Would you travel by ferry at 38 weeks?

[FireWithin]

I live in MA and am blessed to have inlaws who have a house on an island off of MA. It takes about 2-3 hours for me to get there, by car then bus then ferry. I have no concerns about schlepping myself and my boys. Nor do I have concerns about going into labor and having to travel back to my hospital during the day.

My concern is that I go into strong labor during the night and clearly can't make it onto the mainland by morning.

They have a small hospital and quite a few homebirth midwives (it's a rather crunchy place), but I don't know what the hospital is like.

I am a vbac so I have concerns regarding that and what they would "allow" me to do.

The thing is is that my mom has been living with me for 8 weeks and I REALLY NEED A BREAK from her. If I could just get a long weekend away, with my boys, with my inlaws - That would be heavenly. A chance to hang out by the water and do gentle hikes.

So what would you do??

(2nd baby was scheduled section, first baby was 13 postdates)

[EzzysMom]

I'd check out the hospital VBAC policies, some are very strict. I probably wouldn't go other than maybe for a day trip out there and back as feasible. You could stay on the mainland in a hotel for a night or two? But without a backup plan, at 38 weeks that is a big risk of 'sick of your mom' necessitating a csection, which would just make her stick around longer eh? Can you send yiour mom to visit the inlaws? heh

[JessieBird]

Hmmm...I totally understand the need for a break from your mom and the ability to make the trip but that's a really tough call. Sounds like a wonderful place! What does your intuition tell you? Are your midwives familiar with the hospital there? I think that if I knew that the hospital could handle an emergency c-section, then I'd go without a second thought. If not, I'd want to know their back-up plans and decide from there. In the end, I probably wouldn't go.

Another factor to consider - I was present for my friend's birth on an island in BC. She lived on a small island with no medical services. By law, she had to pay a huge deposit to the ferry service as well as the ambulance service in order for them to be "on call" at all times for her after 36 weeks. Unfortunately, her planned homebirth required a transfer so the ambulance was needed as was waking up the ferry operators in the middle of the night in order to get to the hospital on another island. It wasn't urgent enough to require a helicopter but still it was quite an ordeal and it cost her a fortune because she didn't get the deposit back. I'm not sure how anyone would enforce this kind of requirement (perhaps her midwife insisted on compliance in order to care for her) but it makes me think that if the hospital where you're going isn't full service, there could be conditions on late-term preggos being on the island (as with flying, etc).

I really hope everything falls into place and you get the reassurance you need in order to go! Otherwise, that sounds like the sort of place I'd want to spend a babymoon - you could head over to relax soon after the birth.

[Melly24]

I'd check out the hospital's VBAC policies. If they are strict in requiring you to do certain things that you don't want, then I wouldn't go. Or get in contact with a homebirth midwife there and let her know you will be there and what her recommendations are.