How much leave did you take during pregnancy?

mmille19

My husband and I have baby on the brain and are thinking of starting TTC soon. Im wondering how much leave you had to take for your pregnancy. Im assuming most of you took sick leave for doctor visits and days when you didn?t feel well. My work carries over sick leave but not vacation so I have a good bit of that saved up. Im just trying to plan things out so I feel a little more prepared. Thanks!

Virgo17

I took about 12 weeks with both once baby was born.  I was trying to save as much leave as possible, so I tried not to take much time off during pregnancy.  My boss was flexible about letting me work from home, especially on days I had appointments.  It will really depend on your pregnancy and how you are feeling. 

bornmommy

12 weeks unpaid FML.  I teach and my son was born in May so I was able to split up my 12 weeks into the next school year.  Save as much as you can.  In most states FML is unpaid.

MomtobeNJ

She's asking about the pregnancy, not maternity leave.

I probably only took about 6 or 7 full days. My morning sickness wasn't so bad that I needed to take the day off, thank goodness. I took a full day off for my anatomy scan and amnio. And there were a few random days where I didn't sleep well, so I used a sick day the next day. Or if I had a doctor's appointment late in the afternoon I would sometimes take a half day instead of driving all the way back to work for like an hour.

It's really going to depend on how you feel. 

EastCoastBride

I honestly don't remember.  Clearly I had regular dr appts.  As for taking actual sick days because I was sick - I don't think I took any.  I had a pretty easy pregnancy and early on I realized that any sickness I felt was easily dealt w/ by eating.  So no real morning sickness.  Just "i need to eat RIGHT THIS MINUTE" sickness and always carried some kind of snack w/ me. 

jf198400

I didnt take any sick time during either of my pregnancies other than using a day off for the anatomy ultrasounds. I had a fairly easy pregnancy, nausea wasn't too bad. I had no problems working up until delivery (and even past my due date) with both babies. I scheduled all of my doctors appointments in the evening or first thing in the morning and worked from home if needed.

itsmevkb

Some of my pregnancies required more time off than others.  Typically, you are going to the doctor once a month until maybe 30ish weeks and then it's every 2 weeks and finally once a week.  I always took the latest appointment in the day so I only had to leave work like an hour early.

With one of my pregnancies, however, I had to see a specialist once a week for the first 14 weeks so that sucked up a whole lotta time.  You just never know.

As for taking time off when I just didn't feel well, had I done that I never would have been at work!  I had all day, everyday morning sickness well into my second trimesters in all of my pregnancies and I still went to work because I didn't want to use up all my time.  Thank goodness my desk is close to the bathroom.

ludali

Thankfully I really haven't had ANY symptoms and am currently 25 weeks...sohaven't had to take any extra time - here's hoping I don't have to going forward.  DH and I make all doctor appts first thing in the AM...don't miss much work that way and can make up the hour or 1/2 hour that I may have missed.

Once you get into doc appts, at first they are just once every four weeks...and really take no time at all if no issues.  Then you'll get adjusted to every 2 weeks, then down to once a week as you get REALLY close.  Is your employer flexible at all with your hours?  If so, that'll be extremely helpful!  GL!

kristennd

I ended up taking very little leave. No full days, and I usually managed to take my appointments during lunch time. But pregnancies vary so much.

rockychryslerb2010

I don't remember taking any sick/vacation days just because I was pregnant.  I have a flexible schedule, so when I was really sick in first trimester, I was able to work from home.  I scheduled my regular appointments and just blocked the 45min-1hr on my calendar and used it as my 'lunch'.  Most of the standard appts are barely 15-20min, so if I worked from home, I was able to make the appointment without taking the full day.

I think I took a day for the anatomy scan, just because it was longer and I didn't want to rush back to work.  It wasn't necessary, just nice.  My leave started the first week of Dec, and my vacation time doesn't roll over, so I had a bunch of days I used the last month.  It was nice to work only 2-3 days for the last few weeks, but not necessary.  If I didn't have to use those days, I would have worked.

mmille19

 

My work is somewhat flexible, so if I need to take a longer lunch I can but I don?t have an option to work from home. My issue is that I commute 45 minutes into the city on public transportation so I don?t usually have the luxury to drive to my appointments then back to work. When I have normal Dr. appointments now I usually have to take 3-4 hours off to drive to my apt then back to the bus stop. Thanks for all the help ladies! Right now my big thing is do I stay at a job I like, with an easy going boss, great coworkers but has a 45 min commute or risk finding another job closer to home that I might end up hating (that will be another post itself) decisions decisions

Helenahhandbasket

None really.  I am sure I maybe called out one or two days during those 9 months, but the reasons had nothing to do with my pregnancy (meaning, I probably just had a bad cold or needed a mental health day).

My OB has late evening hours though, so I scheduled all of my appointments for after 6ish.  If I had to leave early or go in late for some reason I worked through my lunch. (as I do now)

Good luck!

kanga1622Wed220857

My work has been super flexible with me taking short lunches and working late so that I get my 40 hours in for the week and not have to use sick/vacation leave for dr. appts.

 

After delivery I take the full 12 weeks I'm allowed as this is my only opportunity EVER to have that kind of break with my kids unless I end up unemployed. 

shannm

Not much.

I did become exhausted during my first trimester with DD so I took a week staycation of PTO to rest and do some things around the house.  But it wasn't something that I needed to do.

rockychryslerb2010

mmille19:

 

My work is somewhat flexible, so if I need to take a longer lunch I can but I don?t have an option to work from home. My issue is that I commute 45 minutes into the city on public transportation so I don?t usually have the luxury to drive to my appointments then back to work. When I have normal Dr. appointments now I usually have to take 3-4 hours off to drive to my apt then back to the bus stop. Thanks for all the help ladies! Right now my big thing is do I stay at a job I like, with an easy going boss, great coworkers but has a 45 min commute or risk finding another job closer to home that I might end up hating (that will be another post itself) decisions decisions

I'm not sure what kind of hours you work, but if you haven't already found an OB, I would look for one that has early or late hours.  My office has one day a week they are open later, so you could schedule all your regular appointments for early evening, which depending on your schedule, will allow you to work the full day and still get back from the city.

TheyCalledHerKate

I don't have to use any leave for my doctor's appointments because I am salaried. I am working up until I go into labor so I can get the most out of my FMLA.

ETA: I also never took any sick days, even when I was nauseous all of first tri, I just pushed through it.

h2babe

I took zero sick time during my pregnancy for doctors appointment or what not. I was never sick enough to need time off. However, I saved some vacation days so I could take those during the weeks leading up to my due dates, which was a huge help for me because I really liked those days off to relax and nap (for both pregnancies).  

Jenn06L80

I worked up until my due date.  However the last month or so I worked three 10 hour days instead of four.  I used sick time for those days.  I would have liked have had a week or so off before I delivered, but ultimately I wanted more paid time off with DD.  

Fullcircle06

I didnt take any extra time off at all. I got really lucky and didn't have any morning sickness, and I just scheduled my appts either early in the morning or later in the day and I'd just accordingly w/a shorter lunch. I worked up until the day before I went into labor. I'd say a lot depends on your pregnancy and how you feel.

ridesbuttons

I took no time off during pregnancy and worked to the Friday before both kids were born (they were both born on a Monday).  

I scheduled appointments near the end of the day and generally just made up the time in other ways such as working through my lunch.

For the 2 ultrasounds I had I used personal time for 1/2 day each. 

 

LoCarb

During pg? None. I went to work on the days I didn't feel well. I was a salary emp and scheduled drs visits late afternoon. I took 5-6 wks maternity.

Reilly626

15 months

laurakaz13

I had 7.5 months of horrible morning sickness, yet I still sucked it up and went to work.  I wanted to save my 14 weeks paid maternity leave for after the baby arrived.

Of course I had a few sick days here and there, but my boss was cool about taking free time off for OB appts, etc.  I didn't waste much time off before the baby arrived. 

Edit to note: I am not trying to be a martyr.  I had a horrible time with my pregnancy, but still didn't want to waste any of my leave prior to the baby. 

jess9802

I don't have sick leave/vacation/PTO, as I get to take time off at my discretion. Despite that and morning sickness that lasted from 9w until 23w+ (thank God for Zofran), I think I only took two full days (the first after going to the ER for a threatened miscarriage and the second for wicked heart palpitations) and then a half day when I did the three hour glucose tolerance test. Otherwise, I tried my best to schedule my appointments for first thing in the morning. The doctor was never running behind at 8 AM and so I was able to get to work by 9.

FabulousMrs.P

I took 8 weeks unpaid when I had the baby. I worked up until the day I had her.

My work was flexible with doctors appointments. I would just stay late to make up the time that I missed while at the doctor.

boogerbearoriginal

During pregnancy, I didn't take any leave just used PTO for drs appointments as necessary but I always tried to schedule them late in the day so I only had to use an hour here or there as opposed to a whole day off.

I was fortunate to have a relatively uncomplicated pregnancy. However, I did have one random bleeding episode around 25wks that kept me out of work for 2.5 days (left early on a Wed when it happened, and didn't return until Monday). But again, I used my accrued PTO not leave time.

My boss is very flexible about that though, so in a more corporate setting I may have been required to use leave time for some of those instances. It probably will vary based on company policies regarding Drs appoints/etc and how your pregnancy progresses. Theoretically, if you/baby are healthy then you shouldn't need to take leave prior to birth. 

Some women like to take off days/week before giving birth, I chose not to and ended up giving birth early Sat morning. I was actually was in early labor at work on Friday, but didn't realize it until the end of the day/evening when things started moving along.

BabyHope2013

I did not take any leave while pregnant. I literally worked up until the day I delivered. And I would have gone into work that day had I not gone into labor in the middle of the night. I was lucky to have saved up my sick time and all of my vacation time to be able to have my 12 weeks paid. I wanted to spend as many seconds possible with my LO when he was born. So I just focused on that when I was feeling crappy and wanted to stay home.

My doctor appointment visits, I either used the little personal time that we get or I would try to make my appointments first thing in the morning or at the very end of the day so that I could just come in an hour or so late or just not take a lunch and leave an hour early.

RachieTK

I missed a day and a half of work up until I started my leave. I had a scheduled c section on a Wednesday and worked until the Friday before, so 3.5 days before maternity leave. One day was after an all night er visit when I had a stomach bug and needed iv fluids and the half day was for the 3 hour glucose test. I had a pretty easy pregnancy.

dfrederick

My first pregnancy I took 0 leave during. There was no need to take leave for Dr's appts they lasted and hour or less, so job was flexible. Even if I didnt' feel well I still went to work, there will be MANY days you don't feel well, but you gotta suck it up and go. My current pregnancy I've been off of work since March, I'm due June 29th, so I'm currently using FMLA and Short Term Disability so I'm still getting paid. Once this little one is born I will have been off 6 months from work, and will still have 4 weeks of vacation to use! Was never the plan, but I was put on bedrest at 22 weeks. Thankful I have a great job with awesome benefits.