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Your body goes through so many incredible changes throughout the course of your pregnancy. Because of this, you may experience things that you don't normally experience. Two of these experiences may include stuffy and bloody noses. Thankfully, these things are completely normal during pregnancy. However, this doesn't mean that you can't understand why they are happening and how you can best treat them. This article will discuss the causes and treatment options in more detail.
About 30% of women have stuffy noses during their pregnancy, which is also referred to as rhinitis. When you become pregnant, there are elevated levels of certain hormones that accumulate in your body. Two of these hormones that contribute to increased blood flow are estrogen and progesterone. The increased blood flow causes you to have stuffy noses. This is because the blood flow that goes to your mucous membranes makes it thicken, thus increasing the flow of your mucus and effectively stuffing up your nose. The stuffy noses generally begin around 16 weeks when the hormones in your body really begin to increase, thus increasing blood flow.
Treating stuffy noses during pregnancy can be somewhat tricky because you can't take traditional cold medicines, such as decongestants. However, you can use a humidifier to help clear your sinuses a bit. This is especially effective to use at night when you are sleeping. You can also safely use a saline spray in your nose to help loosen the mucus, thus allowing you to blow it out. If your nose is feeling raw from constant blowing, petroleum jelly is a safe and effective way to moisturize it. If these methods are not effective enough for you, then you may want to ask your OBGYN for further assistance.
Only 6% of women have bloody noses on a regular basis, however, this number rises to 20% when they become pregnant. As stated previously, the hormones estrogen and progesterone increase during pregnancy, causing increased blood flow. This increased blood flow makes the blood vessels in your nose, and in your entire body, expand with blood. This can make them more likely to rupture, especially when they are under pressure. Because you are constantly blowing your stuffy nose during pregnancy, you put pressure on these blood vessels. When one of these vessels rupture, this causes you to have a bloody nose. Thankfully, these bloody noses aren't anything to worry about, if you get a few of them throughout the course of your pregnancy.
There are a couple things that you can do to treat your bloody noses during pregnancy. For one thing, you can try to be more careful when you are blowing your nose. Try to do things to thin the mucus in your nose before you blow it, such as using a saline solution or a humidifier. Also, when you do blow your nose, try your best to blow softly. Some doctors may even recommend that you increase your Vitamin C intake during pregnancy because this can help to strengthen your capillaries, thus helping them to resist rupturing when blowing your nose. If you find that you are having a lot of bloody noses, then this is a sign to contact your OBGYN for further treatment options.
While stuffy and bloody noses are a common part of pregnancy for many women, this doesn't mean that you shouldn't be able to understand why they happen and treat them effectively using pregnancy-safe methods.
If you'd like to learn more about pregnancy, breastfeeding, or motherhood in general, you can visit us here.
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