feeling faint

[jenniferB]

i'm about 8 weeks now and have been overcome with faintness the last few days. i don't even think i should drive. it's become even more troublesome than my morning sickness.

anyone have ideas how to curb this? i didn't feel this way at all during my first pregnancy. i know its normal, but it seems to be getting worse. i try to eat eggs, toast, fruit, milk, and lots of raisans. and i try to keep my tummy from being empty. i feel a bit feverish but my temp is normal.

help.

~jenn

[butternut]

Jenn-I also felt faint during my first trimester, first pregnancy and my midwife thought it was related to allergies--as it was hayfever season for me then and I was not taking my usual medicines. I don't know if that can apply to you. I mostly had to rest a lot and be careful not to get up too quickly. It got worse when I rushed or stressed.
You should ask your midwife.
Good luck.:)

[Artisan]

It sounds like low blood sugar. When you feel faint, do you also feel shaky, sort of disconnected mentailty (like you're unable to concentrate) and/or crabby? If so, that's most likely low blood sugar. I'm hypoglycemic and deal with this problem all the time.
:( What helps me is to try and eat protein, fat, and carbs with every snack or meal. For example, I could never eat JUST crackers. I would have to have crackers and peanut butter or crackers and cheese. The protein and fat help regulate your blood sugar better than the rush of carbs.

Hope you get this sorted out soon!

[AmyG]

Feeling faint can result just from the fact that your body is changing so much. Your going to need to increase your blood volume to support the baby, so your blood vessels and vains and so on are getting bigger to accomodate it. Until the extra blood is there, you're going to feel like you're "running on empty", so to speak, since you aren't quite as full as you are normally.

[KKmama]

I second the previous poster about blood volume and dilated blood vessels. I have pretty low blood pressure to begin with, and some feelings of faintness during pg seem to be "normal" for me, esp. during the 1st tri and early 2nd tri.

I think getting plenty of liquids (dehydration does not help with this!) is important. Also getting a lot of rest, enough iron, and of course, keeping your blood sugar up to not make it even worse. I'm pretty careful when I stand up from sitting or lying down... if I do it too quickly, there's no blood there when I arrive. ;)

[christymama]

Have your Iron level checked! I say this because this is who I was with my second pregnancy. I was all over the place. I always felt warm but had a normal temp. I was always feeling as I was about to pass out. I am always a little anemic but I had dropped alot. They say they like your levels to be around 12-14 and mine was at a 3 and they were stressing very much that if something happened like Borth or a accident I would need a blood transfusion because it was so low. Eat extra things that has iron and see if that helps. Alot of green veggies have iron . But not all of them. Also once you get it checked and if it is low they will give ya some iron pills. They helped me ALOT HTH

[jenniferB]

thanks all for replying. christymama, you described exactly how i feel. i kind of wanted to avoid going to the doctor but i guess i should. i also have low blood-pressure and a history of being borderline anemic. i think i may be heading that way again. i have heart palpitations and always feel cold. how frustrating.

are iron supplements ok for the baby? i'm a vegetarian so this seems to be the way to go, but i somehow thought taking iron pills during pregnancy was a no-no. searching thru the internet i found studies on pregnant women in the third trimester but non for the first yet.

~jenn

[christymama]

I have always taken iron pills throughout both my pregnancies. I take the ones my drs have perscribe for me. I think that if your body is lacking it then its ok to take you can over due it but if your count is as low as mine was its safe. They should check you everyonce in awhile to see if its going up . I only took one a day . I took it along with my prenatal. I hope that helps. :wave

[KKmama]

I'm vegetarian, too. I was low in iron in my last pg, and low this time, too, and taking iron both times. It was caught earlier this time, which is good.

I take an iron pill on an empty stomach mid-afternoon with a source of vitamin C (often a grapefruit). It's absorbed much better this way; lots of stuff in regular food can bind with the iron and render it non-absorbable.

I think this will help tremendously to give you post-partum energy, too.

[jenniferB]

kk and christymama, do you mind me asking how many mg of iron you took?

[Snowy Owl]

I just started taking an iron supplement because I was feeling much as you describe, jenniferb, and was anemic with last pg. iron supplements are not all the same and some are specially formulated for pregnacy. The one I am currently using is a liquid gel cap with folic acid and B12. And doesn't cause constipation.
It's called Platinum 'Easy Iron'. 18 mg of iron
I didn't know that you should take on empty stomach though! I always take with meals. It says on container to take with meals...