Austin Babies

when's the earliest you would fly with a newborn?

***this is posted for a friend who doesn't use the nest. she asked me this question and i was kind of torn. so i figured i'd try to get ya'll opinions***

my friend is trying to plan for a family beach vacation for next summer. details on the trip - they'd have to fly to maryland. they go yearly (i think) with her sister who has 2 kids, 4 and 2 yo, and is expecting twins in march (so awesome that she'd get to see the twins), plus some school ages cousins (not sure of ages) plus their parents and her parents. so it is a house full of people.

my friend is due mid-june. she is trying to plan it for after when her baby would get their 2 month shots, but that may not work due to the older kids being back at school.

so, the question... would you feel comfortable traveling with a baby born mid-june in mid-august? would you fly before their 2 month shots? of course assuming no complications with the pregnancy or delivery, etc.

and sorry if that got complicated!

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Re: when's the earliest you would fly with a newborn?

  • Nope. The first time Emma flew was the first time she got sick. With the recycled air she was breathing in everything people had. I had wiped down everything too with lysol wipes. She was 5 months at the time.
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  • I would.  Just put the baby in a carrier.  If she was being born during flu season my answer might be different, but in August?  I say go for it.
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  • We flew when DS was 2 months but just before he got his shots. He was born in mid-July and we flew mid-sept. I checked with his doctor, and he felt we would be fine, so long as we kept the baby close to us and didn't let people touch him/breathe on him, etc. I asked specifically about the recycled air issue, and he felt that due to the time of the year and the low prevalence of airborne diseases, we would be fine, and we were. So with his blessing, I felt comfortable. I would advise your friend to clear it with her pedi, but I'm assuming if this is her first baby, she doesn't have one yet, and by the time she can ask, her flight would already be booked and it would be too late if the doc says no, right? It's a tough call but based on my own experience I lean toward telling her it would probably be ok.
  • oh man, J, my heart skipped a beat when I saw that subject....

    We flew with C when he was 2 months old (I was in my friends' wedding in DC) and he was fine.  We made sure he had his shots before we left too.

    Now that we have flown with C at various stages in his life, I really miss those days when he was so tiny and would just sleep on my lap ;-)

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  • imagekiarox2002:
    I would.  Just put the baby in a carrier.  If she was being born during flu season my answer might be different, but in August?  I say go for it.

    This would normally be my answer, but I would play it by ear with twins.  There's so many variables you won't know ahead of time--how long will they bake?  Will one (or both) of them have respiratory issues because of being born early?  etc., etc.  It sucks to not be able to make plans, but I'd err on the conservative side and say "wait and see."

  • imageMrs.Froggianna:

    imagekiarox2002:
    I would.  Just put the baby in a carrier.  If she was being born during flu season my answer might be different, but in August?  I say go for it.

    This would normally be my answer, but I would play it by ear with twins.  There's so many variables you won't know ahead of time--how long will they bake?  Will one (or both) of them have respiratory issues because of being born early?  etc., etc.  It sucks to not be able to make plans, but I'd err on the conservative side and say "wait and see."

    sorry if that was confusing, but she's not having twins, her sister is. so another reason she wants to go with her baby is to see her sisters new twins.

    Nova - that's funny you say that. i should have put the disclaimer in the title, but that would have been a really long title! :)

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  • we flew when DS2 was two weeks old! it was a family trip (my mom, all my sibs & their families) so similar to your friend's sitch. we didn't want to miss out on such a big gathering so we went. I kept him in the sling pretty much the entire traveling time. I wore an air ionizer around my neck & scrubbed hands with wipes every 5 seconds. he did great - slept & nursed the whole time. No sickness at all. BUT Id say it's very hard to predict all the circumstances ahead of time. I wouldn't do it again just for any old trip - just a super special occasion and only if everyone is healthy.
  • I was on a trans-Atlantic flight with a couple and their 1-month-old!  Of course, they had to travel due to an illness in the family, but they said the trip had been a piece of cake as far as how the baby handled everything.  But that doesn't take into account germs & stuff.  Knowing me, I'd be leery.  But knowing her, I'm sure she'd handle it a lot better.  :)
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  • I traveled with Babytaffy at 17 days/23 days, four flights.  I wore him in a sling when he wasn't in his carseat for takeoff/landing (airline had a spare seat and gave it to me when I asked for it - I didn't buy him a seat).  It was super easy.  He had no vaccinations at that point, and I didn't worry about it.   I didn't take other extra precautionary measures and I did travel in October so it was the start of flu season.

    Not knocking anyone who posted, but I don't understand the "must wait until two month shots" philosophy because all of those shots require subsequent doses to be truly effective.   But to each his own.  If you feel comfortable traveling, travel.  If you don't feel comfortable, don't.

     

  • We flew with DS when he was 3 months old. He did fine, but I wouldn't have flown earlier than that.
  • i would do it.
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  • I flew with Ad when she was 6 weeks old. My step-grandfather died & it was important to me that I'd be there for my grandmother. She was great & didn't get sick. It was in mid-October in flu season.
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