I'm 18 weeks pregnant with DC2. My sickness record for the past few years has been horrendous, and I've been warned that taking any more sick leave will really be detrimental to my career. I know that pregnancy-related illness isn't suppose to count in the same way as sick leave, but from past experience such a distinction has never been made, as it's obvious that I've gone into my pregnancies knowing how ill I might become. So if I can at all avoid it, I'd prefer not to leave early on sick leave.
Equally, though, I'm increasingly unsure of my capacity to cope until 29 weeks. It's an entirely sedentery job that could almost entirely be done from home with the hours worked almost entirely flexibly, so there's not much that could be done to make it any easier, either.
Is there any way, other than by getting a sick note, that a person can begin maternity leave before 29 weeks?