10 Flying Pregnant Tips From Me to You
I’m insane. Last night I flew all the way from Nashville to Los Angeles. I thought it would be a fabulous idea to join my husband on a work trip. We wanted to turn it into a little last minute romantic weekend before baby #2 arrives…
Although this was a good idea in theory, the four and half hour flight was not easy. Being pregnant and flying is not the best combination. To make matters worse, I totally forgot to check in for my flight, and I ended up being one of the last people to board the plane. Being pregnant, flying, and sitting in a middle aisle seat is an even worse combination. I think I made the poor guy sitting next to me get up at least a million times so I could go pee.
I am trying to remember what flying was like before kids. Luckily, my daughter stayed behind with Grandma and Grandpa this trip, so I didn’t have to fly with her. But I can’t remember a flight in the last two years where I haven’t either been uncomfortably pregnant, or had a baby on my lap.
I tried to read and got super nauseated. I tried to write/work on my laptop, but the seat table jabbed into my belly. I tried to stand a few times to stretch my legs (that had fallen asleep due to lack of blood circulation) and I knocked into a few people with my giant belly and massive butt.
In the end, it was all worth it. I’m here with my sweet hubby. However, I’m not looking forward to the long flight home. So, if you’re like me and about to jump on a flight in the near future, here are a few travel tips from me to you. Hopefully, these will make your trip a little easier and a little less stressful.
1. Check in for your flight exactly 24 hours in advance. Set an alert on your phone if you have to. This will ensure that you get an aisle seat on the plane for all your bathroom visits.
2. Give yourself plenty of time to navigate through the airport. You just don’t move very fast these days. You want to make sure you have plenty of time to waddle to your gate.
3. Wear athletic shoes. You’re pregnant. No one expects you to travel in style when you’re pregnant. With all the crap you have to lug around, athletic shoes will make it much more comfortable for you.
4. Pack Tums! This one is SUPER important. When you sit in the same position for a long period of time, you can get horrible heartburn. I totally forgot mine, and I would have given both my pinky fingers for a Tums.
5. Pack snacks. This one should be obvious for us pregnant women, right?
6. Remember your ipod. When you get super uncomfortable and your hips start to ache from sitting in your seat, it’s nice to have some relaxing tunes to help take your mind off the pain and just breathe.
7. Bring your Tylenol. These days you can’t just take any pain reliever the woman sitting next to you may have in her purse. Make sure you have some Tylenol in your own purse for all the aches and pains that are just unbearable.
8. Wear a cardigan. Your hormones are crazy right now. One minute you’re cold and the next you’re having a hot flash. If you wear a cardigan, you can easily remove it when you get all hot a flustered.
9. Bring a book. I prefer a good romance novel when I’m traveling. I’m not ashamed to admit that. They are quick reads and are just enough distraction to keep your mind off how uncomfortable you are. These days I soak up reading when and where I can. Once you have kids, finding time to read books will be nearly impossible.
10. Don’t forget your ChapStick. Have you ever notice that your lips are extra chapped when you’re pregnant. I think it’s all the hormones. Well, flying seems to intensify chappy lips for some reason, so make sure you have your favorite lip balm packed in your purse.
Do any of you mamas out there have anymore pregnant travel tips?
Thank you for this! I have a 10 hour flight scheduled when I will be 30 weeks along. I’m trying to save up for an upgrade to first class so it will be a little better trip.
While pregnant with my first, I flew Vancouver-Boston at about 24 weeks (and back two weeks later). While pregnant with my second, I flew Vancouver-Germany, outbound at 27w and back at 30w. (Plus, during both pregnancies, a number of flights in the 5 hour range.) My tips:
- Preboard. Give yourself lots of time to get settled.
- Ask for a bulkhead seat, for the extra legroom.
- Compression hose. I had prescription-grade knee-high compression socks, and while they were a beast to get into, they kept the swelling to a reasonable amount.
- Get a letter from your OB/MW/GP if you’re getting into the third tri, or look like it. I wouldn’t have been allowed on the plane back from Europe without the letter from my OB confirming my due date.
I flew from NYC to Cairo at 4.5 months pregnant, and then from NYC to Maui four days after flying back from Cairo. Here’s what I learned:
1) “You have to put the billow on your belly, to brotect the baby!”, as the very sweet flight attendant on EgyptAir told me as he strapped a small pillow over my bump.
2) Get up and walk around a lot. Also, stretch whenever you can, though you may encounter crazy bitches like the one I ran across on the NYC>Phoenix leg of the Maui flight, who seemed to think there was something morally wrong with stretching one’s legs in the aisle. I still hate her and hope she is as miserable as her demeanor. Ha!
3) If you have a long flight with a layover and you aren’t super huge yet, exercise on your layover. Yoga, stretches, squats, pushups, whatever. Get your blood flowing. You will feel so much better.
$) This hardly needs repeating, but WATER! Lots of it.
Great stuff!