When did you take your Maternity leave?

[Velvetee]

How many weeks before your due dates did any you ladies go on Maternity leave? I was planning on about 4 weeks before my due date, but perhaps take the week off before in holiday entitlement.

Thanxx

[redcrx]

I went off at 42 weeks and returned 2 weeks after the birth of my first.
with my second i worked til 40+3 and was back at work fully, 3 weeks later.

I wouldnt recommend it though lol

I sort of moderate for a board of pregnant ladies and they seem to be varying from 30 weeks to 39 weeks though the ones leaving early are mainly due to having difficulties such as spd. The average seems to be about 36 weeks.

[Velvetee]

Ooh I don't know how you coped, still working when you were overdue. I don't think I could do that and amazed were back to work 2 weeks later. I think I'll be taking a year off.

[natalie_1982]

Hi Velvetee I worked until 39weeks, which is the maximum I could go to - if they had allowed me to work overdue I woukld have done, but company policy is it has to start from the Sunday prior to your due date, or something like that. I went 10days overdue, so had two weeks at home driving myself potty, bouncing around, eating chillis and pineapple and scrubbing the house from top to bottom, organising and reorganising the furniture, and generally being bored. Oh, and taking a daily walk to the bakery and back :-)

I returned to work in October when mini-nat was 6months old, I would have taken longer, up to about 9months I think if I could have afforded it.

[annie0000]

I worked up until just over 38 weeks with my first and 13 months later, I worked until the Friday before I was due to have a section on the Wednesday with my second - I went back after 4 months with my first and 5 months with my 2nd as he wouldn't take a bottle and I had to wean him before I went back. He decided that he would take a bottle after all on the day before I went back!

[Psychick]

My official leave started about 6 weeks before my due date but because I worked in a school, I had a an extra 2 weeks before then thanks to the christmas holidays. I had originally planned to leave 4 weeks before my due date but had been struggling with PGP since I was about 6 months.

If you are going back after baby and you feel good in yourself, you may want to add holiday entitlement to the end of your leave so you get the extra time with baby. You may need to check that is ok with your employer though.

[cockroach]

i'm at nearly 38 weeks....i shall be going on mine when i go into labour & prob back in the office 2 weeks later. But working from home as necessary. The joy's of being self employed..!!!!!

[redcrx]

exactly cockroach.
oh the joys or winding a baby and answering the phones at same time eh :)

Those last few weeks are so boring velvet, but only youll know if you can cope and continue to work, my job is deskbound so much easier to cope with than others.

[tigwig]

I planned on working until 2 weeks before due date but ended up leaving 4 weeks before as it was too uncomfortable. I am a nursery nurse in a baby room.
I would try and be open minded until you are much further on as you don't know how you are going to feel.

[Velvetee]

Thanks everyone.

I'm so looking forward to going on Maternity leave, but then, on the other hand, I'll probably have my work cut out for me, no more lounging about watching daytime TV in bed.

[carron81]

hey

you can leave a good time before your due date

i finised up in the middle of april and my due date was the middle of june

i didn't want to leave early but had to because work weren't giving me breaks and i was working 10 hour days and they were messing my job about.

but, what i did was use up all my holidays first so i could actually leave about the 10th march.

in scotland they work it from a sunday. so if you work monday to friday your maternity will start on the sunday. you cant leave midweek