Desperately Seeking a Full Nights Sleep

Im 6 1/2 months pregnant and still wake up 2-4 times a night to pee. Hopefully that will subside soon but you never know. For sleep my dr said tylenol pm is safe, so use that once in a while.

Something that helped me was a hot shower...even at 3am. I know certain scents can be relaxing like lavender. My experience was once I reached the 2nd trimester...sleep got much better. I felt more myself again. Hang in there. It will get better!

You know what? You'd probably better call the doctor. I don't think you should have to go to the bathroom that much just because you're seven weeks pregnant. That's not because of the pregnancy, I mean... Maybe you have something else going on.

Congratulations on your pregnancy! I can relate - I'm 27 weeks with my second and I posted a few months ago about waking up and not being able to get back to sleep. First, make sure you don't drink anything after 6 pm. Second, if the sleeplessness is a problem, you can take Tylenol PM but only in the second and third trimesters. Ask your doctor to be sure. Third, put a night light in your bathroom so you don't have to turn on the light to pee. Going to the bathroom overnight while pregnant is unavoidable, but the goal is to not completely wake up when you're doing it - almost like you're sleepwalking - so that when you get back to bed you can just fall back asleep. And I found that I didn't have trouble falling asleep initially, but I'd be up from about 4 am on, so I started to go to bed earlier to get my sleep on the front end, if that makes sense.

Hang in there - it will get easier. The first trimester is the worst for so many changes in your body. I only get up to pee once a night now and I'm sleeping a lot better, for the most part. Good luck!

Fortunately, this will actually get better after the first trimester (and then it will get worse again... but there is a repreive!) Mostly I suggest limiting what you drink before bedtime. You'll be super thirsty in the mornings (keep some water by your bed) but you can frequently make it through the night if you just don't drink much in the evenings. The other thing you can try is doing kegels when you have to go. Do about 20-30 kegels and see if you can roll over and go back to sleep. I was able to make it *most* nights through my first trimester. Even now at 22 weeks, I only have to get up about half the nights....

They say pregnancy really prepares you for when the baby comes, and in this case it is true. The first trimester is hard on many levels, and one of them is peeing every few hours. It is a pain, but it will pass. Around the 12 week mark you will have to go less. I know it seems like that won't happen, but something magical tends to happen around that time. The other's had good suggestions, and I would try to follow those. But, just try to stick it out. I remember during my first pregnancy, I got home from work and went straight to bed. It was about 7ish. It stunk, but I got more sleep that way since I was up so much at night going to the bathroom and not being able to get back into bed. Good luck!

When you awaken what are your thoughts???? YOu are in complete control whether or not you want ot go back to sleep. YOu need to address the source of your anxiety. Good Luck Dr Meyer

Hi V.,

I had the same problem after I had my baby and I tried accupuncture.....it took a while but it worked and also I stopped putting lavendar on or drinking something thhat might put me to sleep and stopped stressing about it as we freak ourselves out thinking about the not ssleeping. Good luck

Hi V.,
Are you taking your prenatal vitamins?? What time of day do you take them?? Always take vitamins early, some people are stimulated by them. You may also try some extra magnesium at night, great with nerves.
If you are going to the bathroom frequently, do you have a bladder infection? Is it just at night? Do you drink cranberry juice? not the foofoo juice loaded with canesugar but the real mccoy.
P. RN

This might sound "simple" but have you tried not drinking anything at night so you will not have to get up to pee. Just a thought.

H.

Yes, keep in mind that your uterus sits on top of your bladder, with the sudden growth, this is quite common in the first trimester and it gets worse again in the third. Try a Calcium/Magnesium supplement in the evenings before bed, too much magnesium may cause diaherra so be careful or you'll have another problem. I have a 6m old and take this supplement before bed as well. Also, try 500mg of Vitamin B5 to help support your adrenal glands since these glands are being exhausted at a high rate during pregnancy and effect hormones in your body. I took 1000mg and still do post partum. Every pregnant woman should take at least 500mg to support their adrenal glands. Try stretching before bed to help relax your muslces and perhaps you can coax your spouse into a shoulder and back rub before bed!

My daughter is 3 months old, and I have to say I am just now getting more sleep than I was when I was pregnant! Sorry to break the news to you, but it is only the begining~ My first pregnancy I wasn't waking up in the middle of the night till about my 20th week, but my being pregnant this time, I was up several times for even an hour at a time early in the pregnancy all the way till I delivered her. I would cry to the doctors and they looked sympathetic...but had no useful solution, but to sleep when I could, even if it was a nap.
This is your body preparing for being a mom. This is totally normal, and unfortunatly isn't fair, but you will adjust soon to your sleep patterns of pregnancy. Best of luck!

I know how that feels! I have 3 boys. Their ages are 10,7,and 4. I used to get up during the night to go to the bathroom and I had trouble getting back to sleep. I tried drinking a glass of warm milk before I went to lay back down and it helped me. You might want to try it. It doesn't taste the greatest but it might work.

Since you're PG, i recommend seeing my dr., she's a homeopath. She can make wonders happen overnight w/ the right homeopathic remedy, which are super safe to take w/ no side effect, pregnant, nursing, or not! she's been treating a lot of pg moms to be in the last years! She's in naperville, Dr. josephine polich. here's her website. she takes blue cross if you have that. we don't but use our flexible spending acct. www.dupagehomeopathic.com
there's a spot on her site for newsletters and i think one of them is about insomnia. email me offlist if you want to ask more questions about homeopathy. i use it all the time to treat illnesses on my 2 little ones, myself and my friends/family with much success and no side effects!
best wishes!

Your message gave me a huge deja vu moment. I just wanted you to know that you are not a lone. It was the constant (4 -5 times) nightly bathroom runs that was the first sign that I was pregnant (on both occassions). I thought that was way too early in the pregnancies to go that often, but my doctor seemed unconcerned. I have always been a light sleeper ... it was a real problem that only became worse once the baby was born. As I very health conscious person who understands the necessity of quality sleep to maintain optimal health, this part of motherhood has been a real challenge for me.

I know it is extremely HARD to do, but get any amount of sleep whenever you can. I tried everything I could think of ... stopped drinking anything after 5:30, bought darkening blinds for the room, removed ALL sources of light and noise from the room, listened to relaxing music, exercised in the morning rather than the evening, and even listened to hypnosis CDs. It took me awhile, but I finally had to let go of the notion (and the real need) to sleep straight through a night. Now, I am grateful if I can get 4 straight hours. I've had to condition myself (through a lot of self-talk and visualization exercises) to believe that I can thrive on this type of sleep. I am happy to report that on most days, I actually do! And on occassion I pray that someday I'll be able to regularly sleep through the night again.

S.
Mother of a 3 year old and a 7 month old

This sounds awful, but my best advice is "you'll get used to it". Seriously - I am pregnant with my 2nd and am 8 weeks along and get up 2-3 times a night as well. The first pregnancy, I couldn't fall back asleep sometimes until the next time I had to pee! I had recently read the latest Harry Potter book so I would see how many character's names I could recite to myself before dozing off. Maybe that's not the right book for you, but pick another topic - baseball team? And see if it works. Good luck! ~A.

I just yelled at my husband for this very topic this morning. He usually gets up with our son (17mos) in the morning, because the dog already has him up and this way I get an extra hour of sleep. Im 31 wks right now, and our son just started really sleeping through the night when I got pregnant. This morning he complained that he hadn't had a full nights sleep in four days, and as I stormed out of the room and slammed the door, I shouted "try Two Years" LOL. I think it's going to be one of those days. I usually take one Unisom at night, it's the PM in Tylenol PM without the Tylenol, and that makes it easier to fall asleep. Im not sure when I will really sleep through the night again, but Im sure that one day It will happen. As a mom I've noticed that if it's not one thing it's another which will keep our brains working overtime and make sleep and true relaxation difficult. Sorry I can't be of more help, but maybe acceptance is the only route to make the sleep schedule transition easier.

First, I would talk to my doctor to see if this seemed normal. My guess is that it's probably normal for you. Your uterus is growing and pushing against your bladder. Never hurts to make sure to tell your doc though. I recall getting up a lot, but I'm not sure if it was that early in my pregnancy. I always told everyone that it was God's way of training me to be a mom because really, as my mother-in-law said to me, you don't get much sleep again until your kids are 18 and out of the house. I'm finding this to be true. I still have a crazy time getting back to sleep, but I try not to get frustrated with the fact that I'm not sleeping because that only makes it worse. I sit by the window and look out at the night sky and talk to God...this gives me peace.

I was the same way w/ my bladder. If you haven't already try cutting off your fluids at dinner time. Try exercising in the evening it will help w/ fluid & should relax you. Pull out your journal, there is a lot on your mind! Once more thing did was acupuncture. Good Luck!

I'm the same way. I hate having to get up in the middle of the night because it takes me forever to fall asleep. When I was pregnant and when I had a newborn, I never got any sleep! My suggestions are to 1) not turn on any lights when you get up. Just get a nightlite for the bathroom, or do it in the dark if you can. 2) get up as soon as you feel the urge to go. Don't lay in bed and hope it will go away (I used to do that). If you do either of those things you're more likely to become fully awake. Other than that, I don't have any ideas. Hope that helps!!!

It's totally normal.

Just be sure to sleep as much as you can. During the day, if you feel like you need a nap, take it. Other than that, it does get better. Also, if you are turning on any lights, that could be triggering your body to wake up. If this is the case, get a low-light night light for the bathroom (if possible) so you can see where you are going, but not enough light to signal your body to wake.

Hang in there. Christy D was right, the magical week is usually around week 12 when all of the first trimester fun drops off. ;)

Hi,

I've been there with the sleep deprevation, so I am so sorry you're going through it! I started drinking less at night and made sure I peed out as much as I could before I went to bed. Does a warm glass of milk help??? Also when do you exercise, it should be more that 3-4 hours before you go to sleep...again, pregnancy does change everything, so it might not be you mentally but your hormones changing your anatomy! Good luck...naps might be an option worth looking in to!

N.

When my newborn woke me up during the night, I was having a horrible time falling back asleep. I then turned to bringing my iPod to bed with me. Enya and Norah Jones always do the trick. Puts me right to sleep. And, I use earphones so it doesn't bother my husband. Too, when the album runs out, the music turns off so I can still hear my little girl when she wakes up.

First, congratulations on your pregancy!

Now, regarding not sleeping..."Get used to it"! :) You are a mother already, whether you have that baby in your belly or in your arms! You will from here on out go through cycles of sleeping well and not sleeping well. Whether it's to go to the bathroom during the night in your early/late pregnancy, being so huge you wake up every time you have to roll over in your late pregnancy, waking several times a night to feed a newborn, waking a few times a night to soothe a teething ten-month old, or waking a few times a night to soothe a sick three year old.... you WILL experience moments of no sleep when things are chaotic and moments of fabulous sleep when things are calm.

I know I'm sounding like a downer, but really... you do learn to function on little sleep (although it's not easy to get used to)! Just remember to check with your doctor before injesting any remedies to help you sleep.

Hi V.,
Being pregnate really changes your life around. However do try this, sleep on your right side with a pillow between your knees. By sleeping on your left side will make you have to go the rest room more often so do avoid your left side. It really will help you sleep better during the night. Also try to avoid caffine at least 3hrs before bed time.
M. (mother of 3 and a grandmother of 2)

Are you having difficulty falling back asleep because your mind is too active? If so, keep a piece of paper and pen by your bed so you can write down whatever you are thinking and get it out of your head. I also count backwards and it seems to help. I'm impressed that you get 4-5 hours of sleep. I'm on my 8th month and have been getting up every 1-2 hours for the last 3-4 months. I think it's nature's way of preparing us for the sleepless nights once Jr. makes his grand entrance.

Ask you OB if she would mind you trying some Melatonin. It's a natural sleep aid. Our bodies produce it naturally with serotonin. Sometimes our hormones tend to throw our serotonin and melatonin levels off especially when we are pregnant. Though I am greatly surprised. Usually the first trimester is is when you can't stay awake. That is usually a sure fire symptom of pregnancy in the first few weeks. Congratulations!

You pee more in the first and 3rd trimester. It will subside during the second trimester and then as you near giving birth, it will pick back up, getting you ready for those every 1-4 hour feedings for the next (up to) 6 months or longer. You can take a few different things to help you sleep. A Benedryl is an easy and safe solution. Tylonal PM if you also have some pain or the equivilant minus the acetaminaphin (just compare labels) is fine.
Good Luck :)

Ask your doctor about Tylenol PM. Mine said it was harmless since all it is is tylenol and benadryl. I took it every night during my first pregnancy and my daughter and I both slept through the night from her birth! My doctor said some of it was in her system too which helped keep her on my schedule. Since I worked a full time job at the time I HAD to get my sleep.

However, with my twins (I'm not working anymore), I decided to go without if I could. I only took it a couple of times and was up all night long. Even now, it's 4 in the morning and I'm up with the girls again tonight wishing I had taken it more often during my pregnancy. I haven't had more than 2-4 hours of sleep in a night since around March 2007!

Do whatever you have to that's safe for the baby to get some rest now. You'll need it when he/she is born.

Hi V.,

You actually pee more in the first trimester not because of uterus growth necessarily, but because your body is increasing its blood supply, which means more blood gets filtered by your kidneys than was getting filtered before and that leads to... you guessed it! More pee. I would definitely talk to your doctor before you do or take anything, even if it is herbal. One thing that helped me tremendously in my last trimester was Unisom. It is safe to use during pregnancy. I know that my sister also used it in her first trimester because she couldn't sleep with her horrible morning sickness. It is not a heavy sleep aid, like others can be, so I never felt tired the next day and I still woke up to go the restroom, etc, but was able to go back to sleep quickly. Tylenol PM always makes me over drowsy, but I did not feel that way with Unisom. So, talk to your doctor and see, but for my sister and I, it worked like a charm. Good luck!!