Anyone else due late Dec/early Jan predicting they'll have a lockdown birth?

[Evianontoast]

Hi. I'm due Jan 3rd and husband and I have started thinking about arrangements for labour (getting someone to look after the dog etc. in case we're gone for a long time) and have sort of started thinking we'll probably end up with 2 plans - one scenario there he is allowed to be with me during the full labour experience and one where it'll go back to how it was in my hospital a few months ago - where Birth Partners are only allowed in the very late stages of labour and then have to go home within an hour. We're preparing the blankets for the car in case he has to camp out in the carpark! I feel so rotten for him facing the possibility that he'll have to sit outside in the cold wondering if his wife and baby are okay :( (I do understand that it may be a necessity if they can't get COVID numbers under control but it's still a sad possibility)

How are other people due around this time feeling about all of this? We knew what we were getting in to when we got pregnant in a pandemic but it's all seeming very real now.

I'm due 31st Dec, but I think he's going to be late. I know we had a lockdown in January ...Are we expecting another one?

What do you mean by the very late stages of labour - as in pushing? My trust has been pretty consistent that birth partners are allowed in when in established labour (4cm), which I wouldn’t consider late labour (with my first DC, I was 4cm when I went to the hospital and it was many, many, many hours later until I got to the pushing stage). There are different rules for inductions. Anyway those rules of 4cm have been in place for most of the pandemic at my trust, so I am hopeful that won’t change (due a baby in November and will stay at home as long as possible). I think right now birth partners can only stay a limited amount of time after birth and can only visit for a few hours a day on booked slots on the postnatal wards. I guess they could shorten the visiting slots, but I don’t think my trust are likely to stop birth partners visiting altogether even if we have another lockdown.

Late Nov/early Dec here. My trust reinstated partner visiting pretty early on and currently partner can stay for all stages of admittance with no time limit afterwards. They clearly think it’s important to have that support so I’m hoping they won’t go back to allowing partners in only during established labour but I just don’t know.

The hospital are likely to induce me early. My plan was already to get to 37 weeks so baby is full term and then work on spontaneously starting labour. My current plan is to stick with that and then labour at home for as long as possible. However, we live 40 mins from the hospital on a good day and our road is shut for resurfacing for 3 weeks (the last week being 37-38 weeks) so we’ll have to go the long way, which will add 10 minutes. I’ve been anxious about labour progressing quicker than expected and giving birth en-route but we’re too far away to send DH home. So it’s going to be a delicate balance. Might have to buy DH a book for when he’s sat in the car park waiting to be allowed in.

If I can’t go into spontaneous labour and the hospital is on reduced visiting, then I’m leaning towards elective c-section rather than induction as the induction process is so variable. However, with the shortage of staff on wards at the minute and if DH is sent home after, I’m obviously going to struggle after a c-section by myself.

We’re having a planned power cut at home when I’m 37+1 but we’ll be isolating from then and DH won’t be in the office. He might have to take a day of leave as he won’t be able to work from home but we can see if sex does kickstart labour as there’ll be nothing else for us to do!

What do the hospital count as ‘the very late stages’ of labour - this seems a bit vague and unfair as could happen so quick if left to presumable pushing stage? Our current regulations are partners are allowed in for actuve Labour (4cm dilated) and which was the case pre covid as you were only admitted when you reached this stage anyway. Currently they cannot go up to the Labour ward following the birth but will get an hours visit at some point. So in this case - I don’t see the restrictions getting any worse- unless they do away with the hours visit altogether. I don’t think there will be further lockdowns. But hospitals may choose to enforce their own restrictions based on what’s happening in a particular hospital. Blankets are a good shout - I had to wait on DH for hours outside A&E last year and just happened to have one in the boot and was definitely glad of it!

I’m due very end of December and asked midwife about this issue at last appointment. She said partner would be allowed as usual- even if I tested positive for covid before the birth and even if I did test positive before birth I wouldn’t at any point be expected to labour or birth in a mask. I think though if my partner tested positive he wouldn’t be allowed to accompany me so I need to think about who would be my back up partner in that eventuality.

I think this is really difficult, because it varies so much from trust to trust. Our trust allows partners in from the start of active labour (4cm), but not before. Although unless you’re there for an induction they’re reluctant to have labouring women on the ward before 4cms either (this has been the case since before Covid).

Partners are also currently allowed to visit the postnatal ward for one hour a day, but that’s currently all.

I don’t think they will change the maternity rules now, my trust updated their guidance at the start of the month and no change. Risks are just as high to pregnant women right now.