When Nausea Takes Over - Creating the Alternative Tummy Toolkit

Note: This is one of my most viewed posts, originally shared in 2012. It has been updated with some tips and products that I have found helpful over the years and hope you do too!  

One of the most unsettling and tough to manage symptoms of gastroparesis is nausea. It can be hard to explain why we are fine one moment and the next sick with the stomach/body spins. Yesterday, as my husband and I were out running errands and laughing about something on the radio, it hit me like an unforeseen tsunami. I could only compare it to the feeling of just stepping off the tilt-a-whirl at the amusement park, wobbly and unstable as though the blood had actually rushed out of my body.

So, what can we do in these unplanned, insufferable situations?

My best advice is to, one, be prepared with a "tummy toolkit," and two, practice deep breathing and relaxation techniques. Yes, I know, I see the eyes rolling, but trust me that it may at least bring a bit of relief. Here are some tips and tools to prevent nausea from taking over.

1. Tummy Toolkit
Think of it as a first aid kit for the belly. Nausea can be soothed through many of our senses like smell, taste, touch, sound, and sight. Here are some of my favorite tips for each:

Smell
The aromas of peppermint, ginger, and lavender have been shown to help ease symptoms. You can find these essential oils in single bottles or look for combos with other blends to help fight nausea. 

• Essential7 oils, created by someone who has lived with digestive trouble and specifically made for those living with GP. She carries one I love called Queeze Away that has been thoroughly researched and proven to help reduce these challenges. Apply a few drops to the bottoms of your feet or inside wrists for best results or simply inhale. 
• Quease Ease Aromatic Inhaler is another product that can be used and easy to take on the go.

Taste

• Ginger tea, ginger chews and ginger candy may help to calm the belly as well as indigestion. My favorite products are made by The Ginger People, wich most stores and Amazon carry. I've even found ginger salt that is not only great for nausea but for those of us who need the extra salt to help with the symptoms of dysautonomia. I carry the Ginger Rescue Strong tablets, which trust me they are not joking when they say strong but they have been the best when it comes to severe nausea hits, especially when I'm on a long car ride or flying! 
• Lavender tea is not always thought of but I've found it helpful as well, not to mention calming at bedtime. 
• If you are able to eat, though it may seem counterintuitive, finding something small to snack on can be very helpful. Protein is ideal but even a couple of crackers can make quite the difference to help things settle. 

Feel

• Acupressure wristband - These are often used when going on a cruise or a boat for seasickness. The band gently stimulates a point on the wrist known in Chinese medicine as nei-kuan. A big fan of acupuncture and previous student of it, I really believe this can be helpful. If you don't have the band you can massage the point yourself. To learn more check out this video and simple instructions from the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. 

Hear

Music therapy and guided imagery - Both have been shown to reduce nausea and anxiety. If its an option, keep a playlist on your phone, music player, or CD with tunes that make you feel calm and relaxed. Just Google "nausea and sound therapy" for endless videos and information!

• Binaural beats are an emerging form of soundwave therapy in which the right and left ears listen to two slightly different frequency tones yet perceive the tone as one. Search for samples online to try, there is a lot of research linking this type of sound with nausea relief as well as other challenges like anxiety and stress.

Sight

Or rather the opposite! Keep reading to learn more about closing your eyes and taking some deep breaths to help calm many of the challenges we live with like nausea, pain, and trauma. 

2. Breathing Techniques

When nauseous, or in any pain for that matter, its easy to sort of freeze up, focus on the pain and forget what the body naturally wants to do...breathe. So, I encourage you to make this a habit whenever that unpleasant feeling starts to take over and begin to make this a daily practice. This can be done anywhere you go so its one of the best "items" in your toolkit!

Alternate Nostril Breathing
"...you can improve sleep, encourage a calmer emotional state, boost your thinking power and soothe your nervous system."

Diaphragmatic (Abdominal) Breathing

"...when practiced regularly, lead to the relief or prevention of symptoms commonly associated with stress, which may include...stomach conditions, depression, anxiety, and others."

If you want to learn more about tips and tools for living with gastroparesis, hear interviews stories from others who understand, join my friend and co-author Chalyce Macoskey and I as we dive into these topics and more on our new live (and recorded radio) show beginning Friday, August 17th!
Episode One - What Does Healing Truly Mean?

Natural Vitality Giveaway

Tea is just one of my many favorite comforts that I did not have to give up when this digestive journey began.  In fact, there seems to be just as many tea remedies as you might find prescriptions in a pharmacy!  Later this month I'll be sharing some of my favorites when it comes to both caffeinated and herbal selections.  However, today I want to talk with you about an essential part of my daily routine.  I call it my vitali-tea, and I want nothing more than to give a reader the chance to try this as well.

Spice Remedies Part 1: Cardamom Cures and Recipes

Most of us are well aware of the benefits of ginger for GP and nausea but how many know about one of my favorite spices, cardamom?
I was first introduced to this exotic aromatic spice when my dear friend Alan would serve a small cup of coffee with a pinch of cardamom after a delicious GP friendly lunch of well cooked local vegetables and soft melt in your mouth white fish drizzled with a tiny bit of olive oil.  Only if I could hire him to be my personal chef, everyday I would be swimming in waves of tasty adventures!
When I was in acupuncture school this past year I picked up a little bit of an addiction to coffee (hey, it's Seattle, whats a girl gonna do?!).  I know, absolutely NOT a friend to a sensitive stomach but between living in denial and the hours of studying it was my weak spot.  My favorite day of the week was Thursday when my friend Marlee and I would head down to our favorite coffee shop in Freemont.  We would find the largest table available, spread out our piles of books and note cards then anxiously order our hot java (aka liquid crack).  However, with me and my secret spice stash it was never just a normal cup of coffee.  Oh no, this was special coffee because hidden in my purse was a magical bag of ground cardamom.  Before diving into the hours of quizzing (and distracting) each other we eagerly scooped the spice into our coffee, took the first sip and for a moment melted into cardamom coffee heaven before the marathon began.
Now, a few months and fewer coffee's later, this spice is nothing but nice in so many countless ways.

A soothing and comforting food, cardamom is the perfect tummy tamer and should be at the top of the list of pantry staples for anyone with GP.  Known as the queen of spices, it has been around and used medicinally for 5,000 years.   Stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system, it helps to control digestion and saliva production. It is an anti-spasmodic and is recommended for nausea, chronic indigestion with bloating, belching, flatulence and hiccups. It is also an effective remedy for heartburn as it relieves pressure in the chest caused by swollen stomach pressing on the diaphragm.