Discomforts in Pregnancy: In a Nutshell (Nursing)

00:01 So, in a nutshell, and we have a lot of nutshells because we covered a lot of information so hang in there.

00:08 Nausea and vomiting are common first trimester pregnancy discomfort and it's really alleviated, or at least helped, by using small frequent meals, eating salty foods and avoiding any triggers.

00:20 Emotional changes are just a normal part of pregnancy and should be expected but we should also make sure we're ruling out signs of depression.

00:29 Pyrosis or heart burn is a result of the hormonal changes and the pressures of the growing uterus and that's totally normal.

00:36 So, again, we want to use small, frequent meals and then make sure that we're looking for signs of pre-eclampsia.

00:42 So, heart burn that shows up, we want to always double-check that there's not something else with it.

00:49 Round ligament pain, that sharp pain on the sides of the abdomen tends to show up around 18 to 20 weeks and feels like sharp pain on the side.

00:57 Changing position slowly will help with that.

01:00 Being tired is a very common early pregnancy symptom, but we want to make sure that we've ruled out symptoms like anemia or diabetes.

01:09 Constipation is caused by relaxation of the smooth muscle which is also very normal but increasing fluids, increasing exercise and increasing fiber in the diet or through medication may be a way to help alleviate that symptom.

01:24 Back pain is a normal pregnancy discomfort but complications such as preterm labor and kidney infection must be ruled out to make sure that everything is okay.

01:34 Bleeding gums, and bloody nose or epistaxis, those are normal.

01:39 They're a sign of just normal increase in blood flow which is what we want to happen during pregnancy.

01:45 We want to offer reassurance, maybe a soft toothbrush, and just lots of reassurance.

01:52 Hemorrhoids are caused by relaxation of the smooth muscle, and again, the weight of the fetus.

01:59 So, we want to avoid constipation because that's a set up for large hemorrhoids, and if a patient's experiencing hemorrhoids, checking for signs of infection or thrombosis is definitely going to be important.

02:11 Leg cramps are also caused by the weight of the fetus and the changes in the circulatory system.

02:16 So, dorsiflexing the foot, using compression hose may be one way, but always, we want to rule out a deep vein thrombosis.

02:24 Hormones can cause sodium retention and that can lead to edema in the third trimester.

02:30 We want to always make sure we don't notice edema in the first trimester and we also want to be on the look out for edema around the eyes or something that may be associated with pre-eclampsia.

02:41 Supine hypotension or vena cava syndrome may happen when a client is lying flat on their back so making sure when the client is lying down, they're on one side or the other, or at least elevated slightly or have a roll on one side so they're not completely flat will really help with that.

02:58 Braxton Hicks are warm-up contractions that are usually irregular and not painful.

03:04 If they become painful or regular, we need to think about either preterm labor or a urinary tract infection.

03:11 You did it. We're done. We got all the way through the pregnancy discomforts.

03:16 And hopefully, you're not uncomfortable now. Alright, see you later.