Is it OK to sleep after vomiting? Before going back to bed, you should remain seated upright until you no longer feel nauseous. When feeling better, it is important that you sleep elevated and on your side to avoid choking on your vomit.
Sleep on your side with your head elevated: If you find yourself vomiting a lot, then sleep on your side with your head elevated.
No matter the root cause of your nausea or nauseous symptoms, you should usually try to sleep on your left side. Why? Your stomach is located below and slightly to the left of your esophagus and diaphragm. When you sleep on your left side, gravity can help settle your stomach.
Sleep helps the stomach finish digesting any food in it. It may calm your child's vomiting.
Second, just before throwing up your body produces extra saliva, which helps protect your teeth from the strong acid. Third, the vomiting process releases chemicals in your body to make you feel better. So that “I feel better” feeling after throwing up is not just your imagination — it's your biology working.
Drink lots of fluids if possible, but start slowly with 1–2 sips every 5 minutes. If you become nauseated, wait 20–30 minutes and then begin again.
While it might seem tempting to brush your teeth immediately after vomiting, we don't recommend it. That's because throwing up leaves stomach acid in your mouth, and when you brush immediately after, you are actually rubbing that highly destructive acid into your teeth.
Avoid certain foods
Steer clear of sugar and sugary or caffeinated drinks, which can cause dehydration. “Some foods can irritate the lining of the stomach, as well as lead to an increased amount of urination, which can lead to dehydration,” says Dr. Goldman.
Whether you're dealing with the common cold, the flu or a stomach bug, you've probably noticed that your symptoms feel worse at night. You're not imagining things. Research suggests that your body's circadian rhythms—as well as some other factors—can exacerbate your symptoms after sundown.
The best overall position to aid digestion is on your left side. This position uses gravity to help waste make its way through the digestive tract. Left side sleeping can also reduce heartburn because this keeps stomach acid lower in the esophagus. The next best position is on your back with your head elevated.
Vomiting
Viral gastroenteritis that causes vomiting is highly contagious. You should always stay home if you are vomiting, and until 24 hours have passed since your last vomit. Again, careful handwashing and hygiene are important to keep the people you live with healthy.
After your vomiting stops, you may feel weak and lethargic. This is quite common and happens because you haven't eaten in a while. Vomiting may also have left you dehydrated. You also lose electrolytes and salts when vomiting.
Vomiting alone (without diarrhea) should stop within about 24 hours. If it lasts over 24 hours, you must think about more serious causes. Examples are appendicitis, a kidney infection, diabetes and head injury.
A person with nausea has the sensation that vomiting may occur. Other signs that you are about to vomit include gagging, retching, choking, involuntary stomach reflexes, the mouth filling with saliva (to protect the teeth from stomach acid), and the need to move or bend over.
Strange colors: Vomit may look bright red or dark (like coffee grounds) if it contains blood. Meanwhile, bile -- a fluid made by your liver that helps with digestion -- can make vomit look bright green. Both are cause for concern. Blood could be a sign of an ulcer or an irritation in your GI tract.
Eating after vomiting
Start with mild foods — like the BRAT diet — which stands for: Bananas. Rice. Applesauce.
After receiving the vomiting signal, your stomach muscles contract all at once, which squeezes everything while increasing the pressure. Then all at once the “cover” on your stomach relaxes and the contents of your stomach erupt out.
Drink clear liquids at room temperature (not too cold or too hot). Take small sips. Drink only one to two ounces at a time. Water, "flat" cola and ginger ale are good.
Vomiting leads to low blood potassium levels which can cause fatigue, weakness and abnormal heart beats or heart arrest. This complication is unpredictable and occurs without warning, even in people who have previously vomited without developing problems. If you do vomit, drink some juice to help reduce this risk.
Yellow or greenish-vomit is usually a sign that you are throwing up bile. Throwing up yellow bile could indicate a potentially serious medical concern like a hiatal hernia or intestinal blockage. It can also happen if you have stomach flu or food poisoning and continue to vomit after your stomach is empty.