Everyone experiences nausea once in a while. It might be a bad burrito or it might be a stomach bug. Yet people who struggle with constant nausea face some very specific challenges. Not only will chronic nausea make you feel worn down and sick, it can even interfere with your daily life.
Most of the time, nausea is caused by temporary conditions. You might have an allergic reaction to a medication. You might have a stomach flu bug. You might even be pregnant and experiencing morning sickness. All of these will pass.
To really understand and treat chronic nausea, however, you need to be able to identify the causes. Here are some of the most common reasons you might be experiencing an upset stomach on a regular basis:
- A reaction to certain conditions. There are a number of chronic health conditions that can have nausea as a side effect. Some of these include migraine headaches, motion sickness issues, rotavirus, and chemotherapy treatment.
- Nonphysical conditions. There are some conditions that aren’t purely physical that can cause chronic nausea, as well. These include depression, anxiety, certain types of eating disorders, and more.
What to do about chronic nausea
Chronic nausea should be discussed with your doctor. While there are home remedies such as ginger, acupressure, acupuncture and aromatherapy that may give you some temporary relief from your nausea symptoms, you need to address whatever the underlying cause might be.
Your doctor may want to do a CT scan of your head, belly area and pelvis. Other tests might include a barium enema, taking samples of both your stool and your urine, and various blood tests. In some cases, you may need to undergo a colonoscopy or endoscopy.
The function of your internal organs can all affect chronic nausea, and your doctor will be looking at things like the function of your liver, kidney, thyroid and various minerals and hormones, as well.
When untreated, chronic nausea can cause severe problems. It can lead to dehydration, nutritional deficiencies, and worse. Don’t let chronic nausea go untreated for long, or it may even cost you your life.