When to go off on maternity leave?

[Kmward36]

Hi everyone!

I am currently 16 weeks pregnant and trying to plan my mat leave. This is baby no 3.

first baby I worked until my due date (won’t be doing that again!). Had very sore hips and feet and was very fatigued.

second baby was in lockdown so I worked from home until my due date which was great.

can’t decide when to go off?!

I'm a cardiovascular surgeon, I spend about 14 hours a day on my feet operating so not really an easy job where I can sit in the office. I do try and take a break every 5-6 hours though which helps! I work full time (if that matters).

im thinking 37 or 38 weeks?

I know ill have more time with the baby after but it’s not a massive deciding factor as im taking 16 months off (including annual leave) and my husband is a stay at home dad.

any advice welcome? ☺️

Hi - I have an office job and with commuting and more tricky second pregnancy, I stopped at 38+1 and really feel I probably should have stopped at 37 weeks, mainly due to PGP and exhaustion. I can’t even imagine trying to do it as a surgeon, you’re a superhero! If you’re taking 16m anyway I think you’ll be glad you opted for 37w, as it’s such a bloody slog the last few weeks (as you probably remember from the last two times). All the best

First baby I went at 38w which in hindsight was too late as she was born the next day 🙄. Second baby, I had AL booked from 36w then ML from 39w. I was actually glad of the extra time from 36w. As im sure you remember, third trimester is no joke with a toddler and I was exhausted. Plus I had more complications this time (hypertension then preeclampsia) and I was at the hospital 3 x per week for BP profiles and monitoring. I think work would have signed me off onto ML if I hadn't been taking AL. So my advice is probably earlier than later!

I’m a nurse so also on my feet all day! I’ve got about 2.5 weeks of A/L left to take before the holiday year ends so I’m taking that to kick off my mat leave, and starting maternity leave about a week before my due date. So going off around 36 and a bit weeks.

Another surgeon.
Are you doing full on calls?
I stacked my rota so I stopped on calls at 34/40, collapsed in a heap after a hideous daytime on call. I took 4 days off at 35/40 and stopped at 36/40 (including operating that week). I limped to a LSCS at 37+3 on three scans a week.
In retrospect, I seriously alarmed my colleagues and probably made things worse than they needed to be. The Dopplers resistance fell by 50% 72 hrs after stopping, hence why I managed to get another 3 days.

Personally, I would say that you are mad to continue beyond 36/40 but you have your previous pregnancy experience to draw on.

Physician here so I don’t have the same stamina as you! I came off on call rota end of second trimester - no regrets there. Also, while one grumpy consultant made me feel bad about it, absolutely none of the other consultants did and were extremely accommodating. I stopped at 37 weeks and this felt right for me. I was very ready to stop and wanted some chill time. I think if you have the time at the other side, I would stop earlier rather than later. Why push yourself? Good luck!

Obstetrician here, currently 35/40 with twins.
I had originally planned to stop at 34/40 with delivery planned for 37/40, and come off of call rota at 28/40/ stop operating 32/40.
Ended up stopping on calls at 24/40 and being signed off at 29 weeks after a difficult pregnancy with IUGR, OC PGP and HG (yes it's felt like pregnancy bingo)
To me it's not a coincidence that my twin one's IUGR improved when I stopped working, everything else seemed more manageable and my mental health has been much improved. Just be kind to yourself and if something feels like too much it probably is.

Every nurse, doctor, midwife I know has used annual leave (saved up if needed to) to go at 36 weeks, then started maternity leave a few weeks later. I can't speak to on call as I'm not a doctor, but as with PP I think my doctor friends stopped them by the end of the second trimester.

I myself went at 36+2 weeks with my first. Or at least that was the plan. The day before I was supposed to finish I was admitted with pre-eclampsia instead. My second was a COVID baby so I'd already finished at 28 weeks, though if my maternity leave plans had gone ahead, the same would have happened as with my first.

So yeah, 36 weeks feels right.

Thanks for the replies everyone. Very helpful to get different perspectives.

currently work in an all male team and I think that does have an influence on me wanting to work as long as I can (like I’ve previously done).

have decided that I’m going to go off at 36 weeks and have a relax and quality time with my eldest two.