Food that's easy to digest 34 weeks

[somedizzywhore1804]

Hi wise mumsnetters

I'm 34 weeks pregnant with my first. Suffered very bad HG and was hospitalised several times in trimesters 1 and 2. Haven't gained much weight at all although have been pretty well since 26 weeksish and have been eating properly again.

However since week 30 I've been having increasing problems with Braxton Hicks and bloatedness. I'm now finding that eating even a small meal at dinner time is causing me to have 8-12hours of bloatedness, wind, indigestion and ultimately diohrreah followed by Braxton Hicks sometimes with vomitting thrown in.

No concerns from midwife, GP or consultant (am under consultant due to blood disorder that encompasses anemia and high levels of clotting agents) and have just been told this is "normal".

The only time I feel in anyway comfortable is when I don't eat. So if I can get away with it I will go 24 hours just eating real fruit ice lollies, a tiny amount of fruit, a tiny salad and drinking water/squash and maybe some ice cubes. However I know this is a) stupid b) not sustainable for the next 6-8 weeks.

So what do I eat and when do I eat it? I've tried having a light main meal at lunchtime and still end up with the same symptoms.

Eggs are good, they are light and nearly 100% BV meaning your body uses almost all of the eggs and very little left to waste. Maybe try not eating whole meals just a bit scrambled egg, chicken is also quite good too and easily digested.

Hopeful bump

If the problem is bloatedness and wind then might be worth having a look at the low fodmap diet online, it's really helped some of my friends who have chronic gas.

Hi somedizzy. I had HG too in my last pregnancy (and it's just starting again now in my second, great!). The sickness never stopped for me but the best bit was weeks 26-30 then from 30 onwards I vomited more again and also had more probs with indigestion so I think I know what you mean. Have you discussed indigestion remedies with your docs? I was on ranitidine all the way through which is totally safe and really really helps with acid, I found it particularly helpful in the final months; lots of other indigestion remedies etc are also completely safe, though the consultant team may feel more comfortable prescribing than the GP/midwife. Also, how are your iron levels at the moment? I think being anaemic in itself suppresses appetite so if you are really struggling to feel hungry at all I would be concerned that your iron levels really need attention. I think you need to stress that you understand that these issues are not a problem for the baby directly, but that you're concerned that after a difficult and nutritionally non-ideal pregnancy you are not going to be able to put on any weight. Are you having regular growth scans? Is the midwife weighing you? I didn't get back to my pre-pregnancy weight until towards the end of the second trimester, but I did put on a normal amount of weight in the end despite the ongoing sickness.

I guess for the eating you should stick with your 'safe' foods (while gradually trying to expand that group if you are no longer feeling/being sick) but try eating very small amounts very frequently perhaps? How are you with milk? could you manage some milkshakes or something like that? Milk can help with indigestion as well. What about very bland, stomach-calming foods like rice or bananas?

Finally, I wonder if there is a stress or psychological element. Although my HG lasted all the way to the end, in the last couple of months I found the sickness was particularly stress/tiredness-related. Are you doing too much? If you are anaemic you must be tired anyway. Even after the pregnancy I had problems with food aversions for a really really long time - it was about a year before I could eat normally again. I actually think this is not at all surprising if you have vomited so much for so long but I think it is really underestimated and undertreated. I began to work on regaining confidence with food as I weaned DS!