Sleep/maternity leave

[Bee7]

Nearly 29 weeks now and up til now i've been sleeping fine. But over the last few weeks i've found myself getting so much more uncomfortable, i keep tossing and turning and can't stay on the same side for very long. I also find that i keep waking up with cramps and pins and needles in my arms and legs. The other night i had the most painful cramp in my calf, i woke up crying and shouting - i swear OH thought i was going into labour!

The thing is, apart from being ridiculously tired at work i've been fine otherwise. I really want to work for as long as possible but can only see this sleeping thing getting worse. My mum and OH keep saying i should take my maternity leave earlier (at the moment i'm planning on working until the end of March and am due 17th April). Really don't know what to do for the best. It's not great feeling like i'm going to drop off at my desk, but on the other hand 'tiredness' seems like a silly reason to go off earlier. Anyone else have any thoughts? xx

 

[rosey]

I am working until 3 weeks before i am due, i was going to work until the week i was due but i have some holidays to use up. I figure the closer i can work up to giving birth the longer i can have off with the baby. Just make sure you take lots of breaks which your employer should be encouraging you to do!
I work 13.5 hour shifts and its that busy on the ward i forget i am pregnant half the time until my feet swell up haha.
Maybe you will get your second wind soon?

 

[VikkiR]

I've learned not to try and be a superhero, I was due to finish 10 days before my due date. My pregnancy hasn't been an easy one and I have been struggling since before xmas particularly in the afternoons, so I'm finishing in a week's time. LO is obviously trying to tell me something so I'm listening. I'd rather be fit as fit as I can before the birth and not jeopardise an earlier labour or further complications. Only you can make the right decision for you, but if your struggling, be kind to yourself xx

 

[hellywelly]

I am starting to struggle with sleeping, but have to say that I go through good weeks and bad ones. Eating late makes for a horrendous night (Fri was awful after a meal out for my dad's birthday!!) so it's a difficult one to call as sometimes you might feel ok. I am really trying to slow down at the weekends and in the evenings - I don't feel guilty about saying no to social occasions that before I would have felt obliged to go to.

At the moment I feel fine to carry on. It depends if you can afford the time off beforehand - I'd rather try and muddle through til then as I need the time (and the pay!!) after the baby's born, but would listen to my body and go if I needed to and not put LO in danger - I'm hoping to finish at 37 weeks. Also, I have been having fortnightly reflexology sessions and have found that I sleep like a log after them!! Might be worth a try??

 

[Mrs. KM]

I worked until Friday and I was 38+2. My main problem was sleep too, and I did take a few sick days just to catch up on my sleep. I really wanted to have as much time off with the baby as possible though. The last week was the hardest just because I am much more uncomfortable all the time, but it wasn't too bad

 

[My1stBaby]

I started struggling with sleep at about 28 weeks, waking up all night, swapping sides constantly waking up for a wee or with really bad heart burn etc so it must be the stage we are in!!

I'll be 35+2 when I finish, Ive got really bad SPD and doctor said I can either be signed off work now or stay at work with reduced hours so i've decided to stay at work with reduced hours (i do 22.5 hours instead of 37.5 now, but i commute into london so it still works out to be long days!) but if i start feeling like I cant cope i'm just gonna go on maternity leave. Listen to your body! you wouldnt be stupid to stop soon if you really feel you cant do it!

Lots of rest before the birth may do you better than a couple more weeks after babys here...?

xxxx

 

[JJo]

I worked until 38+3. Wasn't, and still not, sleeping very well, usually go to bed about 10pm and wake up at 2.30am and every hour from then on, swapping sides as I get achey and sore until I move to a different position. Sometimes I go back to sleep but sometimes I lie awake for hours so in the end just get up and watch tv and fall asleep on the sofa. I'm now 5 days overdue and am really glad that I stuck work out for as long as I did (even with a long commute with train/tube), if I'd had more time off before hand I would have been so bored. Work was busy and I was tired in the afternoon but I have an office job so at least I could sit down, guess it makes a difference what job you do and how much you have to function.

 

[vampybear]

my bad sleep started at ur wk, and at wk 33 it is still there, but there is the odd night it is slightly better. i have been getting upset about it as i feel like a zombie. i have another 3 wks of work before my annual leave which leads directly into my maternity, so im just counting the days and basically not caring if work arent happy with my standard of work, coz im too tired, and they should expect that now!

 

[xMrsxCx]

Do u not have holidays to use up? You could use them and finish earlier.. I'm due on 13th April and I finish work on 20th February coz I'm using holidays up.. I think u need the rest towards the end as well.. Like you'll find that u want afternoon naps... I could never finish work at end of march, work is killing me already haha...x

 

[Bee7]

Because i'll be going off around the end of the financial year i've already used all my holiday days earlier on in the year i think i'm going to see how it goes. Ideally i'd like to keep working until the end of March but if things get really bad then i'll just see if i can take it a few weeks earlier. I'll have lots to sort at home and don't want to leave it so late that i'm too knackered and fat to do anything! Time will tell i guess :S xxx

 

[xMrsxCx]

It is hard to judge coz u don't know exactly how you are going to feel..

Work asked me before christmas when I was planning to take maternity leave and I said at the end of march and now I'm glad I've changed it coz I'm making so many mistakes in work..

Just keep your options open and maybe give work two dates to finish....x