Sleep Issues and Pregnancy

By Jane Miller

Many women are shocked to experience the many different and uncomfortable side-effects of experiencing pregnancy. A woman's body undergoes many amazing changes when she becomes pregnant and some of those are surprising the first time you experience them. Usually women expect to be uncomfortable by trying to sleep with an expanding belly, but there can be lots of other surprising nighttime issues. Lots of people joke about not sleeping when the child is born, but being pregnant brings its own collection of sleeping challenges.

Charley Horses: Leg muscle cramps may strike at any time during the pregnancy, but they are most common in the third trimester. Changes in nutritional needs, dehydration and the rapid weight gain of becoming pregnant can often be reasons for charley horses. There are many cures for muscle spasms, but be sure to ask your doctor before using them. Many expectant women suffer from these unexpected bedtime calf cramping.

Digestion issues: The stomach and other internal organs are being squeezed together to make room for the expanding baby and that tightness commonly affects the digestive system the most. Pregnant women may not always be able to avoid digestion problems because some drugs designed to alleviate these symptoms are not safe for pregnant women. It's no surprise that many women should have problems with digestion during pregnancy.

Unexpected urination issues: Many expecting women suffer through 1 or more infrequent nighttime bedwetting episodes during their pregnancy. Almost all expecting women experience a growing need to urinate much more often than they are used to. Pressure against the urinary system and increased pressure on the kidneys can cause some women to urinate four to six times a night.

Pregnant women should be forewarned about sleep difficulties by their doctors in advance. Some doctors advise pregnant women to sleep with padding around them for comfort and to lay on their left side to help avoid some of these sleep issues. Different sleep issues will come and go during the length of a pregnancy, and not all women have the same sleep challenges. - 32390

About the Author:

Sign Up for our Free Newsletter

Enter email address here