Naive to think I can work up until my due date?

[GoalDigger]

Just joined mn (thanks for having me) - 25 weeks pregnant and am wondering whether I am naive to think I can work until my due date?

I have an hour commute door to door either end of work (work 40 hours a week) but no issues with trains (always offered a seat, sometimes prefer to stand on my way home after sitting all day - I know this won't be the case soon).

Work are asking when I am going to start my maternity leave, and have a policy in place that I need to give them 8 weeks notice to change it, so even if I wanted to work longer, I would need to let them know 8 weeks in advance. They can use their own discretion however there are no guarantees from HR.

I know a few people who worked up to their due dates and had no problems. Am I naive in wanting to give this a try? I can go earlier if I need as I could just get signed off sick, but to go later it's a little more difficult if HR decide to be stubborn...

Any advice? Never had a baby before so no idea how realistic this is.

[cakesandphotos]

Personally I wouldn’t. I went on mat leave at 35 weeks. But it depends on your job, your commute and how your body handles your pregnancy. Also depends if you want to have some down time before baby comes. Would it be the worst thing to have even a week off before your edd?

[GoalDigger]

Forgot to add my job is entirely desk based, and very flexible re taking breaks whenever needed to walk about. I also have a standing desk so can choose to sit or stand - whatever feels most comfortable.

[Wellthen]

You’re right that it is generally easier to give a late finish date and then go earlier than to do it the other way around.

I wouldn’t personally work past 39 weeks simply to give yourself some time before your due date.

I’d give the latest date you’re comfortable with (due date if you want) and then go when you actually need to. Check your maternity rights - in my profession if you go off sick after 36 weeks with pg related sickness then your leave automatically.

Yes probably naive but every pregnancy is different so why not try it? 😊

[GoalDigger]

cakes I'd like to use my leave to visit my family throughout the year (they're not very nearby) and don't have a massive amount of leave left. Though I would consider having a week off before baby is born. I just want to avoid going at 37/38 weeks and baby being 2 weeks overdue. I would like as much time as possible with my little one and don't think I would want quite as much as a month at home on my own.

[Thesearepearls]

I worked until 42 weeks :) with DD. The thing is you don’t know how you will feel. I felt fit as a fiddle with DD so I worked until she arrived (late). With DS i felt sick and ill and slogged it out to 36 weeks, and honestly couldn’t have done any more.

[SweepTheHalls]

I went to 39 weeks, 38 weeks and 38 weeks with my 3. Hard work, but worth it for the time at home afterwards, and I think I would have gone insane as all were late babies.

[GoalDigger]

wellthen without meaning to offend other pregnant women, I have realised that I was quite naive about a lot of things as do a lot of first time mums seem to be! Tiredness, ligament pain, keeping up with the gym, eating completely healthily. I've kinda said sod it and am going with the flow now...

[Want2bSupermum]

Every pregnancy is very different. Needing 8 weeks notice to change dates is very awkward.

As an employer, my father also had maternity leave cover start by the time the mother to be was 32 weeks. This gave enough time, 2-3 weeks for training, before going on leave was a possibility and it took the stress away from the decision making. What is your department planning on in terms of cover?

Personally, if they insist on 8 weeks, I'd tell them I plan to work to my due date and leave early if needed taking sick. I would be open and honest with my manager if you have a good relationship with them. If not don't breath a work. Work until the end and take your leave afterwards.

[GoalDigger]

thesearepearls blimey! I'm hoping mine isn't late but the stats imply that it's likely he/she will be. Due on Guy Fawkes. Wouldn't that be nice!

[GoalDigger]

sweep this is my thinking. As much time with baby as possible...

[Wellthisunexpected]

I worked up to mine. But only because DS was early. I regretted it though. I was exhausted, too exhausted for labour which meant I needed intervention and had associated problems. This time I'm taking a whole month off before my due date (mainly made up of annual leave though). So I can rest and nest.

It is possible to work to your due date but personally I wouldn't. You need to be in the best possible position to give birth and care for a new born.

[GoalDigger]

want2b I work for a very large government department. Cover is not an issue at all and the chances are they wouldn't be awkward with me changing dates. They'd likely just let me go, but as I said, there are no guarantees.

8 weeks is awkward you're right. I would've expected 4, tops.

[QueenAravisOfArchenland]

Well people certainly do it, but often because they feel they have no choice/ really want to maximize their time post birth.

It is likely that the commute will start to wear on you. It's a lot easier to do this if you can increasingly WFH as due date approaches. Also, although I had a very fit pregnancy and was working out and going on long walks up until I went into labour at 40+0, I increasingly resented work until I stopped at 37 weeks. I wanted to be spending my finite energies at home nesting and didn't really give a shit about work. (V out of character for me.) I really cherished the 3 weeks I had at home relaxing, nesting, going for long walks and cooking like a maniac.

[GoalDigger]

wellthis I do work on a flexi time basis, so I can build up as much flexi as I like. As long as I am in between 10 and 3:30 there are no issues. So the tiredness might not be quite so bad as I can work the hours that suit me (stay in bed until 8 if I like!). I could also potentially work from home a couple of days a week but again, not a guarantee.

I would hate to exhaust myself before childbirth however so I guess it would be sensible to try and get signed off sick if I felt this was the case...

[Mammmoo]

I worked til 37 first time, then planned 38 but she came at 36 so I finished work at 5pm and gave birth in the early hours of the following morning. I was exhausted and had no time to nest (Sort out my house and batch cooking were my plans).
If you work til 40 weeks you may be in s similar situation. If honestly give yourself at least a week. As nice as it is to have the time after you need to get some rest in before labour!

[Yogagirl123]

I left work on the Friday, and rang them Monday morning to say I had had my baby! Baby was two weeks early.

[Brown76]

I've saw some pregnant women in my antenatal yoga class who were working up to 38/39 weeks full time and were absolutely drained or in pain, which seems a bit like self-punishment. I personally stopped 38 weeks with first and 32 weeks with the second, but used the last few weeks to do a bit of work from home and sleep/potter around. I like my work but in no way was I bored, I had medical appointments, caught up with friends, meditated, nested and just couldn't have given a shit about work at that point.

[TangelasVine]

I planned to work until my due date but had my first born at 35 weeks. With hindsight which of course makes everything easier I wish I'd had a little break before that. It was like being at my desk then being a mum a few hours later!
By the way there are no reliable stats that say first babies are always late. It's often quoted but the study or comes from was of about 30 women. Reliable studies show first babies are about a day less likely to be on time - there's not a lot in it!

[Littleelffriend]

I was the same as yogagirl my lo was early so I hadn’t started mat leave

[Racecardriver]

My grandmother did this-they were very short of doctors for some reason and asked her (basically told her) to stay until she had her baby. She went into labour while on her rounds. She barely made it to the maternity hospitals on time to give birth. My father has a close friend who stayed at university until she gave birth. Her labour started halfway through a lecture. My father had to ask the lecturer for permission to take her to the maternity hospital. Fun times. Not sure your employer would appreciate your watersbreaking while at work though.

[Cynara]

I gave the day before my due date as my finish date (first baby so likely to be overdue and maternal history of very overdue babies) but even so had to stop at 39 weeks due to inability to both get out of bed in the morning and to hold a thought in my head for more than a passing moment. Ended up delivering DS 13 days post-date, but genuinely really needed that extra time lying around eating ice cream and googling baby names. My recommendation would be to give the latest date you feel you can, and change your mind if necessary based upon your experience.

[AtreidesFreeWoman]

I did. On Wednesday I was at work and on Thursday at 12.35pm I gave birth - having texted my boss at 7.30am saying I wouldn't be in office that day :-)

I had an office based role and a straightforward commute.

Personally I wanted to load my ML after the baby was born and not before it.

I'd had a straight forward pregnancy and work were happy for me to work as long as I wanted and flexible in the sense they knew that I could be in one day and then gone the next and we'd planned for that eventually wrt maternity cover for my role.

Upshot is it's possible and I certainly found it worked for me - but I totally appreciate why other women wouldn't want to do this (physical job, difficult commute, complex pregnancy, sickness, non supportive employment etc).

[WhirlingTurkey]

Not ideal, but you could tell them you plan to work up to due date and, if you find you are struggling closer to the time, go to the doctor to get signed off. Your company will probably have a policy that if you take pregnancy related sick leave after week X of your pregnancy (usually the last four weeks before DD I think which is what the gov website states is "standard") then your maternity leave automatically starts. As I say, not ideal - but a way to get around the 8 weeks notice potentially.
I got around this issue by using annual leave. My actual mat leave started a week before my due date, but I used three weeks holiday before that. Although no help to you as you've said you would rather not do that!

[DwangelaForever]

I was planning on working up to 38 weeks last time, ended up going off at 35. Have booked to start annual leave at 35 this time with Mat leave starting at 36.

I'm 4ft10 so when I'm pregnant the baby has nowhere else to go but out so I was HUGE!!!! My feet started swelling when I went off last time and I knew I made the right call.

I'm 28 weeks atm and honestly starting to struggle so I can't wait for the next 7 weeks to hurry along!

[PaulHollywoodsSexGut]

I went on mat leave at 37w and DD was born at 42w. Christ that was a longgggggg wait.

IMHO you should see what the births in your family are like as the rough rule is if your mum, granny etc were late bakers you will be too.

Next time I’ll work to week 40 but I get to work remotely which means I can drive instead of having to take the train and tube. I wouldn’t want to arse about with a London commute (if that is where you are) past week 38, I just could not be fucked.