Pregnant on a Boat

Passenger ferries provide a smooth ride for pregnant moms ©Victoria Clipper

I realized as I sat on a boat on my way to Victoria, BC in December, that I had never been pregnant on a boat before. No sail boats, row boats or even a ferry. It wasn’t as bad as I would have thought. I certainly could not have done it in my 1^st trimester though. I was much too nauseous. In the 2^nd trimester it was doable. I just needed to remember a few key things.

1. Talk to your doctor before you get on the boat. If you are concerned about excessive motion sickness talk to your doctor. He or she may be able to recommend a safe medication you can take while pregnant.
2. Get on the boat with food in your stomach. This helped a lot when we were on the boat and waiting to pull out. The soft rocking of the boat was threatening to cause a nausea relapse.
3. Grab yourself a hot cocoa or tea. This will keep your blood sugar levels up, give you a little more in your stomach and heck, chocolate is always good.
4. Take a walk around the boat. This really helped me offset some of the rocking motion during the voyage.
5. Don’t forget to visit the restrooms. Just like on a plane, you can forget to take a bladder break when you are sitting so long while in motion.
6. Face forward. Going backwards can be disorienting, sending your stomach into further acrobatics.
7. Pack a snack. You will need to keep that tummy full to stay happy. Crackers are a must if you have even the slightest nausea on land still.
8. Careful what you read. If you get motion sickness normally, even when not pregnant, remember to avoid reading or other carsick creating activities. Take the time to chat with your partner or the other passengers. Or just take a nap.
9. Don’t over layer. Stick to light layers when you are getting dressed that day. This way you can start peeling down to a t-shirt if you get hot or bundle up if you get cold. I don’t know about you, but being too hot makes me feel even worse when my stomach is doing the mambo.
10. Bring on the bubbly. When all else fails, grab yourself a Sprite or something with a bit of bubble. A little fizz with some soda crackers can help settle your stomach back down to where it belongs.

The waves bumped us along, but I remained vertical. I didn’t toss my cookies, just felt a bit woozy. A walk and few sips of soda took care of that. If you do feel a bit sick and even lose it on the boat, just remember, it will be over soon (hopefully) and you are off on another adventure.