pain relief when pregnant??!!

[ruthietoothie]

Hi,

I'm 16 weeks pregnant, and have got a (fairly) nasty cold. I wasn't sure if I could / should be taking paracetamol or ibuprofen or just trying to brave it without anything!! I do feel a bit horrid, and need to work so not like I can just retire into bed...

What do people think?

Thanks!!

I'd go to the pharmacy and ask them what you can have - they'll give you spor on advice if you're unsure (I did but I now can't remember what they told me to take!)

Paracetamol in moderate dosage is fine but they strongly advise against ibuprofen or aspirin. I was in the same boat as you last week (but at 26 weeks) with a high temp and pretty awful cold - it took 3-4 days to clear without being able to use my usual Lemsip Max Strength or similar cold remedy.

My midwife told me anything that starts with p is fine, because all of the local brands of paracetamol start with p.

Have you tried hot orange squash? Not a bad lemsip substitution.

Hope you feel better soon.

You can use paracetamol as usual.

As with any cold, there's not a lot you can do about it as it's viral but you can alleviate the symptoms. Something to unblock your nose, something to soothe your throat, warmth, taking it easy etc. You obviously have to stick to things like honey and lemon, steam, olbas etc but there are a few things that can help.

It's miserable to have a cold when pregnant as it feels just that bit more taxing.

thanks all for this advice and help. Sounds like it's ok to take paracetamol then! That should relieve the symptoms a bit, and I'm definitely going to get my partner to stock up on some orange squash, honey and lemon.

can't believe my cold arrived just in time for the weekend as well (:

thanks again!!

Ruthie

Yeah just paracetamol really. Rubbish isn't it! Don't underestimate the power of hot ribena or a citrus infusion with lemon. You can always stick a soluble paracetamol tablet in to recreate the lemsip experience . I sympathise .

thank u indith! I'm thinking lots of fluids, lots of cough sweets and a return to bed, once I've got a couple of hours more work under my belt!!

honey and lemon is your saviour!
You can have a paracetomol with your honey and lemon (so that makes it exactly the same as lemsip, except not powdery! )

hope you feel better soon.

also, take advantage of the pregnancy and put your feet up and make DP run around after you (and lots of soup, too)

I've had two colds while pregnant. Paracetamol is fine, and you can get throat lozenges that are safe - I forget which brand but I went to Boots and asked the pharmacist (they were soft chewy blackberry flavour in a purple packet)
If you're feeling some nasal congestion you can use Sterimar which is a natural sea salt water spray. Not as effective as a normal spray, but it's better than nothing.

all sound good, particularly the putting my feet up part!!