Would you do this when heavily pregnant?

[MrsCurly]

I work freelance and am just coming to the end of a job. I'm 29 weeks pregnant.

I've been offered another contract but I can't decide at all whether to take it or now.

On the downside, it would involve quite a bit of stress and a lot of travel (several 5 hour train journeys), and being out and about rather than sitting at a desk somewhere indoors. It would involve working and traveling until I was about 35 weeks.

On the upside it would be good money. I had budgeted that I would stop work now and not work again for a year (with all the long travel my job isn't very compatible with a small baby), so the money would be a bonus that I haven't factored in, and although I am not desperate for money, you never know what is going to happen in the future, especially as a freelancer with no paid maternity leave, leaving my family unfriendly industry for a year.

Also it would endear me to the people who I work for, and not leave them in the lurch. And they might remember me with more fondness when I come back looking for work from them in a year.

And lastly part of me thinks if I stop work now, at least ten weeks before the birth (and probably 12 weeks as my other pregnancies went to 42 weeks) I will go out of my mind and / or spend all my savings.

Am I mad to think about taking on this kind of work in late pregnancy? What would you do?

I would take it, but then with my first I worked up to 37 weeks, with a 1hr15 commute each way. I'm finishing at christmas when I'll be 29 weeks with my 2nd, but only because I need to take my 2010 holiday before my mat leave kicks in.
It would give you another 6 weeks with your new baby, if you still take 12 months out.
Providing your feeling healthy and have no complications then working another few weeks would be fine. Maybe speak to your mw if you're unsure.

In your shoes I would be tempted too. But I'm now coming up to 35 weeks, commute for 4 hours each day and its been killing me for about the last 3-4 weeks now, even though I've managed to avoid commuting for 2 days each week by having a day off and working from home. I still have another week left and wish I didn't. My belly is enormous and I'm absolutely knackered with lugging it all around along with my usual handbag clobber.

If this is a contract, the last thing you want to do is take it on and then not feel able to finish it; if that happened you would probably lose your client.

So on that basis I wouldn't take it on if I were you. Maybe you'll get a less onerous contract you can take on in the meantime. Much depends on how you feel now. I've been pretty knackered throughout my pregnancy although I'm sure not everyone is like that.

If you do decide to take it on though, try and make sure you get a free first class train ticket upgrade. National Express does this and so do some other train companies but normally you have to apply for it in advance (i.e. you can't just plonk yourself in first class sticking your belly out).

Would you be committed to finishing the whole contract if you accept it? I'd be tempted to say go for it, if you feel up to it, but you may find once you start that it's harder and more stressful than you realised. Lots of people work until 35 weeks or more, but every pregnant woman (and every job) is different.

I'd do it - was travelling for work up till 35 weeks (and that end point was as DS arrived), and it was OK. I took everything in a roll along bag, so could just actually only carry the bare essentials in my handbag

Gosh this is a difficult one. I am working (and abroad) until week 34 where I have drawn a line on the advice of friends who have experience in my field. What I would worry about in your shoes is if you couldn't finish the contract for any reason would it actually be worse for the company you work with and would it mean that you end up letting the client down and being blamed which could be a mark against you in the future? It is easy for people/bosses to say they will support you and then not if it suits them sometimes (I have had my pregnancy used rather duplicitously against me which is very upsetting). You might want to check out what maternity facilities you would have near your work too in case you did end up giving birth earlier than expected as 37 weeks is technically to term I think....

I am freelance and almost 31 weeks pregnant and getting tireder and tireder! I am planning on working right up til the end but I am lucky in that I have negotiated to work from home in my jamas for the last month (and is very flexible so I can work 1 day or 5days a week depending on how I feel). I don't think I could cope up to 35weeks with travel- but then again guess it would depend how many days a week it was- if only a couple much more manageable than fulltime.....

I have personally found working past 32 weeks in both pregnancies really hard. Both times, I had fab second trimesters - heaps of energy, but at 32 weeks, hit a wall of tiredness. Fortunately both times my employers were great; and I switched to working from home/ bought maternity leave early. For those reasons, I wouldnt do it.
Plus DS arrived at 37 weeks last time, so I was grateful to have the time at home to rest before bub arrived.

But you know your body and how likely you are to climb the walls if baby takes 10-12 weeks to arrive. But totally second what lucy has said. How near will you be to maternity facilities during this contract?

based on the fact that your other pregnancies went to 42 weeks it's pretty likely that this one will take longer to cook as well, but you just never know.

Does it have to be that long? Could you negotiate so that it could finish 2-3 weeks earlier?

I think i'd do it. I finished work at 34 weeks when I was pregnant, but that was because I was crippled with SPD, i would have been able to work much longer if it hadn't been for that.

You'll get more if you go on mat leave now...

I'd take it, definitely. 35 weeks sounds reasonable, I'm 35wks now and still managing working full time in stressful job. I personally find that if I have any time off work I just spend too much money, so if I even had budgeted it would have been blown by now.. but that's just me

Thanks for all your replies. Lots of good food for thought.

The work is very close to excellent hospitals so that's not a problem.

The contract does have to be that long and all the travel and stress is right at the end. That's what's putting me off. For the next few weeks I could work from home but at 33/34/35 weeks I would have to do this killer journey plus work.

In my first pregnancy I worked until 39 weeks but there was no travel and I lived round the corner from the office.

I'm inclined not too take it as there would be a big impact on my family with me being away and completely shattered when I get back. And I feel a bit like I have called in too many favours already.

Im 35 weeks and have been very fit and active. However, since about 32 weeks, things like breathing and walking feel like mountain climbing (im not that big either).

IMHO look after you and the baby first.

Personally, I would not do it. I thought I was coping really well with working full-time up until last week, and was reluctant to finish (end of fixed term contract). But now I've started my leave (am 32 wks) I feel so much better, less tired, less grumpy, my aches and pains have eased up and I'm sleeping better at night.

Good luck with your decision, and I hope everything goes well for you.

Just a suggestion (not got any pg experiences to draw upon but lots of experience lugging heavy laptops and stuff here and there)- if you do take the assignment, you might consider getting a strolly / case with wheels instead of a bag handbag. makes things MUCH simpler on your shoulders etc.

I would do it, provided you are generally well with no health problems or pregnancy complications. It's really boring being on early maternity leave and waiting around while nothing happens.

how are you now? i'd consider any pg niggles you might have; these are likely to get much worse quickly in third trimester. add that to usual tiredness, might be best not to.

otoh, if you are really well, i'd be very tempted to do it. esp if there's not much faffing about to be done at home to get things ready.

in the greater scheme of things, it's not such a long time for things to be erhm, ,a bit more difficult at home.

if you're the sort of person who likes to be active and busy 10-12 wks mat leave cld be a killer.

follow your instinct- if you feel you don't want to do it- don't do it. You are only pregnanant a small amount of your life- look after yourself and enjoy the last days of the pregnancy. Money is over rated unless you absolutely need that money to survive. i have had 11 weeks off and have loved just slowing down and resting.Stressful work is not good for baby or you.

Really depends on how you are doing in my book. I am also freelance and (unlike you) have a v pregnancy friendly work as I can do most things from home, the office is a 10 min walk away and I dont work a full week. I was going to work til mid Jan but am now stopping a month earlier at 33 weeks. And I am really glad I made that decision. But I have found pregnancy hard. Tired a lot, very big, and not very mobile at all.

Dont force yourself to continue til close to the birth if its not necessary. I aso kept thinking of that extra months salary. But then thought we dont really need it if we budget and really its more important for me to be relaxed.

Do it if you can, but if it feels hard be kind to yourself

Thanks again for all your advice.

I am minded not to do it.

To explain a bit more, I live at one end of the country and the company who employ me are at the other. The train journey is 5 hours. So I am going in to see them on Monday and that is a 10/11 hour round trip. Even when I'm not pregnant it's a killer.

I can do most of the work from home apart from right at the end when I would have go there a lot. I'd overnight down there but the work itself right at the end is also very tiring. And when I come home there's two other kids to look after, so not much respite.

I am someone who is always busy, so my natural instinct is to do it, but I do think I need to look after myself and the baby a bit more than I would do. And since I can pay the mortgage and bills with my current savings, the extra money is tempting but as someone here said, not essential.