Dizziness during pregnancy is more common than you would think. Dizziness in early pregnancy, in second trimester, third trimester pregnancy dizziness – these all are most often reported by pregnant women. Some women report pregnancy symptom of lightheadedness very early in pregnancy while others come to face it in 20 weeks or later.
All in all, dizziness is a common feature of pregnancy, affecting up to 75 per cent of pregnant women to some degree.
Why am I feeling dizzy during pregnancy?
It depends on how far into your pregnancy you are.
Dizziness in early pregnancy (4 – 8 weeks, first trimester)
Early in your first trimester, perhaps as early as eight weeks, you may feel dizzy and nauseous, because of low blood pressure. This happens because the pregnancy hormone progesterone relaxes the walls of your blood vessels, causing your blood pressure to fall.
Dizziness in pregnancy second trimester
During the second trimester, dizziness may be caused because your growing uterus puts pressure on blood vessels. Your cardiovascular and nervous systems will attempt to adjust to these changes and maintain adequate blood flow to your brain. This can also make you feel dizzy.
Dizziness during third trimester pregnancy
During third trimester, further growing uterus puts increased pressure on veins and slows circulation to the lower half of your body. Sometimes your body can’t adapt quickly enough, which can leave you feeling lightheaded or dizzy, or even make you faint.
Dizziness may also occur later in your pregnancy if you lie on your back, allowing the weight of the baby to press on your vena cava (a large vein that carries blood from your lower body to your heart).
Although rare but sometimes, dizziness could be caused by a more serious condition like vertigo (BPPV). Do keep your doctor posted in case you have been diagnosed with vertigo earlier.
What should I do to treat my dizziness during pregnancy?
What helps with dizziness during pregnancy are some of the following measures:
- When you start to feel lightheaded, sit or lie down right away, and (if your belly allows it) put your head between your knees.
- Always lie on your left side — this increases blood flow to the heart and brain.
- Since dehydration can make you dizzy, drink a glass of water.
- Dizziness may be your body telling you that it needs an energy boost. If you haven’t eaten for an hour or two, a quick, healthy snack should boost your blood sugar levels.
- You’ve probably been told countless times since getting pregnant to just take it easy, and that’s exactly what you should do when you start to feel lightheaded.
When should I be worried about dizziness during pregnancy?
Keep in mind that feeling dizzy from heat, hunger, nausea, or getting up too fast, is often just part of being pregnant. But, you should consider going to the doctor for dizziness during pregnancy, in following situations:
- If the dizziness is persistent, however, low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) may be to blame. Or it could be anemia, a condition that can result from not getting enough iron. You should talk to your doctor about how you’re feeling. Your doctor will most likely test your blood to find out if either low blood sugar levels or anemia is responsible for your dizziness.
- If your dizziness is accompanied by vaginal bleeding or severe abdominal pain, call your doctor immediately — this might be a sign of ectopic pregnancy. It’s also time to talk with your doc if things get so bad that you faint.
Check out which pregnancy symptoms you should never ignore.