Being 'off sick' before maternity leave

[CTR123]

Hello,

My baby is due 10th of August. For many reasons I feel for the first time ever now is my time to ask for some time 'off'. I've always been a hard working person working in education, long hours etc. This is my second baby, I'm working full time from home with my 2 year old, this pregnancy has been tough due to severe morning sickness for the first 15weeks (worked through it 😫) and this lockdown has really effected me in every way. I'm struggling to cope with work demands and being by my laptop most of the day, me & my husband have had the worst arguments and balancing both our work and time with our toddler has been a nightmare. I'm shattered, no time to rest, being monitored by a consultant due to concerns about the growth of my baby. Physically I'm struggling to walk to to pelvic issues which started the other day. I pick the skin underneath my feet until they bleed, which makes me unable to walk due to anxiety about trying to keep on top of things. I just feel totally overwhelmed mentally and physically. Would this give me the right to ask for some time 'off' via a GP and would this effect my maternity pay. My maternity leave doesn't start until my due date because it's the summer holidays so I'm off anyway. Need advice as I've never asked for a sick note before. Thank you! X

You can go off sick but at 36 weeks they will start your maternity leave.

You can if you feel you need to but your employers can ask you to start maternity leave earlier than you planned, I think it may be from 36 or 37 weeks ? Maybe earlier. Hopefully someone else will be along who knows exactly.

You could but if you are still off sick at 36 weeks it will trigger the start of your mat leave regardless of what date you have put and that it is in the holidays.

Hope you begin to feel well again soon!

Are you working school term times? If so, you want to ask your GP to sign you off until the end of term. You would then technically not be on sick leave from end of term till your due date, so wouldn’t need to start your maternity leave early.

I know this isnt about going of on maternity but a little advice for your feet as i do exactly the same and im worse in pregnancy get some of this cream from amazon its incredible!! Its cheap and only takes 2 days to help them feel better and there is nothing to pick as it makes them so smooth i promise. I got to the point on monday that if i didnt do something soon i wouldnt be able to walk for soreness and now they are so smooth again. Pregnancy dries everything out. This really helps. This was £2 on prime and it came the next day. You wont regret it.