When do you plan to take a leave from your job??

[new york momma]

I originally planned to work up until the day my water broke. However, I'm finding it more and more difficult to work well (especially commute) as my third trimester progresses. It will be hard on our budget, and I don't want to seem weak, but I'm now considering taking leave earlier.
What are your plans/thoughts?

[ein328]

I pretty much have to work...every day I take before the delivery comes out of my maternity leave afterwards, and I'd rather suck it up now than have to go back to work early.

With DD, I worked until the day before I delivered. My job isn't physically demanding, though- I am an instructor, so it's pretty much just teaching and/or desk stuff all day.

[finnegansmom]

When I worked out of the home in an office, I worked up until I was 40 weeks and had my baby the next week. I had about 30 minute commute and it kind of sucked but we needed the money and I wanted more time off afterwards.

I work from home now so last time I pretty much worked up until I was crowning. LOL. Took my mind off of things.

[samstress]

i worked up to a week before my due date with my dd and hope to do the same this time. i prefer to spend the bulk of my maternity leave at home after the baby arrives.

[MamaPhD]

I worked until 1 week before my due date. I was only getting 12 weeks total leave, so I wanted to use as little of that as possible before the baby came out. I kinda slacked off where I could & also took some sick/vacation days to help. But in the end, I was happy with my decision to save that leave with my DD because being huge and pregnant was hard, but postpartum was no cakewalk!!! And also I found even the 12 weeks with DD was waaaaaay too short before I had to return to work!!! Do you know what kind of leave you will get & how long? That will help you decide how to budget your time. For example if you can get some kind of disability leave before birth & then a separate maternity leave after birth?

[new york momma]

Thanks for the feedback.

My employer offers 10 sick days a year but no maternity leave. They did say they would hold my job for me though until I decided to return. I was planning on taking four months when the baby is born which is kind of long, but we have no family members or close friends within 2,000 miles so I was hoping the baby would be a little older before I put her in a nursery. If we had someone in town we new closely that could care for her while I was at work, I would return earlier.

My job is pretty physically demanding and by the time I walk the mile to work, do the 40 minute subway ride and teach my first P.E. class, I'm crampy and breathing hard. Friday, people were commenting that I look "miserable". I was really trying to fake it but I did feel pretty bad. By the time I walk the mile back home, I'm pretty much down for the count.
It's going to be really hard on our budget to absorb four months without my income, but I'd much rather have the time when the baby is born. I guess I'll try to keep pushing it.

[MovnMama]

Last time I took off about 1.5 weeks before my due date (at my employer's "encouragement") and ended up drinking castor oil because I felt like I was wasting my maternity leave. It was not good to just hang around the house and wait for the baby. I put to much pressure on myself and it went badly.

So this time, I'd like to work up to my due date, at least. Like other PP said, I think it's best to be distracted in those last few weeks, even if you are preggo-brain. On the other hand, I teach high school, and it would be QUITE bad for me to go into labor at work. I mean, it would be really uncomfortable for the kids, and I wouldn't have my sub ready yet, etc. So I will probably work til week 39 or 40 and then take off.

On the FMLA 12 week deal, I feel it's way to short, as in my last leave experience. I'm really lucky this time, with a due date in late April, that I teach high school and so have summers off! So I get my 12 weeks and that can only be taken during the school year - meaning I get 12 weeks plus the summer to be with my new one! How exciting is that? That's why we planned it this way...

[finnegansmom]

NY momma - I'm assuming you live in NY from your name, have you looked into short term disability? I lived in Maine when I had my first and my company had zero maternity leave so I used my vacation and sick time too, but I was elegible for I think 5 (or6?) weeks of disability at reduced pay rate. It helped paying the mortgage a little while I was out for my 12 weeks...I'm pretty sure they do the same here in Mass.

[happythistle]

I end next Wed - just after 37 weeks. Earlier than with DS but we're okay with being a bit poor in order to take 3-4 months. We did invest in short term disability which will really help since I don't get paid sick or maternity leave.

[Kellyh_01]

I'm a nurse and work 3 12-hour shifts per week. I stopped at 36 weeks. Even continuing that long was tough. We do get state disability, so it shouldn't be too hard financially.

[bella99]

I worked on a Thursday and my daughter was born the next day, on Friday, at exactly 39 weeks.

I *hope* to be able to do the same thing this time.

[Yuba_River]

With my son I worked to my due date, but the last month I cut back to half-time. That was perfect--more time to rest and get things done, but not so much time that I was going crazy waiting to have him. If you have a long commute, though, that probably doesn't make as much sense.

[new york momma]

I looked into short-term disability but I'm not sure I qualify. Info from one website said:

"Government workers are exempt - If you work for a state, county, city, township, or boro entity you may not have coverage.
Teachers are exempt - Teachers are considered government workers, and you may not have coverage."

Even if I do qualify, the disability leave provides $170 a week which won't cover our living expenses. I'll research it some more though--thanks for the tip.

[TheDivineMrsM]

Originally Posted by new york momma

I looked into short-term disability but I'm not sure I qualify. Info from one website said:

"Government workers are exempt - If you work for a state, county, city, township, or boro entity you may not have coverage.
Teachers are exempt - Teachers are considered government workers, and you may not have coverage."

Even if I do qualify, the disability leave provides $170 a week which won't cover our living expenses. I'll research it some more though--thanks for the tip.

You mentioned that you're a teacher. Do you work for the NYC Dept of Ed, or a private or charter school?

To answer your original question, I'm leaving 2 weeks before my due date and taking the rest of the school year off. (I'm a NYC teacher in a public school). I get paid for six weeks or as many sick days as I've accumulated. My health insurance runs out after three months, but we'll be covered by DH's. But I can take up to four years (per child!) and come back to my job.

[Dichotomy]

Originally Posted by TheDivineMrsM

But I can take up to four years (per child!) and come back to my job.

WOW! You can stay home with baby (albeit unpaid) for that long and still have your job guaranteed??? Thats pretty amazing!

I work for a small company with no FMLA. My job is guaranteed for up to 12 weeks per short term disability. So, I'll first cash in on my PTO, then I'll need to take 6 weeks unpaid, and then the remainder of the leave (up to the 12 week point) will be paid at 60% of my salary. Which isnt much, but its better than nothing.

I plan on working up until I go into labor, so I can use as much of that time as possible to spend with Baby.

I still need to work out my post partum plans. I'd like to stay home longer than that, but that would mean that I'd not be guaranteed a job to go back to...and that makes me a little nervous.

[hollytheteacher]

With my ds I took off 2 weeks before I was due since I was entitled to two weeks vacation that I wouldn't be using since I wouldn't be there for the end of the year. So anyway, I took those two weeks and got paid for them and then started my maternity leave (which does not pay anything that you united states of america) for six months. It FLEW by too btw. It's amazing how time flies after you have a baby.

But then I got to take ds to work with me so it's been great and I plan to do pretty much the same thing this time!

[jcregan]

I also teach and plan to take off about a week before I am due. It will be 9 weeks left in the semester and I can only use 6 weeks of sick leave during my leave. Since I won't come back for the last week or two or anything like that I figure no matter what I will be taking a couple weeks unpaid.

So I will go on leave a bit early and even is the baby comes a bit late I am just taking my unpaid time before hand instead of after.... then I have all summer!

[greenmulberry]

I will probably go as long as I can stand it. I have one of those jobs where I can just sit and answer emails if my other work is too taxing, and everyone still thinks I am getting tons accomplished.

[kythryne]

My partner and I are both self-employed, so we can take as much time as we can afford, and we've been saving like crazy so we can both take a good chunk of time completely off work. Right now the plan is to drop to "whatever I have energy for" part-time at 38 weeks and keep doing that until I go into labor. I've told my customers that I'm planning to be on maternity leave until mid-March (I'm due the first week in January), but I'll probably start working again a little bit once we settle into a routine - I love what I do and my schedule is very flexible, and I'm pretty sure I will want to be back in the studio before my leave officially ends.

[southernmommie]

I work from home and do home parties. I will most likely not do the home parties but continue to work from home after baby comes for a couple of months. I still have 6 weeks left before baby is due. So I'll just keep going until I can't stand up for the home parties.

I hope you find something that works for you. With my first, I worked up until I gave birth which was a week late.