Lack of sleep during pregnancy can take a toll on the mother’s health, and could even affect the baby as well. Sleep health content specialist and sleep expert Miranda Garibaldi of Sleepopolis, explains the issues surrounding lack of sleep through out.
High blood pressure
Not enough or too much sleep in early pregnancy can cause women to be more prone to developing high blood pressure during the third trimester. High blood pressure is never good, especially during pregnancy as it can lead to preeclampsia.
Preeclampsia
Lack of sleep may pose a higher risk for preeclampsia, which can be very dangerous for both mother and baby. Its main symptoms are hand and foot swelling, high blood pressure, and urine containing protein. It can greatly damage organs such as the mother’s heart, kidney, liver, etc.
Gestational Diabetes
Research has also found that those with less sleep could have a higher risk of developing gestational diabetes – high blood sugar that affects pregnant women.
Can impact labor and delivery
A lot of women may lose sleep stressing about L&D. But sleep deprivation could affect labor. Lack of sleep has been found to be tied to higher c-section rates in women with less than 6 hours of sleep in a 24-hour period, as well as longer labor.
Immune support
Little sleep can affect the mother’s immune system. The immune system is the defense system for the growing baby, so mothers should try to capitalize on sleep as much as possible.
Energy
In the first trimester, the baby is growing the most and depleting a mother’s energy, which can make mom feel tired. Expectant mothers should get proper sleep during this phase to curb exhaustion.
Tips for sleep
Sleep can be uncomfortable and often hard in just about every stage of pregnancy due to muscle cramps, the body growing, trouble breathing, urge to go to the bathroom, etc. But there are ways to get better sleep amid pregnancy symptoms:
Don’t eat large meals less than 2 hours prior to bed. Eating large meals or greasy foods before bed is often found to increase pregnancy heartburn during sleep.
Wear comfortable shoes to avoid strain on the lower back
Use a maternity belly band to support the lower back and hips
Do stress-reducing activities such as deep breathing techniques or prenatal yoga. During my pregnancy, I found a lot of stress-relieving benefits from prenatal yoga!
Sit in chairs that offer back support and provide comfort
