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by Serena Tidwell, MD
I'm pregnant and tired all the time. I know I need extra sleep, but how much is enough? Is it possible to get too much sleep?
First of all, as an obstetrician and mother of a 6-year-old, I will say, there is no such thing as “too much” sleep!!
I hear from almost 100 percent of my OB patients that they are tired. While the actual sleep requirements do not increase during pregnancy, it becomes more difficult to get comfortable or get uninterrupted sleep during pregnancy. Pregnant women (and all women) require approximately 8 hours of sleep per night.
Many pregnant women will find during the first trimester that they are very tired, and they may actually get 8 hours of sleep for the first time in a while (since most of us function on far less). Usually, the fatigue lessens as you enter the second trimester (after 12 weeks), and you may have several months where fatigue is not as big a factor.
However, usually as you approach
your due date, you will find the fatigue
returns. Often this is due to waking up
frequently to urinate, difficulty finding a
comfortable position for sleep and anxiety
or worry about your approaching
birth. All of these are completely normal.
I often joke with my patients as they
approach their due date that the interrupted
sleep is preparing them for the
newborn soon to arrive in their home.
I hear concerns from a lot of pregnant
women about safe sleeping positions.
Whatever is comfortable to you is safe! If
you are a back sleeper, tuck a small pillow
under one hip. If you are a belly sleeper,
pad for comfort with pillows, but you
will not hurt the baby sleeping on your
belly. If you are a side sleeper, you may
find putting a pillow under your belly
and another between your legs will
increase your comfort level. Remember
that our bodies are smart, and your body
will not do anything during sleep to hurt
the baby.
One final thing I have noticed over the years of delivering babies—my patients all tell me they are more tired with their second pregnancy than they were with their first, more tired with their third than their second, etc. This has nothing to do with pregnancy and everything to do with having small children at home that you care for—since the only thing more exhausting than pregnancy is motherhood!
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