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3rd Trimester
Choice of bed rest?
backstory: I have been having tons of ultrasounds with this pregnancy since the baby is measuring small and they are monitoring if she is growing at all or not. When I went to the doctor this past week, we did another ultrasound. I said that I had been having some cramps over the past week, so because of the measurements and the cramps, she did an internal. She said the baby is really really low and that I am over 50% effaced. She told me I could go on bed rest if I wanted to, but if I chose to stay at work, then I just needed to sit down the majority of the time. That's difficult since I'm a teacher.
Have any of you ever been given the option of bed rest? I feel like I want her to TELL me what to do; she is the professional, not me! Would you choose to go on bed rest for that? Would you just take it easy? I would love her to just tell me what to do.
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Re: Choice of bed rest?
What age level do you teach? I think with younger kids it would be hard to sit most of the day, but if it's middle-high school kids then you could manage taking it easy and sitting a lot of the day...
Maybe try taking it easy for the next 2 weeks until your next appt, then have the doc re-evaluate?
I teach high school freshman, but they certainly are a spirited bunch. I told her I would take it easy and sit often until the next appointment and then we'd talk about it again, but I still would rather her tell me what to do instead of relying on me to tell her what I'd like to do. It seems as though if it was really important, she would have told me to go on bed rest, period, end of story. I won't quit working until I absolutely have to. I won't get paid my entire maternity leave anyway; I need to work when I can.
I was pretty much in the same situation as you. I'm a teacher as well (grade 6). I started having SPD pain 4 weeks ago and honestly didn't feel like I could go on any longer. I was in SO much pain at work. Just standing and walking across my classroom was causing me major pains. Of course, I didn't know what the pains were at first. I first made a visit to the hospital because I was really worried about the pain and had no idea what it was. The doctor I saw didn't know what it was either and put me on rest for 2 days. I went back to work the next day and that was a mistake. I wasn't in any less pain but, since no one told me NOT to go to work, I went. I saw my family physician after school that day and, after consultation with an OB, my doctor told me that she was sure it was SPD and wanted to put me on rest for the next 4 workdays until I was able to get my u/s and OB consult done the following week (which was already scheduled). So I took the next 4 workdays off. I had an appointment with my delivering doctor while I was on rest. She didn't seem super concerned about the pain I was in. She said it was common. But she also said it was up to me if I wanted to go on sick leave. She wasn't suggesting strict bed rest. But she said that only I know my body and it was up to me to make that decision.
That was the most difficult thing for me. Had a doctor told me to go on rest, I would have been okay with it. But, since I was having to make the decision myself, I started to feel really guilty about not being able to give my administration and school board sufficient notice. They knew I was obviously eventually going to be on mat leave. I gave my notice for it a few weeks prior (two months before my due date). But all of a sudden I was having to make a decision about going on an earlier leave. I felt guilty on so many levels. I felt like I hadn't finished up projects and units that I had started with my students. I felt like I wasn't going to have the closure I had hoped to have (like a bit of a farewell party with my students etc as well). I still had marking to do. I was going to have to plan for the subs that would replace me until my long-term replacement was hired. However, I knew that I wasn't able to keep working. I.just.couldn't. So, for three weeks I planned for my subs, prepared assignments and tests, marked etc. I created a bit of a longer-range plan for the sub who was going to replace me for a few more weeks before my long-term replacement was hired. I left my resources in my classroom and will keep them there for whoever replaces me to use unless they don't want them. If they don't, I will have DH go with me and we'll pack them all up (I REALLY don't want to have to do that though, especially since I might return to my classroom in the fall instead of taking a year mat leave).
I think you really need to make this decision based on your needs and feelings. It's hard to do but only you know what you're capable of. I teach in Canada and have a generous maternity leave. I also had a really good sick leave so most of the time I have off before taking my maternity leave is actually sick leave. I'm not eating up into the time I can take off after LO arrives. I know that since you're in the US, your situation is probably quite a bit different.
I wish you the best of luck with your decision. I completely understand that it's not an easy one!
ETA: OP - I was typing while you were responding to the PP. Now that I see what grade level you teach, I can see that maybe you can do a lot of resting by sitting while you teach. I could have done that with grade 6 as well. However, it was all of the walking in the hallways and on supervision etc. that wasn't possible. Also, I can understand your need to work as long as you can. Hmm...if it's not necessary, I guess maybe I wouldn't go on it. But...listen to your body!
BFP #1 09/02/11 M/C 09/12/11 8w6days
BFP #2 07/18/12 Baby S born on his EDD 03/23/13
SS - age 12...SD - age 8...DS - 13 mos.
I was actually thinking about this today and wondering what I would do with the option (we were actually talking about if I decided myself to take the next few weeks off, not a doctor suggested/mandated bed rest).
Beyond the things PP mentioned, I also thought about the fact that these would be weeks that I would not have after the baby is actually here because my FMLA would start right away.
If you are perfectly okay to take it easy at work but would opt for the bed rest, would that take away from time off later?