet.

Despitethe fact that now many go to bed long after midnight, a pregnant woman should accustom herself to go to bed no later than eleven o'clock in the evening. If you do this daily, then after a few weeks, sleep will come automatically. This habit is good for he alth.

Try not to eat three hours before sleep, otherwise the stomach will be overloaded and all the forces of the body will be used to digest food. Naturally, you won't be able to fall asleep for several hours.

Give up strong black tea and coffee, even if you can not exist without these drinks, then for the sake of a good sleep they will have to be replaced with herbal decoctions. Without consulting a doctor, you can brew chamomile and mint. If desired, these herbs can be mixed, a warm broth is drunk half an hour before bedtime. A glass of warm milk also has a sedative effect, it will not only help you fall asleep, but also satisfy your hunger.

It is not recommended to brew herbal preparations with a large number of components, it is better to ask your doctor about them. Otherwise, the decoction may cause allergies or harm the baby.

In the early stages of pregnancy, an evening walk helps to fall asleep. If you do not have such an opportunity, or by the evening there is simply no strength left, then ventilate the bedroom well. In autumn and spring, you can even leave the window open all night.

Insomnia in the third trimester of pregnancy: what to do

In the last stages of pregnancy, women may experience all sleep disorders at the same time. Somethey fall asleep badly, others plunge into dreams, barely touching the pillow with their heads, but then more than once break out of the arms of Morpheus, and still others wake up long before the alarm clock and lie in the dark for a long time, thinking about everything in the world. Sometimes expectant mothers in the third trimester manage to experience even all kinds of insomnia in turn.

In order to cope with sleep disorders, experts recommend lying on your left side. This method is good for starting insomnia. In this position, the baby receives enough oxygen, and the internal organs can easily work, performing their basic functions.

If you can't find a comfortable position, get yourself a pregnancy pillow. With its help, you will be able to sink into a cozy nest and fit your tummy, while raising your head, which will promote sound sleep.

Those women who suffer from cramps at night need to massage the calf muscles and feet. This procedure not only relieves muscle spasms, but also neutralizes the psychological tension that is often the culprit of insomnia.

An orthopedic mattress is also worth a try. Pregnant women often report that once they get a new mattress with independent springs or with the right padding, finding a comfortable resting position is much easier.

If you have a fairly large tummy, be sure to wear a bandage during the day. It has been proven that by the evening women who helped the muscles to support the tummy with specialdevices fell asleep faster than those who neglected them.

Of course, in the article we have given a generalized list of recommendations that may not work in your particular case. Therefore, if your insomnia lasts more than ten days, and you sleep no more than six hours a day, then immediately go to the doctor. Keep in mind that preparing for a future birth requires a lot of effort from the body and sleep is what it needs in the first place. Do not neglect your he alth and soon you will be pleased with the first smile of your precious baby.