Keeping Track Of Your Nausea

It Can Help To Keep A Record - Some things you'll want to take note on are: For how long have your bouts of nausea after eating been going on?  Have you had any accompanying abdominal pain, and if so, where? Would you describe the nausea you've experienced as quite mild, uncomfortable, or debilitating? How would you describe your regular diet, and does the nausea appear to relate in any way to what you had to eat in a given meal? Has your nausea been accompanied by vomiting, and if so how often? Has vomiting made the feeling of nausea go away? What medications have you been taking, including dosages, for what, and for how long? Have you had any major changes in lifestyle or quality of life just prior to experiencing your problem with nausea?

It would seem you could write a book, especially if nausea after eating has been an ongoing problem for some time. Your doctor may not want to take the time to read your book, but on the other hand would probably be grateful for any information you could provide on response to any of the above questions. What will happen as a result of your visit with your doctor could be any number of things. Obviously your doctor is going to try to find the cause of your nausea, especially if the information you can provide doesn't pinpoint it. Further examinations and tests may be in order. You may only require some medication to give you relief from the nausea if there is no serious underlying problem. Some of the more serious situations, even more so than a peptic ulcer, could be kidney disease, diabetes, pancreatic disease, or a general upset of the metabolic system. An internal infection could be the cause, even something other than an infection somewhere in the gastrointestinal system. Nausea is simply telling you that something is abnormal. It does not mean that "something" is serious, or life threatening. But the message is one of "don't eat anything more until what needs fixing gets fixed" or something like that.

How You Can Help Yourself - What can you do to avoid nausea after eating, or relieve the symptom when you do experience it? Ice cold drinks are very often helpful. Ginger ale and 7-Up are time-tested remedies for an upset stomach, and may help. Saltine crackers have a similar effect on controlling nausea. Avoiding heavy foods, greasy or fried foods can help, and in some instances, cutting down on sweets may also work to your advantage. Time permitting you can take stock to see if any food or food type you regularly eat might possibly be a source of your problem.

Eating and drinking slowly, and avoiding strenuous exercise right after eating might also reduce the frequency or intensity of your feelings of nausea. That doesn't mean hitting the couch right after dinner. A walk in through the neighborhood in the fresh air is always better for you, but you don't need to schedule your 5 -mile run right after dinner. You might want to revise your schedule.

It could be that by simply watching what you eat, how you eat, and by trying to follow a healthy lifestyle, you might just cure yourself. If you can't, by all means see your doctor. Just remember that the odds are in your favor as far as nothing seriously being wrong is concerned. And even if there is something that is going to require professional attention and treatment, it's always to your advantage to catch it early and not try to live with your problem for longer than might be in your best interests.