Flying soon.. any issues I need to know about? - Page 2

[Toposlonoshlep]

Hmmm. I guess I look innocent, because I was never told to go through one before. I usually just walk through the regular metal detector and all is well with the world. I did get a pat-down once, but that was because my son was asleep in the Ergo and I didn't want to take him out. So good to know what to look for though!

Originally Posted by Thesan83 

I usually fly out of SFO in San Francisco, and they have a full-body scanner and a regular (metal detector, I think?) scanner at every security line. It's random which you'll get asked to go through. Once they seemed to consistently be sending every other person in line through the full-body scanner. But I'm sure TSA doesn't want it to be that predictable. Could just be at that particular agent's whim.

[lizsky]

OP, I flew cross country twice when I was pregnant with my DD, and I've already done it 1x this pregnancy (and likely will have to again for a funeral in the near future)  and while the radiation exposure is discouraging, I don't think it really accomplishes anything to get really worried about it.  I've heard some people try to fly at night to limit exposure to the sun's radiation 

However, if I were you, and travel for work was frequent, I would look into cutting back for other reasons.  You said you are newly pregnant...I HOPE you don't end up with bad nausea, but you might.  With my 1st pregnancy mine started around week 6...this time week 5.  I actually just flew cross country at 8.5 weeks and I felt SO sick the entire time.  The pilot barely ever took down the fasten seatbelt sign so they kept trying to make me sit down when I needed to use the bathroom to throw up  not fun.  

With my last pregnancy, my flights were in my 2nd and 3rd trimesters, and I was less nauseaus but I was big enough that the seats were SO uncomfortable.  I also had to pee every 30 min which is not convenient.  (And one of my flights was 1 day after a newsworthy airplane scare so EVERYONE was on super-alert mode and the flight attendants were VERY pushy about making people sit down)

I can see how flying to a tropical destination might help it feel worthwhile, but if your trips are for business, I'm guessing that you will probably be less tired and much more comfortable with fewer trips!  Congratulations on your pregnancy.  

[Toposlonoshlep]

The cosmic rays are the main problem so flying at night won't help. Because of the magnetic field the earth has, flying along the
equator is connected with less exposure to rays than flying over the magnetic poles where the radiation is stronger. A problem arises
through sun eruptions which can cause an extreme increase of rays.These events are very rare however. I think we have around one per
year. 
 

Originally Posted by lizsky 
 I've heard some people try to fly at night to limit exposure to the sun's radiation 

[Abraisme]

Compression socks totally prevented my feet from getting swollen!  Sooooo worth the $20 that I paid for them.  Really, swollen feet are the only complication that I've had with flying.  Good luck!

[mama2eb]

If you have to take dramamine regularly to fly and your OB approves, I would def recommend taking it before flying.  I only get nauseaus when flying while pregnant and it is horrible..sometimes even with dramamine.  The time I didn't take it, I ended up throwing up on the flight, on the subway, and felt sick for a couple of hours after landing.  I truly am not trying to scare you though so if you are worried, you can always try without on the first flight..that should give you a sense of needing it or not on return.   Good luck!

[erigeron]

I flew twice while pregnant (two round trips), once in the 1st trimester and once in the 2nd. I got an aisle seat, while usually I get a window seat, so I could get up and walk around, and made sure to do so every couple of hours. I packed plenty of snacks, because I was hungry all the time. Other than that I just went with it. The worst part honestly was waiting in the long line for security in the 1st trimester, because I felt horrid, and eventually just sat down on the ground. After we got through security we flagged down one of those golf carts and got a ride to our gate. I did get directed to one of the full-body scanners at O'Hare -- I wasn't yet visibly pregnant, I don't know if they would have done so if I had been -- but I opted out and got a pat-down. I was SCARED of that pat-down because I had heard that they are getting really invasive, but that particular one was not.

I didn't stress too much about radiation, cosmic rays, etc. Women fly all the time and their babies aren't born with two heads. Both of the trips I took were once-in-a-lifetime kinds of things that I think were worth it.

[dakover]

I'm 11 weeks pregnant and about to fly to Europe for 4 days, then back to the U.S.  I'm having a lot of nausea, so I'm planning to wear Sea Bands (acupressure bands...buy at any drugstore) and I went ahead and got a prescription for Zofran to take with me for on the plane.  It's used all the time for pregnant women and may be better for you than dramamine, but it's expensive!  This is my second pregnancy.  During my first, I flew at the end of my first trimester and I almost threw up during most of the second half of the flight, due to combo of pregnancy nausea + motion sickness, so for this long flight, I wanted to make sure I was prepared!  I may also buy some Preggie Pops to suck on, with the ginger to help a little too.  Smells really set me off as well, so I'm planning to have some scented lotion (citrus seems helpful) with me to smell when there's something stinky near.  Those are my tips.  Hope your flight goes okay and I wouldn't worry about the radiation for flying 3-5 times during the pregnancy!

[woodensandals]

I have a problem during pregnancy where I feel like I am not getting enough air and I get dizzy and fall over... When the plane landed it all of a sudden got very hot and stuffy and I freaked out. The flight attendants brought me oxygen which was horribly stinky and gross and I started to retch. Yeah fun times. I was hoping they would just escort me off the plane into some fresh air.
My advice is to sit in the aisle near the front if you think this might be an issue for you.

[Flor]

I did take dramamine for a boat trip when I was in the middle of the morning sickness. It is ok to take occasionally (though there was some special direction-- think it was just get regular not the non drowsy). I've learned that some women actually take it long term for morning sickness, so I think taking it once or twice is just fine. The nice side effect was that I didn't throw up ALL day, not just on the boat!

[lizsky]

Flew cross country yesterday- 6 hour flight, and I'm 14 weeks.  One other thing that stood out to me was the importance of having lots of snacks AND a variety of snacks.  I had lots of snacks, but mostly they were an assortment of carbs - it wasn't junkfood (fruit, dried fruit, homemade bread) but during the flight my body really wanted protein and I didn't have any- the best I could do was a pack of peanuts from the flight attendant.