Traveling while pregnant

[Lovumms333238]

So my husband and I are going to visit our parents in Ohio all the way from Texas via road trip. Its about a 17-18 hour drive (we've made the trip several times while I was not preggo) So I was wondering if any of you had made similar trips or had any advice for us? I know we have to stop every 2-4 hours to walk around and I know to bring snacks and water but we are trying to do this non-stop. We plan on leaving around 7pm and arriving by 3pm the next day at the latest to surprise his mother at work. We are both very excited and determined to make this work we just need some tips!
Thanks!!!

[fawnanddoe]

How far along are you going to be during the trip?

When I was pregnant I did some traveling, nothing that long, but it counts! Just make sure you take breaks to walk around, keep some small snacks with you, lots of water. Bring some tylenol or something (I had an experience on a plane where I had the worst headache ever, it would have been good to have), some papaya enzymes if you have heartburn, and a pillow or two, I know my butt would start getting sore after a while so sitting on a pillow might help!

I hope this helps some, good luck!!

[fawnanddoe]

oh and p.s. I don't think there's any way you can do it non stop, you need to give yourself a little leeway!

[Angelorum]

I flew from Utah to Prague during my 3rd trimester (29 weeks when we left, 32 on the way home. It was an awesome trip. I never calculated how many hours the actual flight was, I didn't want to know. Things that helped me be comfortable:

1. Pillows! Lots of them. I had 2 of those travel neck pillows (one was inflatable) and I used the airplane ones. To be comfortable I needed at least one pillow in the small of my back, and then one for my head/neck when I wanted to sleep.

2. Eyemask for sleeping

3. compression hose. I think I just used the knee-high ones for the flight, though I had full ones that I wore often during the trip. I had had no swelling at all through the pregnancy until that first flight. I still swelled some with the compression hose, but they helped keep it under control and keep things circulating.

4. Roomy shoes! I brought some clogs. They got a little tight around the top of my foot when I was swollen, but they had tons of room in the toe box and were still comfortable to wear with big feet.

Good luck!

[Chamomile Girl]

I did a three-day roadtrip while 8 months pregnant (10 hours a day). Its doable, but not comfortable. I had to stop to pee about every two hours, and I had to eat and drink much more which is why it took so long. In fact it took about 6 hours longer than it normally would have. So leave extra time.

By the end my legs and feet were very very swollen. The swelling lasted the rest of my pregnancy too .

The only other issue I had was I was experiencing intermittent ocular migraines (fuzzing and narrowing of vision, without the headaches). Whenever this happened I had to stop until it went away because I was driving. Scary.

So, yeah its totally doable but not very fun. It really depends on how far along you will be though. I did a bunch of air travel while about 3+months and that was no problem at all.

[treegardner]

DH and I drove from San Diego to Prescott, AZ, while I was pregnant, and we went to Hawaii. I would seriously consider stopping along the way so you can lie down and rest. That would be an exhausting trip without being pregnant.

[linchi]

Hey, you can totally do this trip! Last month my husband and I moved from Stockholm, Sweden to Lyon, France - by car - and then we went to southern Spain to go spend Christmas with his family, and back up to France! I was 7 months pregnant.
We took it easy, we drank lots of water, I wore support socks, we got out and walked as much as possible. If you'll be driving at night, make sure you rest lots the day before.
The trip will give you and your DH lots of time to talk!

[MaerynPearl]

We will be moving 1100 miles at 30 weeks pregnant...

[Lovumms333238]

Update:

I will be 31 weeks at the time of the trip, we leave on sunday and return friday. We have done this before non-stop while I wasn't preggo and we didn't have any problems, just had to stop every couple hours! The roomy shoes are a definite go since all I've been wearing is tennis shoes. Tylenol is also a good idea, I wouldn't have thought of that! I'm so absent minded these days... Also the support hose, another definite go! Thank you Linchi for your encouragement! I definitely know we can do it!
MaerynPearl - Let us know how it goes! I will keep you all updated and please keep the tips coming!

[khaoskat]

For roomy shoes, I would just get a pair of comfy slippers or sandals. When we travel, even just short trips, I usually kick of my tennis shoes and go barefoot while DH is driving. I slip on my sandals to go to the potty or into the gas stations, etc.

If the backseat is going to be empty, you can lay down back there for a bit and elevate your feet on the cardoor window. If not, you can lay your seat back as much as possible and put your feet up for a bit on the dashboard (generally not adviseable, but if you do it for a few minutes every hour or two, I doubt you will have to worry about the safety issue of an accident as much).

I would pull over every couple of rest stops for about 5 mins to go potty and to do stretch your legs. Also, when he is pumping gas use that as a time to get out and do some exercises and walking and potty.

While sitting, you can do small things like ankle circles, flexing and tightening your leg muscles. I would look up some of the physical therapy exercises for knee and feet, and post op exercises they recommend as well, as a lot of those can be done while sitting in the car to help with circulation.