Any experienced preggies able to advise please!

[Treenie]

Hi ladies
Am over from the conception thread but thought you might be able to help me.
Am about to start ttc - actually desperate to start ttc. But the thing is that we have flights booked to fly to South Africa at Christmas to see dh family.
If I fall preggers this month (am ov this weekend) I would be 29 weeks flying there and 31 flying back.
Will I manage it? Has anyone else had a similar experience?
In my head I am thinking just wait one more month you twit! But am so keen to start. Of course it might not happen first go but have to go on the basis that it might.
Dh is very understanding and agrees that if the doc says no then we dont go, but would rather avoid that cause he misses his family so much and we only get to see them twice a year at most.
What worries me is not so much will they let me on the plane - I know they will - its more will it be a nightmare and feel horrendous. Also worried about knock on effect and complications.
Any advice would be so greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
x

you need to check with the airline and some request a doctor's note to say you are ok to fly

you will also neeed to check your insurance will cover you for any maternity care or emergency

am pretty sure you can still fly at 29-31 weeks
yoiu can't plan these thigs to the minute, I'd book the flight and sjust see what happens

There's info on the web about this. I think you can fly up until 36 weeks, although you might need a doctor's note. But it depends on how you feel in your pg. First time around, I had no problems, but this time (no doubt due to carting a toddler around as well as a bump), my back is killing me and the idea of doing a longhaul flight would be horrendous. But I don't think you can put your life on hold whilst you are waiting to get pg. There is never a right time and, as you say, it might take a while, so I'd just go for it...

Thanks so much for your advice guys. My big concern is that I'll feel like shit and be stuck in a hot, humid country where things bite you! Not so much the flight as the travelling if that makes sense? Is 30 weeks a time when you can be particularly uncomfy, are there anythings that might happen (by that I mean normal preggy things) that I really wouldn't want to be so far from home? I know I can't sunbathe for example.
My mum just says 'don't go!' and I dont' know anyone else who has been in the postion so that's why MN is such a godsend.
Not too worried about delivery on the plane of anything cause doc should be able to check that all out before I go and if he says no I'll stay put.
Ruddy minefield this pregnancy malarky! You think all you have to do is a bit of bding and the rest will fall into place! So much to consider!
x

Treenie - book the flight, it will pretty much guarantee you will get pg!! I'm kidding of course, but it always seems that way, I was ttc for 18 months, and got a job I couldn't possibly do while pg and found out I was pg in the same week!!! I think it's called Sod's law! (I also had a skiing holiday booked before I found out I was pg, but I was only 15 weeks so I went on that one)

I've done some research about flying in pgcy, and it does depend on the airline, BA let you fly up to 30 weeks with nothing but a smile, from 30 - 36 weeks you will need a doctors note saying you are safe to fly, but you will need to be home by the time you are 36 weeks, as that is the cut off for flying. As for the temperature thing, I can't tell you as I've never been to South Africa. The reassuring thing is they speak English in SA so if you do feel unwell, at least you're talking to doctors/mws in your mother tongue and not pigeon French (or something!)

If you are planning on being pregnant when travelling you need to check now whether you need injections to travel to South Africa - and whether you could have the injections when pregnant (or indeed whether you would want to have them if pregnant even if they were considered safe).

Thanks guys. Such good advice. Have actually been to SA loads cause dh is from there so not worried about the place so much - apart from the mossies but have found an organic bug spray! Don't need any jags as not going into the wild bits - which I wish I could do actually cause it is am amazing place - would recommend it when you're not preggers.
And it's all private hospitals over there which are like five star hotels so don't worry about the treatment either. Dh keeps telling me he'd rather I had the baby there than on the NHS!
Thanks for helping me - really appreciate it. You know all to well I'd imagine how scary it can all be. Desperate to be laidback and just get on with life, but can't help worrying about everything.

What I really want to know is how it feels being 30ws? Is it uncomfy or nice or what?! Will I hate being away from home? So now you're all psychics to eh?!
x

Treenie beware - whereas most airlines will still let you travel at 29 and 31 weeks with a doctor's note, many travel insurance companies don't cover you after 28 weeks.

It's a pita, but it's the way they work - I'd suggest taking out an annual travel insurance policy now - but making sure it's with a company that has a later cut-off date for travel.

hth

Treenie I couldn't find any travel insurance company prepared to insure me beyond 28 weeks. Couldn't tell you who we tried but a lot! So although the airlines might let you fly (can vouch for the fact that different airlines have different rules) you might end up seriously out of pocket if you were to have a problem while you were out there. Only you can decide if this is a risk worht taking. I personally would wait a month - I have conceived the first month I tried with both ds's and appreciate my very good fortune.

As for the comfort on a long haul flight it probably wouldn't be great. But depends a bit on how your pregnancy is going. Peole vary so much theres no way of knowing you owuldn't be fine. At the end of the day its only about 12 hours so even if you're really uncomfy its not for long! Get yourself some anti-thrombosis stockings as being pregnant makes you more likely to get one of these as does the long haul flight. Still a small risk but worth taking the precaution.

i know i was insured traveling at about 34 weeks with ds but i can't remember who it was with, sorry. and it was 4 years ago

i really really wouldn't worry about this. you WILL be fine, almost certainly. yes things can go wrong but usually they don't

as for your question about what it feels like being 30 wks pg... I can't quite comment, only at 27 weeks at the moment. I'm not in full on third trimester tiredness, but I can feel it creeping back, there are days when I am shattered! I'm not huge yet, can still get around relatively easily, my feet are pretty swollen in the relatively modest heat at the moment here, I'm living in flip flops, which are fine, cool foot baths help too! I'm also currently visiting the loo every 90 mins or so, so you may want to rethink long days at the beach or anything similar away from the loo! I'm feeling quite hot and sweaty too, not sure what kind of temperatures you get in SA at christmas time, you may feel it more, so plenty of light clothes and lots of fluids! Of course, it's impossible to predict how you'll feel, you may suffer from one or more of the normal pregnancy related ailments (backache, spd, tiredness, piles... the list goes on) so you may feel totally different at 30 weeks to the way I feel. Good luck with ttc!

You can fly up to about 36 w dependent on the airline (with doctor;s note). I recently went on holiday (Brazil) at 28-30 weeks. The only insurance company I could find that insured this late was BUPA. They do up to 30w. The flight wasn't pleasant but tolerable. The heat etc was all fine and I enjoyed the holiday.

Ok I have come accross someone who delivered in the States at 27 or 28 weeks and was put up for months by her insurance company by the Ronald Macdonald hotel . As far as how you will feel at 30 weeks everyone is different, I felt ok at 30 weeks first time, hideous second time.

Thanks so much for taking the time to advise me ladies. It would be better if I was 26 so part of my does kind of hope it takes a month but I just can't not ttc now. I know that sounds mad - what's am month in the skeme of things? But I seem to have been taken over by some primal urge to have a baby! Does that make any sense?!
Diplidopus I'm actually with bupa already so will give them a call - thanks for pointing that out.
Mrs Mar - such a good point about not being away from the loo - but am I the only naughty person who is willing to wee in the sea?! It gets very hot in SA at Christmas so will prob spend most of my time in the pool - wouldn't dream of weeing in there of course!
I'm just going to wait and see how I feel. DH and I talked about it last night and if I'm not up to it then we simply won't go.
But am I a chicken counter or what?! Might not even be preggers this time next year and all this worrying will have been for nothing!
x

Quick question, hope it's not patronising but I wouldn't have known this before I got pregnant the first time round! Are you dating things from your last period or from when you ovulate as the number of weeks pregnant you are is worked out from your last period. Eg when your period is due it is 4 weeks from your last period so you are 4 weeks pregnant, but it is only 2 weeks from when you conceived. If you're working from your ovulation date then you would actually be two weeks further on - 31 weeks and 33 weeks, so I don't know whether you would feel differently if that's the case. Hope that makes sense!

Such a good point Daisy, but am worring on last period. Am an obsessive planner so have being working it all on an pregnacy planning caluclator online. But thanks - if I hadn't know that would such an important thing for me to realise.
Hope you are all having a good day. I watched make me baby on bbc 3 last night and am now even more desperate to be preggers. V jealous (in a nice way) of all of you - hopefully be over here soon.
Thanks again to everyone who has heled me.
x

treenie - I too have peed in the sea... no shame in that! I was a scuba instructor for years and sometimes it was the only way to warm up (smelt delightful when I got out of my wetsuit... NOT!)