Soon to be Moms, heads up. Or er, heads down (in the pillows)! Now that you’re reading this post, there’s no need to get worried about making your forever tired body cuddle and fall into a deep sleep.
As such, doctors recommend pregnant women a minimum of 8 hours in bed, so that she can get at least 7 hours of sound sleep. With increasing work load imposed on your body which has to work for two (rather than one), it often causes a fuss.
Some women feel extreme daytime sleepiness during their first trimester due to changing levels of hormone progesterone in the body. On the other hand, there are some who have a lot of difficulty in sleeping during their pregnancy due to discomfort and aches. There are other factors like nausea, snoring, heartburns, leg cramps, etc. that also tend to plague sleep.
Following are Some Tips that should be Followed by Pregnant Women while Going to Sleep:
- Learn to sleep on your left side always, especially if you’re pregnant. This ensures proper supply of nutrients and oxygen to your abdomen and helps in better filtering of blood. This also makes excretion of the baby easier.
- Reduce consumption of caffeine.
- Reduce water consumption during late afternoon and evening.
- Avoid eating to fullness before going to bed. Also, cut down on spicy food. Besides giving you a sound sleep, this also prevents heartburns.
- Take a light snack before bed to prevent morning sickness.
- Time your naps carefully so that your sleeping patterns aren’t disturbed.
- Relax. Relax. Relax. Don’t let your ‘to-do’ list get in the way of your sleep.
- Practice meditation or take classes to learn other relaxation techniques. Or better, use the Internet to your advantage.
- Follow your sleep cycle like a mantra. This will ease your melatonin.
- Leave your bed. Your bed is your throne for sleeping and other enjoyable activities like reading or watching TV. Don’t fall into a habit of doing everything in bed. This not only leads to after-birth obesity but also makes you unfit.
- Try using a full body pillow to embrace and cuddle.
