Nausea: Treatment, Symptoms, Causes, And How to Deal With It

What is Nausea?

Nausea is not a disease but a symptom of some condition or underlying illness. It is something that most of us dread. That feeling of discomfort in your stomach, which sometimes can lead to vomiting, is something that no one likes. 

We all have experienced that uneasy feeling at one time or another, mostly while reading a book in a moving vehicle or maybe after eating something that didn't agree with us. Although this condition is not serious, it can affect your quality of life. Therefore, read ahead to learn more about this and how to tackle it.

Symptoms of Nausea

When you are commonly experiencing nausea, you will have a queasy or sick feeling in your stomach and feel lightheaded. Here are the most common symptoms of nausea:

• Lightheaded
• Weakness
• Blurry vision
• Sweating
• A buildup of saliva in your mouth
• An urge to vomit

Some people also suffer from chronic nausea, and its symptoms are not easy to describe, but if you are suffering from chronic nausea, you may experience the following:

• Always feeling like you're about to vomit.
• Loss of appetite
• Retching (repeated rhythmic contractions of respiratory and abdominal muscles that happen without your control).
• Abdominal pain.
• Tummy ache.
• Profuse sweating.
• An uneasy feeling in your chest, upper abdomen, or throat.
• Vomiting.

Causes of Nausea

There can be many causes of nausea, but the most common causes that are seen in almost every person suffering from nausea are:

• A Virus or Infection: If you are suffering from a viral flu stomach infection, the most common symptom will be nausea.

• Motion or Sea Sickness: Many people feel nauseated while travelling in a vehicle and sailing through the sea.

• Early Pregnancy: Morning sickness is one of the most common pregnancy symptoms.

• Strong and Peculiar Smells: Many people are quite sensitive to strong and peculiar smells as they can lead to a migraine and, in turn, can cause nausea.

• Heartburn or Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD): This disease will likely cause your stomach’s contents to move back up your oesophagus when you eat. This, in turn, creates a burning sensation that causes nausea.

• Medications: Certain medications — for example, cancer treatments like chemotherapy — can upset the stomach or contribute to nausea. Be sure to carefully read the medication information for any new treatments you may be taking.

• Your Diet: Food intake is directly related to nausea. Habits such as eating cold and hot together, overheating food, having an oily and spicy diet, or eating something you are allergic to will cause nausea.

Many other causes can be due to an underlying illness, such as an ulcer or sore in the stomach lining, ear infection, migraine, meningitis, liver cancer or failure, intestinal blockage, heart attack tack and benign paroxysmal positional vertigo (BPPV). 

How to Deal with Nausea

Nausea is not something that can not be treated. Luckily there are many common practices you can incorporate in your life that will help you fight this issue. They are:

• Proper Rest: Sleeping for at least 8 and taking rest intervals during the day is very important, as being too active will worsen your nausea.

• Stay Hydrated: Dehydration is the worst symptom of nausea. Keep yourself hydrated by drinking cold, clear, carbonated, or sour beverages, such as ginger ale, lemonade, and water, don't gulp it down as that will increase your nausea. Try taking small sips.

• Eat Bland Foods: If you feel nauseated, eat something easy to digest instead of spicy or oily.

• Don't Apply Strong Perfume and Steer Clear of Strong Odours: Strong perfumes, smoke, and food cooking smells can trigger your nausea, therefore try and avoid them.

• Avoid Motion Sickness: Sitting in the front seat of a car opening the window, trying to listen to some peaceful music, and not watching movements outside the window will make your nausea worse. Over-the-counter medicines are also available for motion sickness.

• Eat Small Frequent Meals: Instead of eating just once or twice throughout the day, try eating small meals at frequent intervals as they are easier to digest and will not trigger nausea.

Avoid other nausea triggers like stuffy rooms, heat, humidity, flickering lights, and driving. After doing all this, if you are still not feeling better and it's been more than three days, then you should contact your doctor and do it more urgently if your nausea is also associated with a recent head injury, severe headaches or migraine, blood in vomiting, extreme weakness, high fever, blurred vision, and confusion or stiff neck. 

Conclusion

Nausea is a terrible gut feeling that can make you avoid eating and drinking properly. The feeling of discomfort in your stomach, which sometimes can lead to vomiting, is something that no one likes. Anyone can experience this uncomfortable feeling. 

Although this condition is not serious, it can affect your quality of life. The above-mentioned natural tips can help soothe this uneasiness without external medications. However, if the condition persists, you should seek medical advice from your healthcare practitioner. 

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