Driving at 36 weeks?

Carbaby411 · January 2011

How many weeks were you (or will you be) when you had your baby shower?

Do you think it is reasonable for me to have mine at 36 weeks? The catch is that it will be a 5 hour drive from my house. Would you feel comfortable driving 5 hours at 36 weeks?

snoboardbabe77 · January 2011

I had various showers at various stages of my pregnancy. I just had one this past Thursday at 38.5 weeks (but it was work and I just came to work as usual). I personally would not feel comfortable driving 5 HOURS at 36 weeks...and I think for the most part, I have felt really really good. I don't even know if I'd want to be a passenger in a car for 5 hours!

Where are you from? I am from St Paul, MN - here and the surrounding areas suck right now!

You said "is it reasonable to have yours at 36?" Has someone planned one already?

If you do go, depending on your situation, drive with someone and stop A LOT! GL

maelli3 · January 2011

I would be willing to be in the car for 5 hours but not alone. When I was 36 weeks with DD we were driving back (12 hours) from a family vacation. It wasn't the most fun drive, let me tell you.

ncbelle · January 2011

I had a very easy pregnancy with no real discomforts last time but I wouldn't have wanted to go on a 5 hour car ride at 36 weeks - it was just too uncomfortable to sit in one position for that long!

Dreamsicle23 · January 2011

Just be prepared to take breaks (pee and/or stretching). I was totally comfortable doing pretty much anything up until I went into labor.

circa1978 · January 2011

I agree with the breaks thing. My OB says to stop every two hours to walk around and use the bathroom. Something about preventing blood clots. Oh, and no, I wouldn't want to drive 5 hours at that point.

sarag0116 · January 2011

I had my main baby shower at 32 weeks. And my work one will be next week at 37 weeks. We live 5 hours away from our families but my one thing was I wanted the baby shower HERE.

I'm a little over 36 weeks now & I'm mobile and still working and all, but if you asked me to get in the car for 5 hrs, I would say heck no. I would be just miserable.

Sorry, that's just my honest opinion.

thatsmary · January 2011

I had my baby shower just this past weekend about an hour from my house at 35 weeks so I think 35 or 36 weeks is fine... just not so far from home. I commute an hour each way to work, but it's starting to get difficult even turning around to look out the back or side window.

I have been feeling great and I couldn't even handle the 3 hours to watch Harry Potter at the movie theater a few weeks back, so there is no way I would put myself in a 5 hour situation at this point. Plus with all the BH I've been having lately.

alli&pat · January 2011

When I was pg with DS, I had a shower at 37wks that was 2.5 hours away. I'll be honest - it made me nervous to drive that far so I made sure I had someone to drive with me. I ended up going to 41w so obviously it wasn't a big deal - but I'm still not sure I'd be willing to commit to 5 hours away.

EnigmaJC · January 2011

If I were you I wouldn't do that drive. I had my shower a little early (27 weeks) due to the holidays. Having your shower at 36 weeks would not be a problem, but I'm currently 35 weeks and I hate being in the car for any longer than 30min. I definitely would not drive myself anywhere farther than 30 min and I most def would not even want to be a passenger for more than an hour! Everyone is different but it seems most of us here are in the same boat - it is really uncomfortable to sit in one position for a long time. You might be ok if you take frequent breaks like PPs said, but for me a 5hr trip would be torture even with breaks. My DH drove me to visit some friends 2 hrs away about 2 weeks ago. I kept having braxton hicks contractions the whole way, then on top of it I was so hot that my face was red yet my poor DH's hands were ice cold so we kept fighting over having the heater on/off. I was so uncomfortable I almost told him to turn the car around. Not a fun ride! :-)

Jenniferk08 · January 2011

I would not be driving solo for that long. Can your DH/SO come with you? I know a shower maybe boring but if you get tired, cramps etc it might be better if he was driving.

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