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Morning sickness: when pregnancy nausea won’t let up
For anyone who is pregnant and feels sick, some of the day or all of it, and for the people looking after them. This page passes on, by name, what MedlinePlus and the Office on Women’s Health (OWH) say: what morning sickness is and how long it lasts, whether it hurts the baby, what to eat and drink, what else to try, the severe form called hyperemesis gravidarum, the signs that mean you should call, and what treatment is like. It builds the questions to ask at a visit. Take only what you need today.
Right now
- Vomiting blood, or something that looks like coffee grounds? MedlinePlus says to contact your provider immediately.
- Not able to keep any liquid down? MedlinePlus says to contact your provider if you are unable to tolerate any fluids for over 12 hours, or if you vomit more than 3 times per day or cannot keep food or liquid down.
- Dark urine or hardly any, dizziness, lightheadedness, weakness or fainting? MedlinePlus lists dark urine, weakness, lightheadedness and fainting as signs of dehydration, and says to contact your provider for signs of dehydration, for dizziness, or if you urinate very infrequently. It says dehydration is treated with fluids through an IV.
- Belly pain or bleeding? MedlinePlus lists abdominal pain among the reasons to contact your provider. Our page I might be pregnant has the early warning signs that need care right away, and Pregnant, or with a new baby has the urgent warning signs later on.
- So worn down that you are thinking about suicide? Call or text 988 at any time. You can also call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline, 1-833-852-6262.
If you cannot reach your provider and one of these is happening, or you faint, go to an emergency room or call 911. That line and the last line of the list are ours. This page is not for emergencies.
More help
- The test and the first steps: I might be pregnant.
- Your body, coverage and rights at work: Pregnant, or with a new baby.
- To show a provider: Symptom diary, Weight log, Get ready for your appointment and My medicines.
- If your mood is low: Postpartum depression, which also covers depression during pregnancy.
- Food: When you need food.
- No insurance: When you need a doctor and can’t pay.
- All our free tools.
This page and its wording were written with AI (Claude) for Scarlet Beast (our AI policy). No doctor, nurse, midwife or dietitian has reviewed it. The facts were read on October 9, 2026 on two government websites. On MedlinePlus, from the National Library of Medicine, three pages of its Medical Encyclopedia, each read in English and in Spanish: Morning sickness (reviewed August 18, 2025), Morning sickness self-care (reviewed October 15, 2024) and Hyperemesis gravidarum (reviewed February 3, 2025, with an editorial update on August 10, 2026). On womenshealth.gov, from the Office on Women’s Health, two pages we found in English only: Body changes and discomforts, and Pregnancy complications. The page says whose words it is passing on, and what is marked “ours” is our own. The sources write about “women”, and where we pass on their words we keep them. The pages differ on when morning sickness starts and stops, on what causes it, and on how much weight loss means you should call, and this page gives each. What we left out or did not read: the names of the two medicines MedlinePlus names for morning sickness (vitamin B6 is a vitamin, and we name it); the label, dose and side effects of any medicine or supplement; the Food and Drug Administration’s article on hyperemesis gravidarum, which MedlinePlus cites and we did not read; the study MedlinePlus cites about the hormone GDF15; professional guidelines for doctors; what any visit, medicine, vitamin, wrist band or hospital stay costs; and the hotline’s own pages (what we say about the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline is what the National Institute of Mental Health says, read for our postpartum depression guide). We called no number. It saves nothing and loads no tracking.