When should I take maternity leave?

[Baz13]

I work as a deputy pre-school manager and currently I am off due to the summer holidays and expect to go back to work in September, when I will be 32 weeks pregnant. My EDD is 30th October and my manager expects me to work up to the week before my DD; however in the summer holidays I have suffered with severe oedema and have been tested for dvt as they swell so badly (luckily it's not) but they are so uncomfortable that I can hardly squat down, or move them.

I am worried that when I go back to work, they are going to continue to swell as I will be on my feet for the majority of the day looking after young children. I am unable to wear open toed shoes (currently I live in flip flops) and I have gone from a size 4 to a 7! :( The chairs are very low, but I can easily access larger chairs to support my back. My manager does all the admin side, so there is nothing for me to do- from that aspect. I feel I am ready to leave work- but not sure how to go about telling my manager or whether I am being unreasonable.

[GashleyCrumbTiny]

A week before your due date sounds very late! I work a fairly easy-going office job, have had no complications, and when I tell people I'm taking mat leave from weeks eveeveryone looks surprised and says "ooh, so you're working right up".

Take it from when you need it!

[GashleyCrumbTiny]

*38 weeks

stupid phone

[Diddlydokey]

I would go back for a few days and then go off, so you get paid properly for the summer and they don't back date it. Then start off by taking all of the holiday that you would have for the rest of the year first before you actually start ML, unless you're able to carry it over until the end of your ML.

Your manager's only expectation should be that you would go off between 29 weeks and your EDD, just like they should only assume to take the full year off unless you tell them otherwise.

[FirstTimerAtBeingAMummy]

I work in a school to so I understand how hard it is working with kids when your heavily pregnant. I worked to 37 weeks and held on for Easter half term so I could more time after birth. But the last week of work I was on my knees physically and emotionally. I was exhausted. And I had no pregnancy issues until the last month so that impacted too.

I would say to you that if you feel like your ready to stop now then stop. You don't owe work anything and it's your right to start your maternity leave when you want too. Take the next month to rest as much as possible before your little one arrives and all the fun starts :-) along with the sleepless nights :-) enjoy some quiet time with no work stress. Good luck for your birth

[Northernlight22]

Your manager should have no expectation or say in when you finish!

I'm finishing at 36 weeks. (Would finish now at 32 if I could!)

[ktkaye]

I'm in a similar position to you, will be 30 weeks when I go back to teach Nursery in September and quite worried about how I will cope physically, especially as sleep is very difficult these days! I think lots of women feel quite fit and able right up until the end, in which case they leave late. Perhaps this has been your manager's experience with herself or other staff and she has assumed everyone is the same? But if you are uncomfortable and struggling there is no shame in that and you are certainly not being unreasonable! What your manager feels is actually not important, as another poster has mentioned, you can leave on maternity from 29 weeks if that is what's needed and it sounds as though you have a very good reason to want to put your feet up - literally.
For what it's worth I originally planned to work up until 37 weeks (half term) but am quickly backtracking and have decided that I'll economise financially so that I can leave at 34 and have the extra rest. Could this be an option for you? Besides, Working with lots of young kids is hard - having a toddler at home at this stage of pregnancy must be a nightmare and I know women just get on and do it but looking after 20+ at work is a whole other ball game. With the best will in the world I feel like I'm going to be less than useless by 35 weeks as I'm finding bending/crouching etc hard enough with three months to go! Best of luck. Do what's best for you!!!

[Dlah]

Tell your manager how you feel, give her the option to make some reasonable adjustments - give you more admin time etc and her cover rooms or advise that you'll need to leave earlier for your own health and safety/babies wellbeing

[Hulashaker]

I worked right up till the end so I could have as long off as possible on d my DD arrived. I finished on Friday and my due date was Monday.

[Hulashaker]

I worked right up till the end so I could have as long off as possible on d my DD arrived. I finished on Friday and my due date was Monday.

[almostthirty]

I was preschool leader when I was pregnant with ds. I was going to.work up to 38 weeks pregnant but my midwife advised me to go on sick leave for 3 weeks so left at 35 weeks. The doctor signed me off without any questions asked and it didn't affect my maternity pay.

[twinmamma2b]

Perhaps your manager is used to people working right up to their due date for financial reasons so has just assumed that is the case with you? As teachers, we don't have the liberty of being able to take annual leave as and when we need it so we naturally try to work up to our due dates so that we have more time after.

[Farfromtheusual]

Your manager shouldn't be telling you when you should be going on mat leave... Though you really should have decided and given notice by now, you're meant to give 15 weeks notice, then 28 days notice if you intend to change the date.

I was planning on working right up until 38 weeks, but was feeling really tired etc, even though I sit at a desk all day and work dropped my shift's down to 4 hours a day, so changed it to 36 weeks but ended up leaving at 34 due to a dvt. I'm now 39 weeks and there is no way I could of worked until 38 weeks!!

[Sparrowlegs248]

My first day of maternity leave was the Monday, and I had a c section booked for the Friday. I also had incredibly fat feet
BUT I had been signed off sick for 4 weeks from 32-36 otherwise would not have managed it.