Babymoon?

[HaveToTravel]

About a week ago, I posted a question about buying airline tickets to St. John. I bought them and the next day....surprise! I found out I am 6 weeks pregnant. That means I will be 7 months pregnant during our planned trip.

This would be our first trip to St. John (and my first pregnancy), and assuming everything is going well with the pregnancy, we are still planning to go.

I would never have planned the trip that way, but I don't want to cancel it either. Any advice or thoughts from others so have been in this situation?

Our other option is to cancel the trip and go sometime after the baby is born. I wish we could change the dates and go sooner, but that's not an option.

We aren't sharing the news with our families until I am farther along, but I'm sure they will think we have to cancel the trip at first. Good thing we bought insurance just in case we do have to cancel.

Another thing I keep thinking of is that maybe we should save that vacation time from work and cash for when the baby is born. But it's a hard decision because we've looked forward to this dream family trip for a long time.

[Xislandgirl]

I am not sure that I would travel to STJ 7 months pregnant.

[PatrickMcc]

You have to ask your doctor and the airlines may at the least require a letter from him if you are that far pregnant. My daughter traveled with us to St John in February when she was pregnant with twins due in June- her doctor said no reason not to go and gave her a letter in case the airline people asked for one. I an not sure but I believe she said doctors do no want you to travel in the last three months. Bottom line ask the doctor.

[HaveToTravel]

Thank you. So far my doctor has said it is okay if everything is healthy and on schedule at that time. But, of course, that is a long way away, so if there is any reason for concern at all, we won't go. Once we discuss it with my family, we may decide it's better to postpone the trip just in case. I feel bad to be the one who is throwing a wrench in this trip we've all looks forward to for so long. Of course, my family can still go if they want. I wish we could go earlier, but there is no way I can take work off between Aug-mid Dec.

[PatrickMcc]

To be honest I was very worried when my daughter and son-in-law decided to go- even with the doctor's permission. I checked out the clinic with a nurse there and did find out that St John has a new ambulance boat to St Thomas. I believe they said babies are not usually delivered on St John.Locals familiar with the clinic gave it excellent reviews. Once we got there I found I was much more relaxed. My daughter even had to take her 3 year old to the clinic for a suspected ear infection. She and her husband were impressed by the staff. Good luck whatever you decide and I hope this helps.

[HaveToTravel]

Thanks. I will also have to check my travel insurance policy to find out whether being 8 weeks within my due date would invalidate it should an emergency occur. As I type all this, Im thinking it may just be one month too far into the pregnancy to be comfortable, both physically and for ease of mind. We will see how the next 8 weeks go and then make more decisions.

[dreamshark]

First of all, congratulations! I'd certainly plan to go if I were you. Pregnant women these days often work right up until they go into labor - that's a lot more stressful than relaxing in an island paradise!

And I don't think there is any particular danger in flying while pregnant. Airlines would prefer that you do not go into labor during your flight, which is why they get a little jumpy about women flying within a month of their due date. But at 7 months I don't think they have any special restrictions.

Obviously, if your doctor has any concerns as the date approaches, or if you just find yourself feeling increasingly anxious about leaving your home base as your pregnancy progresses, you should cancel. But fortunately you have travel insurance, so you can do that at any time without a big financial penalty. So plan a laid-back trip where you can spend hours relaxing on your deck contemplating baby names. (And don't blame me if you end up naming your baby something like Bananaquit).

[DonnaM]

I was healthy as a horse for both of my pregnancies so traveling at 7 months would have been fine. If you have insurance, I wouldn't cancel unless you have to. Also, traveling in December, you are unlikely to face weather delays or travel problems ( though I don't know where you are coming from ). If it were me, I would take this opportunity to enjoy this relaxing time with my husband before I fully realize why the Japanese used sleep deprivation as a torture method! Lol
It's not like STJ and STT are third world countries. I am sure many locals have had excellent medical care there and if you had an emergency, you could easily fly to Miami.
Good luck with your pregnancy and with your baby! Enjoy every minute because it goes so fast.

[Teresa_Rae]

Congrats!

My husband and I had a babymoon on STJ when I was 5 months pregnant with our first daughter...I also traveled by myself for work when I was 7 months pregnant. This past February we had a babymoon when I was 7 months pregnant with our second daughter, this time in the S.F. Bay area because a friend got married there.

I suggest an aisle seat on the plane for easy bathroom access, as well as lots of water so you stay hydrated. Moving your legs is important since you're more prone to blood clots during pregnancy.

Since you have never been to STJ before, that would be my only hesitation. We had been to STJ many times by the time we babymooned there, so I knew my way around and felt comfortable.

[Lindy]

I say see how things go, check with your doctor and use the trip insurance to cancel only if you absolutely must. As long as you're not having any complications there really should be no reason NOT to go. That will be you last opportunity to take a trip as a couple before you turn into a "family" and what better place? You life will become immeasurably more unpredictable after the baby is born so you might wind up having to delay a trip much longer that you want. At seven months you will still be feeling good enough to really enjoy your trip - not too big to keep you from moving around and still able to get a decent night's sleep. You can take advantage of the fact that you have greater buoyancy in salt water and a huge bonus of travelling without all of the accoutrements of an infant. (It will quadruple what you have to haul along!) .Sure, you'll have to pass on the rum drinks, but thank goodness STJ is WAY more than that anyway. There will be plenty of rum in the liquor store for all those at-home weekends AFTER the baby. I've raised two of the little devils myself and sometime it takes A LOT of rum to get by. Hahahaha!! My co-workers used to be horrified when I told them that age 15 really makes you understand why hamsters eat their young. That is until they had their own teenagers and then they knew that I was only telling them the cold, hard truth. Congratulations and enjoy your trip!!!!

[Xislandgirl]

I am not sure where the rest of my post went but what I thought I had said was similar to what Theresa said. I don't know if I would explore a new destination 7 months pregnant. This is direct from my friend that was 6 months pregnant when she came to visit me. She had a good time but was super hot all the time ( it was summer) and the heat made her tired all the time.

[Jumbiegirl]

No way I'd go. I had a baby one day unexpectedly when I was 7 months pregnant. No complications, no nothing. Just came early one morning.

[HaveToTravel]

I wanted to share what I have found in case it is helpful to others searching this topic. I had my second doctor's appointment last week and she said traveling at 31 weeks is fine as long as everything is progressing well. She did say, though, that she recommended against traveling to a destination without a NICU between 24-36 weeks in case a preterm birth happens and the baby needs support. She felt this way especially since it's my first pregnancy and we don't know if I will have a tendency to deliver early or late, and as Jumbiegirl mentioned, preterm births sometimes just happen.

So my family was going to reschedule the trip. I thought I would be covered by trip insurance, as I did have a few pregnancy complications that are documented in my medical records that are giving me cause for caution. I was wrong. Pregnancy is excluded from most trip insurance policies, even if you buy it before you are pregnant. It covers only very severe complications, not including symptoms of "difficult pregnancy" such as severe nausea, prescribed bedrest, spotting, or early labor. So even reasons your doctor would say you should not travel are not covered. If there is any chance you might be pregnant when you travel, you need cancel for any reason insurance, IMHO. Of course, I would have said that wasn't possible at the time I planned this trip We considered rescheduling without an insurance claim, but the change fees/fare differences, rearranging villa rentals, and coordinating a new vacation week between 4 adults' work schedules just didn't work out.

At this point, my parents will still go but my husband and I are not making a decision until right before the trip when we can see how things are going and if the minor complications I had early on do not resurface. This is why I am still open to the possibility if baby and I are healthy the week of departure:

-St John does not have a hospital, but they do have a 24 hour ER that can stabilize patients and dispatch the water ambulance. This ER/clinic is in network with the hospital in St Thomas, so they have an open line of communication.
-The water ambulance can reach St Thomas in 15 minutes (probably add some time for the actual transfer from clinic to ambulance)
-The hospital in St Thomas has a NICU, 2 board certified neonatologists, and several board certified OBs, one who specializes in maternal fetal medicine.

Clearly, I don't want to have a baby away from home and definitely not in an emergency. So we don't know yet whether we will go, but we are leaving the possibility open since I did some more research on the islands' emergency resources. I had heard various things, including that St Thomas didn't even have a NICU or neonatologist, so I wanted to share this information in case it's helpful to others. I will post an update in Dec. in the meantime, I will keep planning the trip, and even if we can't go, my parents will have a great time.

[tochin]

My wife and I went on a trip to STJ when she was 6 1/2 months pregnant. Everything went well except I was worried all the time. Peace of mind may factor in here for you.

A funny but not so funny story is we were on Jumbie Beach all by ourselves and my wife was sitting in a beach chair sunning our yet to be born son, and I made a face on her belly using coral from the beach. I was filming it ( I filmed every week of her pregnancy) for family memories and when she finally got up from the chair she blacked out! I was able to grab her and lay her down and she recovered. Of course I was a complete wreck after that. Should we drive to the clinic I kept saying?

Later that evening, we were going to dinner in Cruz Bay and a nice local lady was talking to my wife about her pregnancy and my wife told her what had happened.
She told my wife, "in a wonderful island accent and with much more animation than I could ever portray in words", that they angle she was sitting at in the beach chair had the baby pressing on her arteries and was restricting blood flow to her legs. When she got up from the chair the rush caused her to feint. We later confirmed that with our doctor that yes that could happen.

Everything was fine after that and my wife always made a point of not sitting too long in the beach chair the rest of the trip! 9 years later we have an awesome son starting 4th grade! Time flies.

Best of luck in your travel plans and pregnancy.