Tiredness and nausea during pregnancy

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HealthWiki > Epilepsy and Seizures > Chapter 7: Pregnancy and birth with epilepsy > Tiredness and nausea during pregnancy

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In this chapter:

 

In this chapter:

• Chapter 7: Pregnancy and birth with epilepsy
• Pregnancy and epilepsy
• Regular pregnancy checkups
• Pregnancy and antiseizure medicines
• Tiredness and nausea during pregnancy
• Pregnancy complications
• Labor and birth
• Breastfeeding for people with epilepsy
• Caring for your baby
• Birth control and antiseizure medicine
• Improving local epilepsy care for mothers

Tiredness and nausea are common complaints during pregnancy. For pregnant people with epilepsy, it can be difficult to know whether these signs are caused by pregnancy, by an antiseizure medicine side effect, or by a combination of both.

Why am I so tired?

Tiredness is a common side effect of many antiseizure medicines. It can also result from the process of changing a medicine or adjusting a dose. Tiredness is also a typical sign of pregnancy—growing a baby is extra work for the body, so people need more rest than usual. It can also be a sign of anemia (not enough iron in the blood), a common problem in pregnancy.

If your tiredness suddenly increases right after you have changed your antiseizure medicine or its dose, then the medicine is likely to be a cause. If your tiredness increases as you begin to feel other signs of pregnancy, such as nausea, frequent urination, or trouble sleeping, the pregnancy is likely a cause. But in either case, it is difficult to know for sure. Luckily, tiredness often lessens as your body adjusts to both pregnancy and changes in medicine.

To feel better, get extra rest during the day and try to sleep longer at night. Do not forget to drink enough water throughout the day. If tiredness becomes so intense that it gets in the way of daily activities, or makes you dizzy, faint, or unable to eat, drink, or take your medicine, talk to a midwife or other health worker.

Why am I so nauseous?

Nausea is a common side effect of several antiseizure medicines. It can also result from increasing a medicine’s dose. Sometimes called morning sickness, nausea is especially common during the first 3 months of pregnancy.

If your nausea suddenly increases right after you have changed your antiseizure medicine or raised its dose, then it is likely to be caused by the medicine. If your nausea increases as you begin to feel other signs of pregnancy, such as tiredness, frequent urination, or trouble sleeping, the pregnancy is likely a cause. In either case, it is difficult to know for sure. Nausea often lessens as your body adjusts to the medicine and after about 3 months of pregnancy.

How to feel less nausea

For many people, changes in eating can reduce feelings of nausea. Try any of these remedies:

• Eat small amounts of dry grain foods (crackers, bread, tortillas, chapatis, etc.) upon waking up.
• Eat small amounts of foods with protein (beans, nuts, cheese, etc.) before going to bed or if you wake up with nausea at night.
• Eat several small meals daily instead of 2 or 3 large ones. Sip liquids throughout the day.
• Drink a cup of ginger, mint, or cinnamon tea 2 or 3 times a day or before meals.

I had to increase my medicine, and at first that made me feel nausea. Eating smaller meals has really helped.

When I was pregnant, I had trouble eating anything at first, but then the nausea went away.

What to do when vomiting happens after taking antiseizure medicine

If you vomit less than 1 hour after taking your antiseizure medicine, repeat the dose. If vomiting happens again, wait until the next scheduled dose and try again.

If you vomit more than 1 hour after taking your antiseizure medicine, wait until the next scheduled dose to take it again.

If vomiting continues, see a midwife or other health worker.

This page was updated:24 May 2026