Skiing in early pregnancy- Would you? Have you?

[jemimafuddleduck]

Long time lurker, first time poster here.

This is all a bit hypothetical really as who knows what will happen in the future etc but I’m looking for opinions on this...

We are planning to TTC our first baby around end of October 2018. We are also committed to a ski holiday over Christmas 2018. IF I got pregnant on the first go (unlikely, I know), I’m guessing I’d be around 8 weeks pregnant, maximum.

I’m a fairly experienced skier, but like to ski at a leisurely pace and wouldn’t be racing around/doing jumps/off piste etc. I rarely fall (but sometimes do!)

I appreciate you can never foresee accidents - other people skiing into you etc...

WIBU to still ski? At that stage, would my risks be ridiculously high if I were to fall? Or would it be negligible?

Sorry if anyone thinks I’m crazy here but looking for honest opinions/experiences.

I would. I rode during early pregnancy. You'd have to take a significant fall and damage to cause miscarriage, as the pelvis would still be protective at 8 weeks. The 1st 12 weeks are the highest risk for miscarriage because of the developmental stage of the pregnancy, trauma has to be fairly major in most women for it to be the sole cause of a miscarriage(a few women have reasons to be higher risk).

Some would choose not to take the very small risk, and that's fine. But I don't feel it would be a stupid thing to do.

If I were you OP I would start TTC now then if you're lucky you'll have already had the baby by the time of the ski trip and if you're not you can always have a break in Feb/March until whenever you feel ready to start trying again. I am a ski instructor and skied with my first pregnancy up to 9 weeks but by then was exhausted and very sick so had to stop. Altitude and lack of oxygen makes morning sickness symptoms much worse. Also the skiing itself isn't so bad as the risk of others crashing into you/you being unable to have various medical treatments due to pregnancy and the risks of needing to use foreign medical facilities in case of emergency. There's also risks of things like slipping on ice walking in ski boots in the village which could be just as bad as an actual skiing fall!

At the end of the day you know your own abilities best and will make the best decision for you but I wouldn't plan your pregnancy around a single holiday.

What's the reason for waiting until October?

If you start TTC on 1st October depending on where you are in your cycle you could be 4 weeks by mid October. (Remember you conceive mid cycle) So potentially over 12 weeks by Christmas.
Could be very tired and sick.

Personally I would wait until beginning of December then you'll not be any more than 6 weeks so before the hormones really kick in.

I went skiing at around 3 weeks pregnant, and while I’m no expert I’m aware of what I can and can’t do. I stuck to the nanny slopes and took it easy; although I did wipe out in a deep flurry! But everything was fine. If you feel confident and take no risks there is no reason why you can’t. I’d say do it but don’t take any risks and if there’s ice maybe avoid those patches.

Thanks all.

We have an event planned for start of October which is costing a lot of money and which I can’t be pregnant for. Hence the need to wait until after then.

Don't do it! I did and had an accident. Big mistake!

I wouldn't ski while pregnant (though I'm 11 weeks now and reckon I'd be physically fine, so long as I took it easy), but I also wouldn't postpone or cancel the trip on the off-chance you get pregnant on the first month. If you are pregnant and have to spend the time with hot chocolate and a good book, it's a pretty good problem to have. Missing out on stuff because you were TTCing and then didn't conceive is soul-destroying. In August 2016 I said no to a trip to Thailand in October 2016 because 'what if I'm pregnant by then?'. Over a year and three miscarriages later, I still regret not going on that trip! No one knows how long TTCing will take for you (it sounds like we're the same age) and I hope it's quick, but I learned not to plan anything (especially work) around it, because it hurts so much to have given things up for a baby that didn't come.

I’m really kicking myself for booking to October thing now. We had originally decided to start to TTC at Christmas this year, but then the event in October came up and we thought “We’ll never get the chance to do something like that again” so postponed baby.
It’s a once in a lifetime (for us) experience and no way I could be pregnant for it as the whole thing will be very physical (think Kilimanjaro).
Gahhh...!

Not skiing but I kitesurf which is classed as an extreme sport and did so most of the way through my pregnancy until I got too big to fit into my harness and then simply flew kites without a harness, currently 38 weeks and completely healthy and expecting a good size baby and still cycling to work and back and been sledging.
If you are fit and well and are a confident skier you shouldn't worry after all it's a pregnancy not a disability.
It's your body and you know it best and can stop if it doesn't feel right

Personally felt like absolute death both times until 14 weeks sick, ill and tired, could barely hold down my job the suggestion of skiiing would have been laughable.

Don't want to be a doom monger but if you really do want a child, esp if you want more than one, I would prioritise that. Many people us included took 1-3 years to conceive.

Ah personally I wouldn't chance it, it's not just the actual skiing but how cold you get. I'm very cautious and somehow got hypothermia whilst skiing, it was unbearable.

But on the other hand, it's the age old question: do you put your life on hold when you're TTC?

I personally do. I don't drink at socials, wouldn't go skiing, roller coasters etc. But on the other hand, many people don't even realise their pregnant and do things such as this.

It really is up to you. You could go at take it very, very easy. BUT what's the fun in that? My ski Holiday was full of thrills, drinking and extreme sports. One of the people in our group was taken out by a snow boarder and had a black eye and concussion.

I've changed my mind by the end of writing this haha. Don't waste your money on a holiday you can't enjoy and risk anything harmful.

I found the mountain air cleared my nausea.

To be honest, this whole thread is really making me reconsider everything. It’s given me a lot to think about, and I wonder whether to just start to TTC now and cancel the October event. I would lose upwards of £1500, but still have a further £1000 to pay... And if it does take a long time to conceive would I look back and regret it? (Rhetorical question).
We have both always thought “someday we might have children” but have always put it off in favour of life experiences whilst we still can. Maybe we just need to accept that we will still have life experiences, just different ones.

A colleague was pregnant when we took a school trip skiing but never told me. I was so cross when I found out as if anything had happened 1). I would have felt awful and 2) the insurance would not be valid!
Nothing happened and the baby is a happy toddler now!

Only you can decide but if it really is a once in a lifetime thing then the thought of getting to October, not being pregnant and knowing you can now never have this experience sounds too depressing to risk.

The trouble is, you don't know whether you'll get pregnant and have a healthy pregnancy in month 1, or whether it'll take you years. As I said, it's taken us at least 18 months (depending on what happens with this pregnancy) and so I lean towards 'don't give up things for something that might not have happened by then anyway'. Obviously people who conceived quickly and easily are going to lean towards 'don't book the holiday as you'll lose out if you're pregnant!'.

What I will say is that as a currently pregnant person who will have to cancel a couple of quite cool work things and social trips and miss a couple of weddings if this one works out - it feels like the most minor inconvenience in the world if I get to have an actual baby from this pregnancy. A real 'my diamond shoes are too tight!' 'problem'. But again I think maybe if you fall (and get to stay pregnant) on your first try, then it maybe does feel like a genuine inconvenience, because you don't quite have the same 'this is a miracle' feeling.

One practical thing you could do if you decide to wait - what contraception are you currently using? Lots of women find that it takes a frustrating while to get normal cycles back after the pill or implant, so you could stop that early, use condoms but get to know your natural cycles, which might (no guarantees, obviously!) speed things up when you do try.

Honestly, at this point I wouldn't cancel your October trip - that's a lot of money and a lot of fun to miss out on when you may well get pregnant easily, lots of people do. The point above about contraception is a good one though.

But maybe think about booking your skiing really late? There's plenty of bargains to be had if you don't mind compromising on your destination or accommodation standard. And all that invigorating air and exercise might be just the ticket for a holiday conception?

There is no way I would ski while pregnant. Falling is highly likely and effectively outside your control. A group ski trip was mooted for this Christmas, I bowed out knowing I'd be TTC, potentially 2-3 months pregnant, as did another friend for the same reason. It would never have occurred to me to go when pregnant. If you are having a once in a lifetime physical adventure in October, is a ski trip in December strictly necessary?!

As pp have said, you also may well not feel like skiing at that stage of pregnancy, I certainly didn't.

jemima I was just like you and put off ttc for exciting life events. We finally started ttc in July 1998 me aged 32 as I wanted a Spring baby. Gave birth to PFB in October 2002, you do the maths! You can’t always really plan these things. By the time I’d managed to get pregnant I hardly dared move for fear of putting my much longed for baby at risk. There’s no way I’d have skied.

I skied in Canada for a couple of weeks at 20 weeks pregnant with my first child (straight after the scan!), after having a miscarriage the year before. I skied with my entire family (parents, siblings and their kids) including one sister who was 20 weeks pregnant at the time (who is a midwife) and her GP husband. We had a great time (I don't associate skiing with partying so the absence of drinking was no loss, but my family are pretty hardcore extreme-ish skiers so it was different in that regard). BUT...

In retrospect I kind of think wtf were we thinking. For some reason it just seemed fine at the time - I wasn't really showing yet (first baby) so fit my old ski clothes and I basically felt the same as ever. I spoke to my midwife about it before I went and she said she'd done the same when she was pregnant so she was fine with it and quite unfazed, albeit telling me "Don't fall!". I did actually fall over once during the trip on a green run of all places (I'm a very experienced, very strong skier and stuck to green and blue runs to be on the safe side, but still managed to fall). That was briefly stressful but didn't cause any problems at all.

These days I wouldn't do it at that stage of pregnancy but probably would consider it earlier, but it's really down to your attitude to risk (and how you feel when pregnant - I felt great). I'm more cautious now.

I wouldn't cancel the trip in October. It sounds like it's worth waiting to try to get pregnant in order to have the experience (I say that as someone who's had 3 miscarriages in between 2 successful pregnancies, so not a totally straightforward path to parenthood) .

I skied during my pregnancy - was about 9-10 weeks. I'm a gentle skier and take things easy.

The advantage of being pregnant during one ski season is that you're ready for the next one - DD came with us ski-ing when she was 4 months old!

I'd go for your event in October and start TTC beginning of December.
You'll regret giving up the opportunity to do that kind of trip when your young and are able to do it.
I also noticed in your other post your were thinking you'd maybe want to squeeze in a late season trip therefore risk delay TTC again. My logic would be if you start ttc December and fall pregnant quickly then great if it doesn't happen quickly you could look for a late deal around March to catch the last of the snow.

If your lucky get pregnant after your ski holiday have baby miss the next season then your able to take baby with you the following year. Good luck.

There is no way that it would be sensible to go skiing at any point during pregnancy.

I wouldnt, personally. I think the official medical advice is to avoid anything where there is a risk of falling. I gave up Gymnastics for the same reason once I found out we'd succeeded! I think you'd be too paranoid about falling to actually be able to enjoy it, which kind of defeats the purpose to an extent anyway!

I went at 6mths and stuck to blue and green runs. MW wasn't concerned at all about baby but did mention ligaments being all loose and to watch myself.

The only close call I had was I the queue for be lift when an Italian bloke kept scraping his snowboard on my skis and when I told him not to fit all aggressive about it.

I’ve been pregnant on two skiing holidays - I spent the days lazing around in cafes with a book and joined the rest of the group for lunch if they were nearby. Having had a mmc which was at around the time of a fall down a few steps I wouldn’t have taken the risk on skis.