preggo in the time of covid??

dsher

I'm agonising. In terms of our life, timing, career trajectory, and savings plan we would ideally start TTC in January - but this would mean pregnancy during covid. My husband is a healthcare worker so I'm at a slightly elevated risk (although he is very very careful), and we would have an international move during this pregnancy (moving closer to my parents - ideally around the 6 month mark) which really scares me. I'm a pretty risk-averse person and prone to anxiety to begin with but I really really want this second baby and timing of having the baby with the support of my parents around is just perfect. It would also be minimally disruptive to my career if I followed this plan. But covid!!! How is everyone else thinking about the risks? I know overall they are not much higher than for non-pregnant people...thoughts?

doodleoodle

I think I would wait until after the move.

dsher

@doodleoodle I would if it was the last one!! We have two more moves after that    It's for work unfortunately so we can't do much about it. But this will be the only year that I'll be near my parents.

doodleoodle

That’s rough! How often are you going to have to move?

dsher

3 more international moves and hopefully that's it! We have 5 behind us now from the last 4 years....so feeling ready to settle down any day now   I know it seems like madness!

doodleoodle

My goodness! If you do decide to start ttc i would take as many precautions as possible. From what I understand, there is an increased risk of hospitalization while pregnant if you get covid. 

LJMoon6

Dang! That's a lot of moving. Are you in the military?

I think if you’re comfortable with it, I would go ahead and just get pregnant now/in Jan. We have no idea how long this virus will be with us. We have no idea if another virus or mutation will pop up. It’s hard to keep living your life on hold. Yes, of course use precautions and wash your hands, wear your masks, blah blah blah (all the stuff we’ve heard a million times). But still live your life.

I’m definitely not trying to down play the virus. It’s scary and can be de devastating. But you have to decide if it’s worth it for you and your family. Is your mental health going to take a hit? We’re going to start trying for our second in Dec/Jan. And while we’ve already had covid, I’m still a little anxious about it. You never know what the future will hold.

Another thing to think about is if you’re ok with limited access during delivery. I’ve had a couple friends now that have gotten covid in their 3rd trimesters. One was over it before delivery and was able to have her husband in the room. The other friend was also over covid before delivery but she actually gave it to her husband so he wasn’t allowed at the hospital the whole time. It was really hard on them.

Anyways, there’s lots to consider with this. It all just depends on what you’re comfortable with.

dsher

@LJMoon6 thank you for this! Just needed to hear it from someone else!!
 

I absolutely understand the risks, we read peer reviewed journals for about two weeks and talked about nothing but statistics until our heads were about to explode! There’s no way to guarantee against the risk- you can just take every precaution possible which is what we’ll try and do. I guess the bits out of our control (like the international travel and my husband’s higher risk of exposure at work) are just going to be worries we have to live with. 

The timing of this is just so right in every other aspect, I really feel like I have would be so unhappy putting my life on hold for longer!

were your third trimester friends ok? Hope it didn’t impact their pregnancy. Terrible to not have your partner during delivery!