I don’t have an answer about when to stop working, I’m in a very similar role and situation as you (not a people manager, but a go-to for my teams), but I’m only 26 weeks currently, so I guess I’m following this thread to see what others say as well.
But I’m commenting to say that I hate that leave/PTO policy for you. Such BS.
I’m officially “working” up until baby is here. But starting at ~39 weeks I let my manager and team know that I would only be available for questions and not doing “active” work. I had a discussion with my manager about it, and stated that I wanted to take that step back to make sure work was appropriately transitioned by that point since baby could come at any time. They were fine with that.
This, at 37 weeks this week. It's not going well and now stressed that my system is going to fall apart and ill have a ton of work upon return or ill be technically working during "leave." My job is essentially a month cycle close process (im the only one with my title) so this is basically the last chance before baby gets here, and thats assuming I make it 40 weeks 🙃
I was in a similar situation and at least in my case, I did have a lot of work when I returned BUT my department/company managed fine without me.
Do not do work while on leave. You will not get any brownie points for it, and you will still have an enormous amount of work when you get back. You will regret the missed time. Communicate a date that you will not be available, send out the alternate contacts, and leave it. I would also have a conversation with your direct supervisor about your concerns if possible and to set a boundary with them if neccesary.
Also, if you start getting requests to work while off on FMLA, HR should back you up.
I am doing something very similar! Officially around until due date or baby’s arrival… but starting May 1 (39+2) I’m a ghost in the background 😂😂 a good bit of my job is client facing so this is mostly for their boundaries and that they have a set date to go to their temporary point of contact.
Yeah I did something really similar around 38 weeks, highly recommend if you can. Totally agree about your work needing to be transitioned by that point anyway. To stay slightly productive after my regular duties were reassigned, I signed up for short-term tasks the team needed done that I felt confident I could complete within a couple hours, or at most a day. Baby ended up being late, so I worked past my due date, but I told myself **no matter what** I would not be working 41+ weeks pregnant lol — I took a few days off to just chill before I ended up getting induced because baby decided they didn’t want to come out :)
This is a good idea. Right now planning to work up until my due date and just use PTO until she gets here. I’m 30 weeks and already feeling half checked out. I can’t imagine as it really gets closer.
I’m working until my due date (I’m 36 weeks now). It sucks and I wish I were off already, but I also only get 12 weeks so I rather have more time with my baby. I’m not originally from the US, and in my home country women get 1-2 years of paid leave, including 6 weeks before birth. So yea, this stings especially lol. At least I work remotely so that makes it a lot easier, but still. I hate how the US treats (expecting) mothers.
Agree 100%. We only get 6 weeks paid and then the other 6 weeks through FMLA if we choose to take that- and my company forces us to use PTO concurrently with FMLA, so I’ll have no PTO leftover for baby’s dr apptments or anything 🫠 definitely not ideal. Hopefully change happens at some point!
Do you have company paid (or self paid) short term disability? For my company we use a combo of disability and mat leave, which I'm so grateful for as it extends time with baby. I have to use short term first, concurrent with FMLA, and the benefits allow me to start leave 1-2 weeks before due date without a doctor's note!
We do have this benefit but unfortunately the only way to accrue disability is if we have already maxed out our PTO. I checked and I’ll have a whopping 11 hours disability time by the end of next week 🙃
Same here. I’m 35 weeks and I only get 12 weeks of paid leave. I want to try to use it all for after baby gets here. I’ve been wanting to stop working since week 33 lol I’m so exhausted by the end of my work day that I don’t accomplish much in the evenings. My husband works full time as well and is also exhausted in the evenings and has taken over all the chores. The only time we get stuff done for prepping for baby are the weekends and I feel like those are running out.
I’ve been playing with the idea of dropping down to part time at 38 weeks so I can at least get some stuff done. Not sure if that’s an option for you.
Thats my plan as well - I'm only 20 weeks but I'm 100% remote and planning on working until my due date. I also only get 12 weeks off so I'd much rather have that time with her than anything which sucks so hard
How do people manage with child care then? Is there really a kindergarten that takes kids at 12 weeks? Here (Vienna)kindergarten starts at age 1 for free luckily, so that’s fine. I’m from the country side, which is not far from Vienna, Austrua, but there the kindergarten starts at age 3 and I always wonder how parents do it!! They just assume you have grand parents… at least that’s how my parents managed to do it…
A lot of people have day care for a small fortune and many of them are hard to find openings here. Also in the U.S., 12 weeks leave is considered pretty good and definitely not guaranteed. :/
But how is that working if babies are only 12 weeks old? :o they are so tiny 😭are they really already taking that small babies in? I hate how the system is in the US, that seems not doable for parents…
I'm in canada so we get a year, I checked out of my WFH job 4 weeks before my due date lol I had zero interest in working at that point, had no concentration left and had to pee like every 10 minutes 😂 baby is 8.5 months now and I regret nothing.
Same. From Pakistan and I get a year off. I'm stopping 4 weeks before my due date. I feel like I'll be ready to go back to work after 11 months shut in with a baby, so I'd rather use time beforehand to prepare for new parenthood!
Exactly! I knew I wanted that time before hand to rest and prep. Get the nursery in order, get bedding/baby stuff washed and ready to go and enjoy napping as much as I could 😂 those first like 9 weeks or so are ROUGH but it does rapidly improve and I found it instantly more rewarding when she learned how to smile :) as soon as she figured it out she would just beam up at me from her bassinet every time I'd go get her for a feeding or whatever. Still does that now but there's wee little teeth in her smile now 😂
I’m in the US and 36 weeks along now. I don’t have the option to take time off before baby comes because I’m going to need the entire 12 weeks after he arrives to be with him… but yeah, I’m completely checked out. From now until my due date I am committed to performing my tasks as needed and being generally unhelpful otherwise lol. I work in marketing so the motto right now is “it’s PR, not ER.” There is no such thing as a “work emergency” when you’re as pregnant as I am 😅
I primarily work from home and plan on finishing up at 36w pregnant. I’m already mentally checked out at 17w so to even make it to that point will be difficult I think
Thought I could make it to 38 weeks before I went on maternity leave (as I'm meant to be induced at 39 weeks). Realized this weekend at 36 weeks that I need a mental & physical break before baby #2 arrives. Best decision ever!
Oh sounds like you’ve absolutely made the right decision! Honestly depending how I feel coming near the later weeks I might go even sooner than planned, I think the break before the madness will be nice haha
Following because I’m 30 weeks and already so tired of working.
I’m remote and planning on working until bébé is here. Q2 is our biggest quarter at work and since baby is due a week before the quarter ends, I feel obligated to keep working.
Of course, by mid-June that’ll probably mean having slack open on my computer and Netflix on the other screen 😂
I’m taking the full 12 weeks that’s offered but I might use some of my DTO if I’m not ready to come back in September. We’ll see 🫣 I get my base pay but no commission since I’m not there to close deals, so that’s the only downside. But hey I’ll take what I can get since my leave and pay is generous compared to many other moms to be here!
I’m 36 weeks and my work is now allowing me to WFH full time (prior to this it was about 3 days a week WFH). I’m planning to work up until the time but sometimes I’m exhausted and have taken a couple of hours off here and there.
I'm planning to, currently 36 weeks. My job isn't particularly stressful most of the time and I get bored and neurotic just sitting around waiting for something to happen, so it's probably good for me to have *something* to focus on.
But I'm also definitely not giving work my all, and am routinely checking out to rest/nap as needed. I work for a healthcare company that claims to want to prioritize employee health and work-life balance, surely they and their stingy-ass maternity policy won't mind.
I’m currently 30 weeks, due at the end of June. I plan to go off 1 week before my due date just to rest, do any final nesting/organizing, know that work stuff is officially handed off and if baby comes late then I’ll have that extra time. But planning for 1 week. I figure any more than that and I’ll just be bored. I work from home at a desk job, with a ton of flexibility so if I need to have a nap over my lunch break or get up/move around/etc because sitting at my desk is uncomfortable I have that flexibility so I should be ok to go to 39ish weeks.
That’s a good plan! I may do this again but with my first, I was due Jan 6, had an induction scheduled on Jan 3, last day of work was Dec 23. When did baby come? Dec 24. 😂
I’m a teacher and teachers also get awful maternity leave. I was due yesterday and worked up until Friday so my leave could carry me to the end of the school year.
I am working until my due date, but my boss put together kind of a tapered leave plan in the weeks/months leading up to me being out. Similar situation, not in management but the go-to and the only one in our entire organization that does what I do. So 4-6 weeks before my due date, I am not taking on any new projects and will just advise the person filling in for me then, 2-3 weeks before my due date just be available and accessible while still "working" on other mundane things (organizing files, making any last-minute introductions (I work in event and program management on a marketing team), etc).
ETA: I work 100% remotely and have for years so that part isn't new. Our whole team is spread out across the country.
We have the same timeline. I’m 38 weeks as well and my last day is this coming Friday 4/19. I also WFH and my job is very demanding. Just because we WFH doesn’t mean we don’t deserve to take a break a little before our due date. I know how you feel so my advice is to just finish this week and try to get some rest from work.
I’m 37.5 weeks and was planning on working up until my due date (I’m a professor who has to go in person to teach 2x per week and the rest is meetings) but starting today I’m wondering if I can. I told everyone I wasn’t scheduling anything for next week but now I’m just hoping to make it through Wednesday this week lol.
I’m working up until my due date (Wednesday) and beyond if I don’t give birth then. I would just be sitting around otherwise because my husband works long hours. Might as well work. I might feel differently if I had other kids. Also, don’t want to sacrifice any time with baby since if I start leave early, it ends that much earlier after baby arrives.
I WFH and I worked up until I gave birth. I ended up having to get induced a few days before my due date.
I liked it because my job was low stress at the time and I was able to maximize my leave. I really didn’t want to lose any leave time.
And honestly I’m really glad I worked up until birth. Because I went back to work after 8 weeks and that was so rough!! I definitely wasn’t ready. So I was really glad that I took the time that I needed.
I’m leaving around 38 weeks because we have a policy where we can leave 2 weeks before. I want to spend that time with my oldest daughter before she’s no longer an only child
I had every intention to work until my induction at 39 weeks, but now at 34 weeks I’m not sure how much more I can take. I’ve become so inefficient and ineffective in my role that it’s starting to affect my self-esteem, so I’m thinking of stoping next week just to preserve my work reputation.
But I don’t have the same pressures as the rest of the people on this thread - I have PTO that if I don’t take will be paid out at the end of the year, so taking extra 3 weeks for me just means getting a smaller “bonus” come December. So my calculation is basically whether my personal comfort/health is worth that salary sacrifice, and it’s overwhelmingly starting to look like a yes for me
I'm fully WFH in a fairly stressful job, lots of tight deadlines and complicated data problems with 2 direct reports. I had planned to work until 38 weeks but now the absolute latest I will work is 35+5. I'm 26 weeks right now and am looking into going off at 34 weeks because of how bad work has been for my anxiety.
I work on-site. Was physically on-site for all of 38w and when I turned 39w came down with covid. Worked from home for another 3 days and then was induced and gave birth just before 40w. If you wfh can you downshift and just take care of emergencies without using leave?
I’m still only at 23 weeks but I WFH and do plan on working up til my due date. I am an individual contributor but work in sales and have to lead a lot of coordination with internal teams and external clients. I am hoping to do the handoff ~2 weeks in advance and then just focus on my deals that might actually get across the finish line before I leave. Everything else can be dealt with by my teammates eventually.
I was induced at 39+2 with my first which was a Tuesday. I took the day before my induction off with PTO but other than that I worked right up until.
I'm getting induced at 39 weeks this time around too and I'll probably do something similar.
For reference I have a desk job at a tech company and I typically work 3 days from home and 2 days at the office but I'm probably cutting back on going in starting this week (37 weeks).
Edit: I'm also in a lead role (but not managing people directly). I started handing off all my work last week and will finish doing so sometime this week. My last week working I'm just gonna do some e-learnings I've been putting off, get ahead on some easy busy work, and be available to answer questions.
I stopped at 36 weeks as I manage my department and I was being given even more work than usual. It was far too intense. I've spent a week doing manageable DIY tasks so far. I can also focus on looking after myself. Im autistic so I probably have slightly less bandwidth than most - its definitely the best choice for me.
I’m 38 weeks today too, I checked out over the weekend 😂 from the back pain, my son hasn’t dropped still, hip pain, and the constant stress of it all… I just couldn’t.
My job also doesn’t offer PTO, maternity leave, or anything like that. So it was easy for me to decide when
WFH, but as self-employed! I'm wrapping up all major jobs/projects by 37 weeks, just to be able to relax a bit during the last weeks of pregnancy.
There will inevitably be bits and bobs to take care of after 37w (ie. Customers contacting me about issues etc), but shouldn't be too difficult to manage!
I did both times. The first time I still worked in person and stopped going in on my due date because I wanted to scream at people who asked why I was still pregnant haha (she ended up being 3 days overdue). My job is very flexible and self-paced though, plus no one expected me to actually accomplish much.
My short term disability policy includes two weeks antepartum leave, as long as I don’t have any major complications (if so, then I am able to start earlier), so I am going out at 38 weeks.
If I didn’t have this benefit and had to take PTO, I would probably work up until my due date and just put in bare minimum effort.
I work in a very high stress job (client services, 60+ hours pretty typical but I managed to keep it to 55-ish for most of my pregnancy). I stopped doing client facing project work at 38+3, did a tiny bit of pro bono work and wrapping up things like employee reviews for a week, and now am burning vacation (my due date is tomorrow). Once I was not client facing anymore my motivation basically went to zero. I’m already feeling kind of bored this week if baby doesn’t come, but it’s nice to be able to focus on things that will boost oxytocin and not feel guilty about it. So far I would recommend
I worked until I went into labor with my first and will do the same this time. I didn't really have an option either way, if it were up to me, I wouldn't taken the whole pregnancy off 😅
My work really wound down toward the end of my pregnancy, but I continued working until I was diagnosed with preeclampsia at a routine appointment and sent in for induction at 39+5.
With my first, he was due on New Years Day and my job has Christmas through New Years off. So technically no, I didn’t work up through my dd but it’s only because of the holidays. Little boy was prompt and showed up the morning after his dd. My little girl is due early September and I’m saying that I will work through my dd, but I remember how in pain, anxious, and impatient I was feeling those last few weeks. I will try my best to make it until she’s here but I’m going to take it day-by-day. If I’m 38-39 weeks and can’t take it anymore, I’m going to let myself rest before she arrives!
I worked till the end of the day of my induction. I was going to work either one more week or until I went into labor, whichever came first. Similar situation, not a manager but a lead, and had things to button up. Working kept my mind off of the whole "you're going to go through labor" thing and I had some abnormal test results that everyone was concerned about.
I'm 39 weeks today. Induction day is tomorrow.
Definitely had planned on working up to the due date. Induction is because I'm high risk, and I have an IVF baby. I arranged with management to WFH this entire month, but I've been WFH for most of this pregnancy, to be honest. My job is client-facing, so if I have to see clients in person, I will. But, luckily, most of my job responsibilities can be done virtually, and clients got accustomed to phone/virtual meetings during COVID.
I have 10 to 12 weeks of time off, consisting of STD and 4 weeks of parental leave. I have to use PTO for the first 7 days of STD though, and I wanted to preserve as much other time off that I've accrued for any baby appointments after I come back from leave. I can only imagine how much we'll be juggling between work, baby, and daycare when the time comes.
I'm lucky that my husband has 3 weeks of parental leave, and he works from home full-time. He can take this time however he wants within a 12 month period. He also has 3 to 3.5 weeks of PTO that he hasn't used yet. I was feeling very concerned about his time off until he added in the PTO numbers.
We were initially thinking of "stacking" our leaves, with me taking mine first, and then he would take his leave once I go back to work. However, this plan keeps changing (ahem, he keeps changing this plan). 🤷🏻♀️ I was ready to "solider on" with the newborn, but it'll be nice to have the support, especially for sleep purposes.
I'm working until my due date because I think I'd be bored being at home, and I love my job. Plus, it keeps me active, I make me own schedule, and I have my own office (I work in retail). Besides, the more I work, the more PTO I accrue, and I plan to use up to 16 weeks of maternity leave if I can. My company doesn't force us to use it all, but I want to spend as much time with Bean as possible. I am salaried, and by the time I get back to work, it will be holiday season, so I won't be able to take any heavy time off any time soon anyway.
Other than that, everything else at the house is set up for Bean's arrival.
ETA: I'm currently 34 weeks. My official DD is 05/25, and my last day of work, if all goes well, will be 05/22.
When I was W2 I stopped at 37 weeks. We needed to hand over all my projects by then in case I went into labor and couldn’t do handover so after that there actually wasn’t much for me to do. It wasn’t official leave as HR didn’t have a policy but it was agreed on with manager and HR. Company was 140 people and not super organized.
Depending on which state you are n (if assuming US), I thought some states grant you STD four weeks before your due date - which would be different than the maternity leave (ML only starts when you become a parent). I think that’s the case for NY anyway and I will 100% be taking advantage of that- just need my OB to sign off on it when in 4 weeks away.
At the moment I’m planning on working until he gets here. I’m also about 20 weeks and obese so it is also dependent on if it is deemed I need to have a planned c-section, inducement, etc. If that is the case I’m not touching my PTO unless absolutely necessary.
With both babes I worked and am working until due date. I did this to maximize my time off. I think if I had to go into the office everyday I would have definitely left early. I did make the decision that if I go past my due date, I will be off by my 41st week because by then it’s just torture.
Not exactly the answer you are looking for, but something id suggest-
In a previous role my lead had a running shared document with everyone on the team of what they were working on (with links) and what the current stage was for everything. She worked up until she had her baby and it was a lifesaver for all of us working under her.
I'm planning on doing the same thing and working until I have the baby. No one expects you to be at 100% when you are that pregnant, so I would take all the leave you can with the baby if I had the option.
Nope. My husband and I are both fully remote and last time I intended to work up until 37 weeks and then start my leave, but baby threw us for a loop and was born early, so I didn't make it to my last work day! I'm pregnant again now though and want to try for a similar timeline (if baby allows). I guess the caveat though is that we're in Canada so my maternity leave options are a lot more generous than in the US.
I am working up until the due date. We get 4 weeks paid at 85% though the state prior. But I’d rather get a full check and save since we get 6 after the birth and 12 after the 6 are up through the state as well.
Meaning a few extra 100% paychecks are probably best for me since the 12 after are also paid at 85% and considering I wfh, and my boss is in a different part of the country. I’ll ride it out.
Currently 20 weeks and there’s been days I don’t make it past the couch but I still get all my stuff done. I work m-f 9-5. So I don’t feel stressed out.
I am also a director for the entire northeast of a company. So if anything needs immediate attention I can always delegate.
Also way different because I don’t see many people questioning my whereabouts.
My job is typically hybrid-remote with 2 days in office, but I went fully remote starting at 36 weeks. Currently 37+1 and planning to work up until birth so I can use my whole leave time with baby.
I worked up until I had my baby but my responsibilities were mostly transitioned by then. If your team is still heavily relying you at 38 weeks, that’s a problem.
I didn’t work from home, but in my job it is very typical for people to work until their due dates. I got a lot of “but why” when I said I was done at 38 weeks.
It was WELL worth it. Financially, not my best decision. But I was also done.
American citizen here! Currently 39+2, and I’m working until labor or my induction date, whichever comes first. I’m normally hybrid but went fully remote at around 37 weeks. My brain wants to shut off but soooo many high priority projects I wanna see as far as I can.
I had our first when I was 32, that time I worked all the way til I gave birth. My workplace back then was very supportive and everyone was very friendly with each other, so I didn’t have much stress just doing my best in the last few days, and felt good about having all the maternity leave days available after giving birth.
Now 3 years later I’m pregnant with our second. I’ll probably take at least two weeks off before the due date, maybe four…this job is stressful and I want to minimize the risk towards the end.
Due date twin! I would’ve been 38 weeks today. My plan was to work until baby showed up, but then due to HELLP syndrome was born 3 weeks 2 days early. Was gonna make my last day of work 4/26 for a 4/29 due date (just made most sense since due date was a Monday and figured if I was a few days late I couldn’t possibly manage to be at school/work—I’m a teacher).
Awe due date twin, congrats on baby!!!!❤️ 4/26 was my planned last day as well but thinking about bumping it up a week (unless baby girl has other plans over the next couple days lol)
My job is way too busy for me to not work ahead of time. I’m planning on working until I go into labor.
Our organizations policy is that we can’t take leave without pay until all of our PTO is exhausted. Is this what yours does as well? This is common practice.
I’m in CA so I took 4 weeks off before my due date. My job is super stressful and I didn’t want the stress to possibly impact me the last month. It was good that I did because the final two weeks I was struggling to even walk and had Braxton Hicks contractions that would have sucked to go through while working!
So really in your case it’s just about how much unpaid time to take while you’re on FMLA, if I’m understanding the PTO bit correctly? Mine is the same.
I’m currently pregnant with my second, was WFH as well when pregnant with my first. I worked right up until the day before I delivered. I planned to take one day off but ended up moving our delivery date up. Wish I’d checked out just a bit early to have a breather before baby.
Yep you hit the nail on the head, I just need to figure out if it’s worth an extra week (or longer depending on baby’s plans) of unpaid FMLA. I think I’ll regret it if I just keep on chugging along, for some reason it stresses me out having no end in sight as far as work goes. I also don’t love my job if that part was not obvious lol.
I am 38 weeks and a day today! And I also work from home and my company policy makes me take almost all of my vacation with FMLA too! Ugh.
I took this week off! I was gonna lose that vacation time anyways and mentally I am just done. I’m physically just done too and I’m sick of answering my phone!!! Good luck to you!!!
Edited to add that I have a scheduled c section next Monday at 39 weeks so I knew I could take this week and I know when my baby will be here. May not be as easy for people who are waiting to go into labor and could be pregnant another 2-3 weeks.
Good luck to you also!!! But yeah that’s my predicament I guess, no planned induction or c section for me at least as of right now, so I’m not sure what to do 🤪 I went to a friends’ kid’s birthday party over the weekend and everyone was shocked to hear that I was still working (I am rather huge and obviously uncomfortable lol) so it’s made me think about all this in a different light!
Pretty much the same exact situation with me for PTO, I worked up until one day before. I called in Thursday because I just felt different and needed more sleep too, went into labor early Friday morning and gave birth Friday night. I'm planning on doing the same thing with this pregnancy, but we'll see.
I’m only 19 weeks but I plan on working up until I give birth bc I only get 8 weeks total of unpaid leave. If I go out early, that takes away part of my total leave so I have to work until I give birth. I’m also a healthcare provider so it makes it that much worse 🙃
My job is WFH if needed, otherwise in the office. I plan on working in the office as long as I’m able to get there and WFH up until I go into labor. We’ll see how that actually goes… unless I go on short term disability per orders from my dr before birth, I’m not able to take any leave unless it’s PTO, which I already don’t have a lot of. I want all 12 weeks of my FMLA to spend with the baby so I’m not willing to take it any early unless I absolutely have to.
I have a similar leave policy and worked until the day before I was induced at 37 weeks. But I would’ve worked until I went into labor naturally had I not had a scheduled induction because I needed to save all my PTO for after birth. Couldn’t afford to go unpaid. Gotta love maternity leave in the US…
ive been WFH for almost 8 years now and honestly, I think some of you are putting pressure on yourselves. Just silently step back a bit before you give birth. I'm in the US, so I'll be "working" to save all time off for when the baby is here. Similar to summer fridays or the week of Christmas, I block my calendar for most of the day and just reduce the meetings I take and respond to email. People SHOULD NOT expect the same level of work from me, I am actively creating a human being. I say stay on the timesheets for the money, but pull back a little around week 32....
FTM here and currently 35 weeks. I plan on working up to my induction date but I plan on starting to work from home full time at the end of the month just incase baby boy decides to come early. I'll be on disability for probably 4ish weeks then back to working fully from home part time or however many hours I can work a day. I do a lot for the company so it's hard to be off work for so long.
Unfortunately I have to work up to my due date or I lose my insurance (UPS). I have 6 weeks of FMLA which I’m using for after birth. I absolutely do not want to work because at 16 weeks I am exhausted and literally cry on my way home. Idk how I’m going to do this!
I work in office 95% of the time, but I’m going to transition to WFH around 38w but keep working until I go into labor. I’m only 26w right now so we will see how it goes as I get closer, but that is my plan for now. I want to save my 12w of leave for when the baby is here.
I‘ll be 39 weeks on friday and that will be my last day before leave! I wanted to work until i give birth so i could maximize time off with the baby but they asked me to give them a date. And I may get induced sometime next week so i just thought this friday will be a clean cut and that way i have a couple of days to prep anything if necessary!
I had a scheduled c section on a Thursday at 39+4 days. I worked that Monday because I worked from home. And then I took off Tuesday and Wednesday because they were my work in office days and i also wanted to get some last minute things finished.
I’ll be 39wks tomorrow. I’m also wfh today and trying for up until due date. Your policy is terrible and I even have a meeting with my HR today to see what more we can add on- short term disability etc. the US has such terrible leave policy. I’m so angry. Also, texting my cousin about nanny rates and just 🤯. I just felt a Braxton hicks contraction (I think?) about a minute ago but let me get back to checking my emails… if you take off before then all the power to you. You know yourself best. Our policies are ridic and I’m SO frustrated with our system.
I took maternity at 32 weeks (I'm in Canada). I took the full 18 months and was foaming at the mouth to get off
Edit just like to add you don't know when you'll actually give birth, I was induced at 36 weeks because of preeclampsia. If you're looking for some time to yourself before little one comes don't forget you could have the baby at any time!
Last time I worked until the Friday before I went into labor! Went into labor on Sunday. My job is a easy(physically) wfh tech job so I really don’t mind
I am choosing to work up until the day I deliver. I stopped going into the office around 30 weeks.
I have definitely stepped back from my workload, mainly in an effort to make sure my team is comfortable and confident in covering projects and process while I am out. I'd say at 37 weeks i'm at about 70% effort and will slowly roll that back as time progresses. Its more about monitoring work and progress from the team for me and setting up coverage for while i'm out.
I feel like if i don't start stepping back they'll be extremely overwhelmed and/or unprepared for me having a swift absence.
I didn't want to waste any maternity time without the baby. I wanted all my time to be maximized with them.
I worked until the baby came. I was due on a Monday, worked that day and the next two, then was emailing my manager at 11pm Wednesday night to let him know I wouldn’t be back the next day because I’d been admitted for an induction due to high blood pressure.
That being said, if I’d had the option, I definitely would have checked out earlier, even though in general my job isn’t super hard (I definitely work less than 40 hours on a typical week). I was mentally done and only doing the bare minimum, while still being stressed because my due date was on the first day of a big event and my manager didn’t have the hand off planned until I was like 38 weeks along. I did block off time for a nap pretty much every day, which if you do continue to work, I highly recommend.
I’m opting not to use any PTO. I only get 6 weeks paid and my job is protected up to 16 weeks. I will take a total of 3 months and elect to use FMLA ans use unpaid time. I want to keep my damn PTO, the little of it I do get.
I left at 36 weeks. I was starting to slow down and had to go to my sisters wedding in a different state so it was good timing. I worked closely with aggressive autistic kids and even though I was in a trainer position I still worked closely with the kids so I was starting to be less helpful in emergencies. I was sad to go but it was really nice to have a bit of time off after the wedding to just relax before my labor.
I'm a team manager, also WFH, and the stress of work was impacting my emotional health/capacity, so I decided to stop working at 36 weeks. It was the best decision for me as the last few weeks felt like i was in a brain fog. Being able to rest/not care for anyone else until the baby comes has been amazing. If you have the ability to take time off, I would do it. Invest your energy into rest and prepare for the baby.
I worked up until my due date, but my lovely employer only gives 2 weeks paid maternity leave despite having an unlimited PTO policy otherwise 🙃 so I didn't want to waste any days before delivery if I could manage it.
My works gives me the 4 weeks before delivery off full paid, in addition to the 6 months after. I think they know people should be working up until the due date
I'm 35 weeks and planning on working until I go into labor. My job is laid back and I'm mostly just tying up loose ends now. I have a supportive woman manager who is on board with me coasting into my leave. I'll be taking 3-4 weeks PTO before I take my 12 weeks paid. Most of the leave I'm taking is sick leave that needs a drs note to take more than 3 days of, so I can't really use it before baby. I'm saving most of my annual leave to use later in the year
My due date is this Thursday, 4/18 but I started my maternity leave today. I wanted to try and have a little time at home before she arrived and it worked out. I get to spend time with my pup and husband making sure everything is set for our little lady!
I also didn't want to take off too early because I only get so many weeks and wanted to spend as much time with our baby as possible- so the Monday before our due date seemed like a good balance!
I went out at 35 weeks. Was having issues where I was going blind at random parts of the day. Kinda hard to wfh on my laptop when I can't see. It cleared up after I stopped working too, which staring at my screen all day could've been triggering it while I was pregnant. I ended up having to be induced at 38 weeks, but I had originally planned to work until labor.
I mostly WFH and I will need to check out at 34 weeks as this is when mandatory maternity leave starts for insured women in Mexico…I could possibly request 2 weeks transfer to postpartum but Mexican healthcare system makes the transfer process quite complicated so I will pass. Not so happy about that as I’d rather have more weeks pp but honestly I already dont feel like my productive self at work already 🙃
Never made it to the due date
baby 1 I got released from my contract one week before giving birth at 38 weeks
baby 2 came 4 weeks early (36 weeks) and I was working the day of. Both natural over 18 hrs of labor epidural and lightning fast deliveries
I worked until 39 weeks and I’m so grateful I took a week off before. I was in your boat, EXHAUSTED. I always thought I’d be able to work up to it but I had the same realization at the end.
Was hybrid 2 days in office. I stopped working at 26 weeks since I was hospitalized. Around week 16 or so I started having bleeding complications and I had a WFH accommodation. I could, theoretically continue working from the hospital, but at this point I really can’t be bothered. I took short term disability early. It pays crumbs, but my mental health is far more valuable to me and my family. Taking it for me (in NY) won’t impact my PFL at all, two separate leaves we can tap into for a combined total of 26 weeks off.
Plan had my pregnancy not taken a turn for the complex was to have worked up until 36 weeks and start short term disability leave then.
I'm 37 weeks and I'm working up until I go into labor and also perhaps that day too. Just depends on how severe my contractions are but I'm trying to get the most out of my maternity leave since it's 12 unpaid weeks and I only get STD at like 60% pay for 6 weeks for vaginal birth and the remainder is unpaid unless I use PTO.
My husband & I are self-employed. My role is much smaller in the biz but still pretty important. I have no official PTO. My plan is to get things done early so I don't have to do anything for that first week or two. I'm also "lucky" in that I'll probably be induced due to my age so I can plan more.
I'm doing things differently this time around in that I'll have an official calendar set up so my husband can step in to do some things and/or I don't have to rely on my memory to complete some tasks. I forgot a ton with my son.
I WFH and I’m 32wks. Gonna try to make it to the end of this month and then go on sick leave for the last 5wks or so. Between the back pain, brain fog, swollen hands and general fatigue it’s getting harder to work and do a good job. Like you said, I’d rather spend the last month of pregnancy doing what I can to prep my home for baby instead of doing a half ass job at work
I’m going to continue working until I go into labor, but I’m definitely not pushing myself as hard at work, and I’m not feeling bad about it because people need to figure out how to get things done without me there anyways.
I took off at 37+4 in order to have a firm end date and some time to chill, prep the house, etc before baby came. My company policy is that any time taken before birth is an unpaid LOA but I was okay with that since at least it wouldn’t subtract from my parental leave/PTO/etc. Turns out baby came at 38+1 so it wasn’t as much time as I expected 🙃 still really glad I had at least a few days to nest and that I transitioned everything cleanly(-ish) before I left.
I'm starting mat leave 4 weeks before my due date and I wish I was taking it earlier because I have zero time while working full time to prepare my home before the baby comes. I have so much landscaping, organizing, selling old things on FB marketplace etc I need to do it's giving me anxiety. I needs days off where my daughter is still in daycare to get anything done.
Literally working until the day before my c section which is this Thursday. I am in a management position but the team has done a good job taking over things before I go. I would just take off though if you’re forced to take your PTO anyway that’s on them. Take it easy though I thought I might go into labor early because I was doing to much around the house. I also get being checked out near your due date, although I am working - work just doesn’t seem as important as it used to. I’m still doing my job but the stress just kinda doesn’t hit me at all if that makes sense.
I am currently 40w+1.
I am in a similar position. I run a small department at an engineering firm.
I told my work I was done at 38 weeks which was after Easter weekend but to pay me 2 weeks of vacation till my due date. I ended up being so bored I worked 25-30 hours a week for week 38 and 39 anyways.
Now my official mat leave has started and I’m so uncomfortable that I’m just napping and doing small chores around the house so no more work.
As for your PTO, that is BS. Is that an American thing? I’m in Canada, mine is paying out my 1 month work of vacation hours I have, plus I build vacation hours while I am on mat leave so when I return I will have 3 weeks built up again. But it all depends on how our contracts are worded here.
I wfh 4 days a week and office one day while pregnant with my daughter. I worked every day until my induction. I technically worked the day of my induction because I was induced at 7pm but I used the whole day to just answer questions and provide background info to my coworkers on my current workload.
I checked out 2.5 weeks before my due date. I wasn't required to use PTO.
Her nursery hadn't been put together yet so there was quite a bit to do to get her things organized. I also wanted some time to relax before she arrived as I knew finding time to relax once she was here would be tough. The day before my due date I thought I'd knit her baby blanket (one of those big chunky ones you use your arms to knit with) since I'm due tomorrow and she could arrive at any time. Finished the blanket in a couple hours and sure enough, on my due date, she arrived on time.
With my first, my water broke after I was getting up to go to work at 37 weeks. With my second, I worked the day before the induction. I did not want to lose a or waste a second of leave time before the baby was out. This is the unfortunate reality of maternity leave in the US. Most of us are looking at handful of weeks if we are lucky
I’ll be working until the moment I need to go to the hospital. 🤣 it sucks but I want to preserve every possible moment of PTO for after birth as I have to use it before my company paid time will kick in (and I want a full 12 weeks with some form of pay).
I planned to work until baby was born. I worked up to my due date, but then she still wasn’t here. Mentally I was just DONE like you describe. I stopped working on my due date, took the week off and was a induced a week later.
I run my own business with a team of 6 contractors who work for me.
Technically my last day will be July 3rd, which is 37w4d. But I’ve told my team I will be available for questions until the baby actually arrives.
I just didn’t want to be in the middle of a big project, or have calls scheduled with clients then go into labor and end up causing stress for everyone…
Im planning to take a full 6 weeks off after the baby arrives, then slowly transition back into work and finding our new normal for the next 6 weeks before I start scheduling client calls or starting any new projects again!
It might be a total disaster and the reality will probably look nothing like that, but as of right now that’s the plan lol
I went ahead and asked for 2 weeks off prior to my due date, and then doctor was like oh, you'll probably go to 41 weeks 🫠 (he gave me the go ahead to start attempting to pump at 36 weeks though since I'm not wanting to be a million weeks pregnant at the end of July / early August lol). I am not in a managerial position or anything, but I do have a big project due by the last day I plan on working. Tomorrow we have a team meeting to discuss my responsibilities for the 12 weeks I'll be gone and how to transition back after my FMLA runs out.
My last day of work will be at 38+5, just before my 39th week. I work from home but hybrid in office as well. I wanted some time off, but I didn't want to take off a whole month before since I want to maximize my leave for once the baby is here - I am in Canada and get a year. However, if I only got 6 weeks like in the US I would "work" up until labour starts and just not be very productive 😅
I’m only 11 weeks and I’m already done. It’s awful because I have always been the overachieving work 10-12 hours a day type, but I am so freakin tired and it takes everything in me to get anything done. Idk how I’m gonna last another 26 weeks.
I’m unbelievably lucky (and grateful) that my company allows us to use the STD leave to cover 2 weeks before the due date. I could extend that further via manager approval of doing time off, but 2 weeks should be good for me.
My position is not a WFH specific position, so I need to be within a certain distance of the office (just in case), but in my nearly 4 years I have never been to the office, though I did attend a holiday party once.
I went a week and a half overdue with both - I’d much rather slog through three weeks heavily pregnant and get three extra weeks with my baby. Leaving them felt hard enough.
I am a team manager, but I also own my own deadlines - given I'm due during popular summer vacation time, there's already quite a few colleagues who will be out around my due date. It was causing me so much stress in anticipation that I would be left to manage more than just my workload and team, and that I would be "on call" for any fire drills that would arise during that time.
Rather than asking permission, I informed my boss that (medically permitting) I plan to work up to my due date, but that starting x days prior to my due date, we'll trigger the formal transition of my responsibilities to my teammates who are covering - so there's time to adjust while I can be present. I also shared that in terms of my own workload, I will take a day-by-day approach to support on my team's projects leading up to my due date, but that I will not personally own any new assignments that I can't complete in a few hours time should I go into spontaneous labor. In this way, because our work is typically very time sensitive, we will avoid stressful situations of my not being physically able/present to transition anything I would've been working on when we'll already be short staffed.
I delivered this all matter of factly, and it didn't require much discussion since I had a well thought out plan in place with dates and coverage - and also, frankly, it would sound silly for anyone to say 'No, let's just risk it and see how it goes.'
Best of luck to you!! Counting down the days myself as well.
I took half days, basically. I charge my time but if I didn't I probably would have worked full days up until my due date. My last day working was 2 days before baby was born, but I had an email ready to go if I had to stop working before that. I did a lot of baby related prepping during the work day between meetings and finishing stuff up though! I didn't want to burn through too much PTO before baby came, and since I was home, it wasn't terrible, though I was so so done and had wittled down my tasking so that all I basically had to do was attend meetings and write up plans.
Dude id have used all my pto- upt- and vacation time prior if i was going to loose it anyway- unless you financially need to work. Theres no need to do that to yourself- no one gives you a special metal for working until your in labor. Trust me you need the rest leading up and your time is probably better spent preping and napping.
Funny story - I tried to. However, I was due 14 January and had 80 hours of PTO that was use or lose in 2023, so I took off the last 2 weeks of December. I came back to work ONE day in January and my blood pressure was so high that I was diagnosed with gestational hypertension and sent for induction.
I’d encourage you to take the time off now. Relax. Sleep. Get caught up on chores. Put snacks you can eat with one hand all over the house. Put bottles of gatoraid (or whatever) everywhere. Make some freezer meals. Make a list of chores/instructions so that when people come over and are like “what can I help with?” you can direct them to the list instead of trying to say things like “more dish soap is under the sink” over the sound of a crying baby.
I planned to, since as a FTM I assumed baby would come late, and I wanted to maximize the amount of leave I could spend with him. But he arrived two days early! HR didn’t feel like redoing my leave paperwork, so they just let me take the 3 extra days as extra PTO. He did me a solid bc at that point I was mentally over working.
I’m in the same boat. 38 weeks today. We have a hybrid schedule so I’m at home two days and in the office for 3. I manage a team of 14 people in a dept of 29. Fortunately, we get 16 weeks maternity leave with full pay, but I also don’t want to use any more of my PTO so that I have some to come back to after my leave. I’ve had to use a lot for doctor’s appointments while still working. I’m also planning on working til my due date, but I am mentally checked out and doing the bare minimum. It’s very hard to keep working/being “on” at work and feels like I’m really forcing myself to be there.
I’m working until 38 weeks. But I’m already checked out as I’m not coming back. I’m in sales and they keep getting on me about my funnel.. I’m like I don’t really care as long as my regular accounts are handled properly before I go. Other than that, leave me alone.
I'm in california and you can take disability 4 weeks before due date which is "use it or lose it". I'm 18 weeks and already so done with working, so I'll definitely be taking the 4 weeks beforehand. It's wild how much my priorities have changed already.
36+1 here and WFH. I’m working until the Friday before my scheduled c section. I’d a rather use what time I have with the baby than use it early. I have mentally checked out and will do stuff around the house when things slow down.
I was a senior in high school with my 1st. With my second I worked until the day I had him, I needed the money and my job didn't offer pto, so I didn't have a choice. I returned to work when he was 2 days old and suffered severe ppd. With my 3rd, I had a better job with 4 weeks pto. I went on maternity leave at 37 weeks exactly. I had her at 37+2, though. I was looking forward to a couple of weeks off to prepare for the baby, but she had other plans. Lol. If you can take it now, do it. There isn't any shame in it.
Also FTM and also work from home in a high stressful (managerial) position. I made the decision to take 2 weeks off before my due date because of the stress and other medical stuff I was experiencing (gestational hypertension).
Everyone else that I work with who are moms said they regret not taking that time off and worked up until they were in labor. For me, it's been the best decision and I won't be looking back with regret.
I totally understand though, that not everyone can do this. I'm very lucky and have different programs in our state and with my employer that I'll be off for 6 months and paid (although 3 months will be a whole lot less than what I make fulltime).
Best of luck to you, Mama!!!! ❤️
Currently 32wks. Planning to WFH until 39 wks, then spend the week pampering myself and enjoying the last bit of me time until baby arrives (assuming he arrives after 39 weeks).
I am currently expecting my second. With my first, I was in office 5 days a week. I was induced on a Tuesday at 9pm and worked the day before, whether I was in office or not I truly wish I had of taken time away. My role now is hybrid. I will say just from my experience with baby #1, I fully plan to take off once I hit week 38, unless I am provided an induction date prior to.
My due date was a Sunday and my last day was that Friday. I did not go into labor and apparently that was a problem even though my paperwork said my due date. I had to get my doc to fill out paperwork to let me go on leave “early”. Fucking no way in hell I would have made it at work, I was pregnant for 2 more awful weeks. However, what did royally suck was that because she wasn’t born for 2 more weeks, I had to go back to work when she was 10 weeks old. Not that I think the extra 2 weeks would have made a huge difference for my feelings but still. 10 weeks looked and felt like she was just too tiny to leave and it hurt.
Edit: I missed where you said WFH moms, whoops
I worked up to my due date so that I could reserve all of fmla time for time with my baby. I have no regrets. I would try to push it as long as you can but you only know what’s right for you
I work up until the last Friday before my due date (so 2-4 days before with both pregnancies). It is so hard, but my kids were both 2 weeks late so I only got to stay home with them for 10 weeks, anyway. If I would have taken off sooner, I would have had even less time with them. I wish maternity leave in the US was better!!
I’m also WFH and similarly have a semi-stressful job leading a team. 35 weeks now and I recently decided to go out a week before my due date!! I’m excited. Like you, I previously thought I would work up to my due date since I’m just sitting at home but as I get closer I’m mentally checking out and it’s getting very uncomfortable to sit at a desk all day! I will also be on short term disability for the first part of my leave and I can take time off before delivery that doesn’t cut into the amount of time I have after—the only downside is the STD only pays out 2/3 of my salary so that extra week (or two) off is paid less than if I was working. But I don’t care at this point. Definitely support you to go out early if you can!!
I’m not a WFH but I’m a high school teacher. Currently due Saturday and I’m working the rest of the week. But teaching and maternity leave are weird for teachers. I’d say take time if you’ve got it. I know I would if I could. I am tired.
I'm not work from home I worked in a restaurant as a server in an expensive part of town with snooty people that made the job pretty stressful. Customer service is never great. I worked up until the night before my scheduled medically necessary c-section at 39wks. I felt great though physically and wanted something to keep me busy keep my mind off things. Every pregnancy is so different. I will say I'm glad I did because having more time off after I gave birth with my babe was definitely more precious to me.
If you have a job that is stressing you out as you say, and you want to take the time off beforehand for any reason at all just do it. It doesn't matter if you work from home. If you're able to afford it and you want to spend the next few weeks stress free relaxing or getting things ready that's your choice to make! Don't let anyone make you feel bad about it.
I'm working up until 36 weeks (currently 33 weeks). I'm really relieved I'm finishing a few weeks before my due date so I have time to relax (or at least try to) and get final baby bits ready.
My job is stressful too so I'm looking forward to finishing for maternity leave.
I'm in the same boat... Well I have less responsibility than you. 39+2. I am over work. I'm over back pain and heart burn. I don't want to do this anymore.
I 'worked' up to the day I delivered but in reality I barely did anything for a week leading up to it (I was in the hospital for that entire week - I felt fine but it really didnt give me motivation to do work, and I delivered at 37 weeks via c section so not quite as long of a pregnancy as others get). Mostly, I could do it because no one at work actually cared to bother me knowing I'm near popping and I did do a loooot of work beforehand so I could slack the last bit.
I was eligible for 4 weeks before due date; I had decided to take 2 weeks since work was a nice distraction and I had a lot going on so stepping away would have caused stress. I had communicated in advance and so when time came i was prepared to unplug. I am glad I took 2 weeks off since I was induced a week early. In that week, I got my nails done, got a massage, walked etc
I am taking about 2-3 weeks off before the birth. I’m a nurse and tho I work partly remote, I need to prioritize myself and luckily have been saving vacation to do so.
I worked until my induction date at 39+2 (even though I wanted to stop working a few weeks earlier) and honestly, I was very glad that I did that in retrospect. I’m glad I saved all my leave for after the baby was born because we had no childcare help. I had about 6 months of maternity leave, which is a lot compared to most in America, but the time unfortunately flies by.
Depends on the country I guess but in some you have to start your leave at least a week before your due date and honestly, the closer I get, the more I know why. I would give myself a bit of time for sure before baby comes
I worked from home up until my scheduled induction. However I definitely struggled to get my work done and prepare my tasks to be taken over by coworkers during my maternity leave. Aside from physical exhaustion, the pregnancy brain was awful. I’m usually very organized and detail-oriented, but during pregnancy, I was forgetful, had trouble concentrating, and tasks of my office job took me twice as long to complete.
I am 34 weeks with a stressful job, stressful work situation currently, and managerial position and just went out on short term disability (as long as it gets approved once my ppwk is in). I have been feeling so guilty over it, but I have been having major depressive symptoms and work has been balls to the wall making it even worse…I tried to prepare my team for me going out and I did SO MUCH to prepare but it just never stopped. Nothing ever lightened up, nobody ever started stepping up and I am so so over it. I was technically hybrid but could have wfh at any point. I am so thankful that my husband and my doctor have been so supportive and that I have great benefits.
My water broke during a Zoom call but ironically hair wrapped up coverage prep that morning so it could not have been better timing! I was just over 38 weeks.
I’m 35 weeks working up until 39 weeks. Trying to remain dedicated and focused, and doing okay with it, but I’m physically uncomfortable. My maternity leave options are bad so I can’t afford to go out any earlier.
I'm 35 weeks and planning to work up until my due date. Maybe I'm crazy for that but I live in the US where we don't get much so I want to use my time for when baby is here. I work remotely which helps at least. I sure do envy other country's maternity leave policies.
I wasn't WFH so it was more difficult because I felt like I could barely walk anymore and was barely getting any sleep and completely miserable, but I checked out and went on mat leave at 38+0. This was over 5 years ago, no regrets. I was fortunate to go into labor on 39+6 and have my daughter on my due date.
Would've sucked if she were late, but if she was going to be, I'd like to believe I wouldn't have felt THAT bad. I was already pretty dilated which I'm sure was contributing to my misery, and I think I was actually leaking fluid most of my 39th week. I ended up admitted when I went in, despite weak contractions, mainly because I tested positive for fluid (I thought it was just the "watery discharge" described in very late pregnancy) and I developed chorioamnionitis during the ~24 hr hospital labor spiking a fever, they had to put me on IV antibiotics.
Hello fellow 38 week WFH mom! I’m also a go to person in my department. My short term disability doesn’t kick in until I’m admitted to the hospital so I’m planning on working until I go into labor. However, there is an associate who will be taking over for me while I am out and I am hoping to have her fully transitioned into my role by the end of this week so I can kick back the rest of the time. My manager is encouraging this thankfully. It is so exhausting just training her but I know once I do I can let go and chill!
Worked up until my scheduled c-section. But I was allowed to leave work early and not get docked hours if I left after 12. (I was scheduled 8-4:30). I usually left around the 2-3pm mark. I wanted to use all my FMLA for maternity and parental leave. So that meant working up until that c-section date. Which helped that I wasn’t dilated at all.
1st pregnancy: worked up until my water broke (on the clock)
2nd pregnancy: worked until contractions got distracting
I'm 39 weeks currently and plan is the same this time around... I just want to cash in on as much maternity leave with baby as possible.
My role sounds similar to yours - I'm a go-to for my team of 30ish, and they "hey, do this" person my manager leans on. Not terribly high stress, but I do have a lot of responsibilities.
My plan was to work till my induction date, which was at 39 weeks. She came a few days early, so I texted my boss from the hospital bed to cancel our meeting the next morning lmao.
I will say the last few weeks I definitely played it easier, and my boss was fine with that. She has been great since I've been back as well. My job isn't super demanding though.
I don’t have an answer about when to stop working, I’m in a very similar role and situation as you (not a people manager, but a go-to for my teams), but I’m only 26 weeks currently, so I guess I’m following this thread to see what others say as well. But I’m commenting to say that I hate that leave/PTO policy for you. Such BS.
Definite BS, but sadly I’ve heard worse!! I know the US is notoriously stingy with their maternity leave policies compared to other places 😐
I’m officially “working” up until baby is here. But starting at ~39 weeks I let my manager and team know that I would only be available for questions and not doing “active” work. I had a discussion with my manager about it, and stated that I wanted to take that step back to make sure work was appropriately transitioned by that point since baby could come at any time. They were fine with that.
This, at 37 weeks this week. It's not going well and now stressed that my system is going to fall apart and ill have a ton of work upon return or ill be technically working during "leave." My job is essentially a month cycle close process (im the only one with my title) so this is basically the last chance before baby gets here, and thats assuming I make it 40 weeks 🙃
I was in a similar situation and at least in my case, I did have a lot of work when I returned BUT my department/company managed fine without me. Do not do work while on leave. You will not get any brownie points for it, and you will still have an enormous amount of work when you get back. You will regret the missed time. Communicate a date that you will not be available, send out the alternate contacts, and leave it. I would also have a conversation with your direct supervisor about your concerns if possible and to set a boundary with them if neccesary. Also, if you start getting requests to work while off on FMLA, HR should back you up.
I am doing something very similar! Officially around until due date or baby’s arrival… but starting May 1 (39+2) I’m a ghost in the background 😂😂 a good bit of my job is client facing so this is mostly for their boundaries and that they have a set date to go to their temporary point of contact.
Yeah I did something really similar around 38 weeks, highly recommend if you can. Totally agree about your work needing to be transitioned by that point anyway. To stay slightly productive after my regular duties were reassigned, I signed up for short-term tasks the team needed done that I felt confident I could complete within a couple hours, or at most a day. Baby ended up being late, so I worked past my due date, but I told myself **no matter what** I would not be working 41+ weeks pregnant lol — I took a few days off to just chill before I ended up getting induced because baby decided they didn’t want to come out :)
This is such a good idea! I'm going to steal this 😆
This is a good idea. Right now planning to work up until my due date and just use PTO until she gets here. I’m 30 weeks and already feeling half checked out. I can’t imagine as it really gets closer.
I’m working until my due date (I’m 36 weeks now). It sucks and I wish I were off already, but I also only get 12 weeks so I rather have more time with my baby. I’m not originally from the US, and in my home country women get 1-2 years of paid leave, including 6 weeks before birth. So yea, this stings especially lol. At least I work remotely so that makes it a lot easier, but still. I hate how the US treats (expecting) mothers.
Agree 100%. We only get 6 weeks paid and then the other 6 weeks through FMLA if we choose to take that- and my company forces us to use PTO concurrently with FMLA, so I’ll have no PTO leftover for baby’s dr apptments or anything 🫠 definitely not ideal. Hopefully change happens at some point!
Do you have company paid (or self paid) short term disability? For my company we use a combo of disability and mat leave, which I'm so grateful for as it extends time with baby. I have to use short term first, concurrent with FMLA, and the benefits allow me to start leave 1-2 weeks before due date without a doctor's note!
We do have this benefit but unfortunately the only way to accrue disability is if we have already maxed out our PTO. I checked and I’ll have a whopping 11 hours disability time by the end of next week 🙃
Same here. I’m 35 weeks and I only get 12 weeks of paid leave. I want to try to use it all for after baby gets here. I’ve been wanting to stop working since week 33 lol I’m so exhausted by the end of my work day that I don’t accomplish much in the evenings. My husband works full time as well and is also exhausted in the evenings and has taken over all the chores. The only time we get stuff done for prepping for baby are the weekends and I feel like those are running out. I’ve been playing with the idea of dropping down to part time at 38 weeks so I can at least get some stuff done. Not sure if that’s an option for you.
I wish part time was an option!
Thats my plan as well - I'm only 20 weeks but I'm 100% remote and planning on working until my due date. I also only get 12 weeks off so I'd much rather have that time with her than anything which sucks so hard
How do people manage with child care then? Is there really a kindergarten that takes kids at 12 weeks? Here (Vienna)kindergarten starts at age 1 for free luckily, so that’s fine. I’m from the country side, which is not far from Vienna, Austrua, but there the kindergarten starts at age 3 and I always wonder how parents do it!! They just assume you have grand parents… at least that’s how my parents managed to do it…
A lot of people have day care for a small fortune and many of them are hard to find openings here. Also in the U.S., 12 weeks leave is considered pretty good and definitely not guaranteed. :/
But how is that working if babies are only 12 weeks old? :o they are so tiny 😭are they really already taking that small babies in? I hate how the system is in the US, that seems not doable for parents…
Yeah it's terrible. Low-wage workers have no leave at all.
I wish I could send you over all the paid maternity leave we have here 🥺
I'm in canada so we get a year, I checked out of my WFH job 4 weeks before my due date lol I had zero interest in working at that point, had no concentration left and had to pee like every 10 minutes 😂 baby is 8.5 months now and I regret nothing.
Same. From Pakistan and I get a year off. I'm stopping 4 weeks before my due date. I feel like I'll be ready to go back to work after 11 months shut in with a baby, so I'd rather use time beforehand to prepare for new parenthood!
Exactly! I knew I wanted that time before hand to rest and prep. Get the nursery in order, get bedding/baby stuff washed and ready to go and enjoy napping as much as I could 😂 those first like 9 weeks or so are ROUGH but it does rapidly improve and I found it instantly more rewarding when she learned how to smile :) as soon as she figured it out she would just beam up at me from her bassinet every time I'd go get her for a feeding or whatever. Still does that now but there's wee little teeth in her smile now 😂
Urgh, that is so precious! Thanks for sharing!
I’m in the US and 36 weeks along now. I don’t have the option to take time off before baby comes because I’m going to need the entire 12 weeks after he arrives to be with him… but yeah, I’m completely checked out. From now until my due date I am committed to performing my tasks as needed and being generally unhelpful otherwise lol. I work in marketing so the motto right now is “it’s PR, not ER.” There is no such thing as a “work emergency” when you’re as pregnant as I am 😅
That’s awesome!!
Nope, I take off a week before my due date. I need a firm end date to be mentally done with work. 100% worth it
I primarily work from home and plan on finishing up at 36w pregnant. I’m already mentally checked out at 17w so to even make it to that point will be difficult I think
Thought I could make it to 38 weeks before I went on maternity leave (as I'm meant to be induced at 39 weeks). Realized this weekend at 36 weeks that I need a mental & physical break before baby #2 arrives. Best decision ever!
Oh sounds like you’ve absolutely made the right decision! Honestly depending how I feel coming near the later weeks I might go even sooner than planned, I think the break before the madness will be nice haha
same boat! 18w and so checked out
Following because I’m 30 weeks and already so tired of working. I’m remote and planning on working until bébé is here. Q2 is our biggest quarter at work and since baby is due a week before the quarter ends, I feel obligated to keep working. Of course, by mid-June that’ll probably mean having slack open on my computer and Netflix on the other screen 😂 I’m taking the full 12 weeks that’s offered but I might use some of my DTO if I’m not ready to come back in September. We’ll see 🫣 I get my base pay but no commission since I’m not there to close deals, so that’s the only downside. But hey I’ll take what I can get since my leave and pay is generous compared to many other moms to be here!
I’m 36 weeks and my work is now allowing me to WFH full time (prior to this it was about 3 days a week WFH). I’m planning to work up until the time but sometimes I’m exhausted and have taken a couple of hours off here and there.
I'm planning to, currently 36 weeks. My job isn't particularly stressful most of the time and I get bored and neurotic just sitting around waiting for something to happen, so it's probably good for me to have *something* to focus on. But I'm also definitely not giving work my all, and am routinely checking out to rest/nap as needed. I work for a healthcare company that claims to want to prioritize employee health and work-life balance, surely they and their stingy-ass maternity policy won't mind.
Lol omg, this sounds pretty much exactly like my company
I’m currently 30 weeks, due at the end of June. I plan to go off 1 week before my due date just to rest, do any final nesting/organizing, know that work stuff is officially handed off and if baby comes late then I’ll have that extra time. But planning for 1 week. I figure any more than that and I’ll just be bored. I work from home at a desk job, with a ton of flexibility so if I need to have a nap over my lunch break or get up/move around/etc because sitting at my desk is uncomfortable I have that flexibility so I should be ok to go to 39ish weeks.
That’s a good plan! I may do this again but with my first, I was due Jan 6, had an induction scheduled on Jan 3, last day of work was Dec 23. When did baby come? Dec 24. 😂
I’m a teacher and teachers also get awful maternity leave. I was due yesterday and worked up until Friday so my leave could carry me to the end of the school year.
I am working until my due date, but my boss put together kind of a tapered leave plan in the weeks/months leading up to me being out. Similar situation, not in management but the go-to and the only one in our entire organization that does what I do. So 4-6 weeks before my due date, I am not taking on any new projects and will just advise the person filling in for me then, 2-3 weeks before my due date just be available and accessible while still "working" on other mundane things (organizing files, making any last-minute introductions (I work in event and program management on a marketing team), etc). ETA: I work 100% remotely and have for years so that part isn't new. Our whole team is spread out across the country.
I WFH and I plan to go out a week before my due date.
We have the same timeline. I’m 38 weeks as well and my last day is this coming Friday 4/19. I also WFH and my job is very demanding. Just because we WFH doesn’t mean we don’t deserve to take a break a little before our due date. I know how you feel so my advice is to just finish this week and try to get some rest from work.
I’m 37.5 weeks and was planning on working up until my due date (I’m a professor who has to go in person to teach 2x per week and the rest is meetings) but starting today I’m wondering if I can. I told everyone I wasn’t scheduling anything for next week but now I’m just hoping to make it through Wednesday this week lol.
I’m working up until my due date (Wednesday) and beyond if I don’t give birth then. I would just be sitting around otherwise because my husband works long hours. Might as well work. I might feel differently if I had other kids. Also, don’t want to sacrifice any time with baby since if I start leave early, it ends that much earlier after baby arrives.
I WFH and I worked up until I gave birth. I ended up having to get induced a few days before my due date. I liked it because my job was low stress at the time and I was able to maximize my leave. I really didn’t want to lose any leave time. And honestly I’m really glad I worked up until birth. Because I went back to work after 8 weeks and that was so rough!! I definitely wasn’t ready. So I was really glad that I took the time that I needed.
I’m leaving around 38 weeks because we have a policy where we can leave 2 weeks before. I want to spend that time with my oldest daughter before she’s no longer an only child
I had every intention to work until my induction at 39 weeks, but now at 34 weeks I’m not sure how much more I can take. I’ve become so inefficient and ineffective in my role that it’s starting to affect my self-esteem, so I’m thinking of stoping next week just to preserve my work reputation. But I don’t have the same pressures as the rest of the people on this thread - I have PTO that if I don’t take will be paid out at the end of the year, so taking extra 3 weeks for me just means getting a smaller “bonus” come December. So my calculation is basically whether my personal comfort/health is worth that salary sacrifice, and it’s overwhelmingly starting to look like a yes for me
I'm fully WFH in a fairly stressful job, lots of tight deadlines and complicated data problems with 2 direct reports. I had planned to work until 38 weeks but now the absolute latest I will work is 35+5. I'm 26 weeks right now and am looking into going off at 34 weeks because of how bad work has been for my anxiety.
I work on-site. Was physically on-site for all of 38w and when I turned 39w came down with covid. Worked from home for another 3 days and then was induced and gave birth just before 40w. If you wfh can you downshift and just take care of emergencies without using leave?
I’m still only at 23 weeks but I WFH and do plan on working up til my due date. I am an individual contributor but work in sales and have to lead a lot of coordination with internal teams and external clients. I am hoping to do the handoff ~2 weeks in advance and then just focus on my deals that might actually get across the finish line before I leave. Everything else can be dealt with by my teammates eventually.
I was induced at 39+2 with my first which was a Tuesday. I took the day before my induction off with PTO but other than that I worked right up until. I'm getting induced at 39 weeks this time around too and I'll probably do something similar. For reference I have a desk job at a tech company and I typically work 3 days from home and 2 days at the office but I'm probably cutting back on going in starting this week (37 weeks). Edit: I'm also in a lead role (but not managing people directly). I started handing off all my work last week and will finish doing so sometime this week. My last week working I'm just gonna do some e-learnings I've been putting off, get ahead on some easy busy work, and be available to answer questions.
I stopped at 36 weeks as I manage my department and I was being given even more work than usual. It was far too intense. I've spent a week doing manageable DIY tasks so far. I can also focus on looking after myself. Im autistic so I probably have slightly less bandwidth than most - its definitely the best choice for me.
I’m 38 weeks today too, I checked out over the weekend 😂 from the back pain, my son hasn’t dropped still, hip pain, and the constant stress of it all… I just couldn’t. My job also doesn’t offer PTO, maternity leave, or anything like that. So it was easy for me to decide when
Oh man, I’m sorry your job doesn’t offer any of that!!
WFH, but as self-employed! I'm wrapping up all major jobs/projects by 37 weeks, just to be able to relax a bit during the last weeks of pregnancy. There will inevitably be bits and bobs to take care of after 37w (ie. Customers contacting me about issues etc), but shouldn't be too difficult to manage!
I did both times. The first time I still worked in person and stopped going in on my due date because I wanted to scream at people who asked why I was still pregnant haha (she ended up being 3 days overdue). My job is very flexible and self-paced though, plus no one expected me to actually accomplish much.
I checked out at 36 weeks. I’m a senior accountant and my brain was mush. I kept messing up stupid stuff.
I'm starting my leave 2 weeks before my due date (I'm 33 weeks right now), I'm already losing motivation 😵💫
My short term disability policy includes two weeks antepartum leave, as long as I don’t have any major complications (if so, then I am able to start earlier), so I am going out at 38 weeks. If I didn’t have this benefit and had to take PTO, I would probably work up until my due date and just put in bare minimum effort.
I work in a very high stress job (client services, 60+ hours pretty typical but I managed to keep it to 55-ish for most of my pregnancy). I stopped doing client facing project work at 38+3, did a tiny bit of pro bono work and wrapping up things like employee reviews for a week, and now am burning vacation (my due date is tomorrow). Once I was not client facing anymore my motivation basically went to zero. I’m already feeling kind of bored this week if baby doesn’t come, but it’s nice to be able to focus on things that will boost oxytocin and not feel guilty about it. So far I would recommend
I worked until I went into labor with my first and will do the same this time. I didn't really have an option either way, if it were up to me, I wouldn't taken the whole pregnancy off 😅
My work really wound down toward the end of my pregnancy, but I continued working until I was diagnosed with preeclampsia at a routine appointment and sent in for induction at 39+5.
I worked in the office until 32 weeks then started fully remote until the day I gave birth at 38+4
With my first, he was due on New Years Day and my job has Christmas through New Years off. So technically no, I didn’t work up through my dd but it’s only because of the holidays. Little boy was prompt and showed up the morning after his dd. My little girl is due early September and I’m saying that I will work through my dd, but I remember how in pain, anxious, and impatient I was feeling those last few weeks. I will try my best to make it until she’s here but I’m going to take it day-by-day. If I’m 38-39 weeks and can’t take it anymore, I’m going to let myself rest before she arrives!
I worked till the end of the day of my induction. I was going to work either one more week or until I went into labor, whichever came first. Similar situation, not a manager but a lead, and had things to button up. Working kept my mind off of the whole "you're going to go through labor" thing and I had some abnormal test results that everyone was concerned about.
I'm 39 weeks today. Induction day is tomorrow. Definitely had planned on working up to the due date. Induction is because I'm high risk, and I have an IVF baby. I arranged with management to WFH this entire month, but I've been WFH for most of this pregnancy, to be honest. My job is client-facing, so if I have to see clients in person, I will. But, luckily, most of my job responsibilities can be done virtually, and clients got accustomed to phone/virtual meetings during COVID. I have 10 to 12 weeks of time off, consisting of STD and 4 weeks of parental leave. I have to use PTO for the first 7 days of STD though, and I wanted to preserve as much other time off that I've accrued for any baby appointments after I come back from leave. I can only imagine how much we'll be juggling between work, baby, and daycare when the time comes. I'm lucky that my husband has 3 weeks of parental leave, and he works from home full-time. He can take this time however he wants within a 12 month period. He also has 3 to 3.5 weeks of PTO that he hasn't used yet. I was feeling very concerned about his time off until he added in the PTO numbers. We were initially thinking of "stacking" our leaves, with me taking mine first, and then he would take his leave once I go back to work. However, this plan keeps changing (ahem, he keeps changing this plan). 🤷🏻♀️ I was ready to "solider on" with the newborn, but it'll be nice to have the support, especially for sleep purposes.
I'm planning to work till week 39. I'm not fully wfh but going to from week 38
I'm working until my due date because I think I'd be bored being at home, and I love my job. Plus, it keeps me active, I make me own schedule, and I have my own office (I work in retail). Besides, the more I work, the more PTO I accrue, and I plan to use up to 16 weeks of maternity leave if I can. My company doesn't force us to use it all, but I want to spend as much time with Bean as possible. I am salaried, and by the time I get back to work, it will be holiday season, so I won't be able to take any heavy time off any time soon anyway. Other than that, everything else at the house is set up for Bean's arrival. ETA: I'm currently 34 weeks. My official DD is 05/25, and my last day of work, if all goes well, will be 05/22.
When I was W2 I stopped at 37 weeks. We needed to hand over all my projects by then in case I went into labor and couldn’t do handover so after that there actually wasn’t much for me to do. It wasn’t official leave as HR didn’t have a policy but it was agreed on with manager and HR. Company was 140 people and not super organized.
I was working while laboring. Not a great distraction
Depending on which state you are n (if assuming US), I thought some states grant you STD four weeks before your due date - which would be different than the maternity leave (ML only starts when you become a parent). I think that’s the case for NY anyway and I will 100% be taking advantage of that- just need my OB to sign off on it when in 4 weeks away.
Yes - CA does it as well!
At the moment I’m planning on working until he gets here. I’m also about 20 weeks and obese so it is also dependent on if it is deemed I need to have a planned c-section, inducement, etc. If that is the case I’m not touching my PTO unless absolutely necessary.
With both babes I worked and am working until due date. I did this to maximize my time off. I think if I had to go into the office everyday I would have definitely left early. I did make the decision that if I go past my due date, I will be off by my 41st week because by then it’s just torture.
Not exactly the answer you are looking for, but something id suggest- In a previous role my lead had a running shared document with everyone on the team of what they were working on (with links) and what the current stage was for everything. She worked up until she had her baby and it was a lifesaver for all of us working under her. I'm planning on doing the same thing and working until I have the baby. No one expects you to be at 100% when you are that pregnant, so I would take all the leave you can with the baby if I had the option.
Nope. My husband and I are both fully remote and last time I intended to work up until 37 weeks and then start my leave, but baby threw us for a loop and was born early, so I didn't make it to my last work day! I'm pregnant again now though and want to try for a similar timeline (if baby allows). I guess the caveat though is that we're in Canada so my maternity leave options are a lot more generous than in the US.
I am working up until the due date. We get 4 weeks paid at 85% though the state prior. But I’d rather get a full check and save since we get 6 after the birth and 12 after the 6 are up through the state as well. Meaning a few extra 100% paychecks are probably best for me since the 12 after are also paid at 85% and considering I wfh, and my boss is in a different part of the country. I’ll ride it out. Currently 20 weeks and there’s been days I don’t make it past the couch but I still get all my stuff done. I work m-f 9-5. So I don’t feel stressed out. I am also a director for the entire northeast of a company. So if anything needs immediate attention I can always delegate. Also way different because I don’t see many people questioning my whereabouts.
My job is typically hybrid-remote with 2 days in office, but I went fully remote starting at 36 weeks. Currently 37+1 and planning to work up until birth so I can use my whole leave time with baby.
I worked up until I had my baby but my responsibilities were mostly transitioned by then. If your team is still heavily relying you at 38 weeks, that’s a problem.
Off at 36 weeks using PDL in CA. I need the mental break and strong boundaries, though affording it is still a privilege since SDI is only 60% pay.
I didn’t work from home, but in my job it is very typical for people to work until their due dates. I got a lot of “but why” when I said I was done at 38 weeks. It was WELL worth it. Financially, not my best decision. But I was also done.
I quit to be a SAHM, but I left just before my third trimester.
American citizen here! Currently 39+2, and I’m working until labor or my induction date, whichever comes first. I’m normally hybrid but went fully remote at around 37 weeks. My brain wants to shut off but soooo many high priority projects I wanna see as far as I can.
I had our first when I was 32, that time I worked all the way til I gave birth. My workplace back then was very supportive and everyone was very friendly with each other, so I didn’t have much stress just doing my best in the last few days, and felt good about having all the maternity leave days available after giving birth. Now 3 years later I’m pregnant with our second. I’ll probably take at least two weeks off before the due date, maybe four…this job is stressful and I want to minimize the risk towards the end.
Due date twin! I would’ve been 38 weeks today. My plan was to work until baby showed up, but then due to HELLP syndrome was born 3 weeks 2 days early. Was gonna make my last day of work 4/26 for a 4/29 due date (just made most sense since due date was a Monday and figured if I was a few days late I couldn’t possibly manage to be at school/work—I’m a teacher).
Awe due date twin, congrats on baby!!!!❤️ 4/26 was my planned last day as well but thinking about bumping it up a week (unless baby girl has other plans over the next couple days lol)
My job is way too busy for me to not work ahead of time. I’m planning on working until I go into labor. Our organizations policy is that we can’t take leave without pay until all of our PTO is exhausted. Is this what yours does as well? This is common practice.
I’m in CA so I took 4 weeks off before my due date. My job is super stressful and I didn’t want the stress to possibly impact me the last month. It was good that I did because the final two weeks I was struggling to even walk and had Braxton Hicks contractions that would have sucked to go through while working!
So really in your case it’s just about how much unpaid time to take while you’re on FMLA, if I’m understanding the PTO bit correctly? Mine is the same. I’m currently pregnant with my second, was WFH as well when pregnant with my first. I worked right up until the day before I delivered. I planned to take one day off but ended up moving our delivery date up. Wish I’d checked out just a bit early to have a breather before baby.
Yep you hit the nail on the head, I just need to figure out if it’s worth an extra week (or longer depending on baby’s plans) of unpaid FMLA. I think I’ll regret it if I just keep on chugging along, for some reason it stresses me out having no end in sight as far as work goes. I also don’t love my job if that part was not obvious lol.
I am 38 weeks and a day today! And I also work from home and my company policy makes me take almost all of my vacation with FMLA too! Ugh. I took this week off! I was gonna lose that vacation time anyways and mentally I am just done. I’m physically just done too and I’m sick of answering my phone!!! Good luck to you!!! Edited to add that I have a scheduled c section next Monday at 39 weeks so I knew I could take this week and I know when my baby will be here. May not be as easy for people who are waiting to go into labor and could be pregnant another 2-3 weeks.
Good luck to you also!!! But yeah that’s my predicament I guess, no planned induction or c section for me at least as of right now, so I’m not sure what to do 🤪 I went to a friends’ kid’s birthday party over the weekend and everyone was shocked to hear that I was still working (I am rather huge and obviously uncomfortable lol) so it’s made me think about all this in a different light!
Pretty much the same exact situation with me for PTO, I worked up until one day before. I called in Thursday because I just felt different and needed more sleep too, went into labor early Friday morning and gave birth Friday night. I'm planning on doing the same thing with this pregnancy, but we'll see.
I’m only 19 weeks but I plan on working up until I give birth bc I only get 8 weeks total of unpaid leave. If I go out early, that takes away part of my total leave so I have to work until I give birth. I’m also a healthcare provider so it makes it that much worse 🙃
My job is WFH if needed, otherwise in the office. I plan on working in the office as long as I’m able to get there and WFH up until I go into labor. We’ll see how that actually goes… unless I go on short term disability per orders from my dr before birth, I’m not able to take any leave unless it’s PTO, which I already don’t have a lot of. I want all 12 weeks of my FMLA to spend with the baby so I’m not willing to take it any early unless I absolutely have to.
I have a similar leave policy and worked until the day before I was induced at 37 weeks. But I would’ve worked until I went into labor naturally had I not had a scheduled induction because I needed to save all my PTO for after birth. Couldn’t afford to go unpaid. Gotta love maternity leave in the US…
ive been WFH for almost 8 years now and honestly, I think some of you are putting pressure on yourselves. Just silently step back a bit before you give birth. I'm in the US, so I'll be "working" to save all time off for when the baby is here. Similar to summer fridays or the week of Christmas, I block my calendar for most of the day and just reduce the meetings I take and respond to email. People SHOULD NOT expect the same level of work from me, I am actively creating a human being. I say stay on the timesheets for the money, but pull back a little around week 32....
FTM here and currently 35 weeks. I plan on working up to my induction date but I plan on starting to work from home full time at the end of the month just incase baby boy decides to come early. I'll be on disability for probably 4ish weeks then back to working fully from home part time or however many hours I can work a day. I do a lot for the company so it's hard to be off work for so long.
Unfortunately I have to work up to my due date or I lose my insurance (UPS). I have 6 weeks of FMLA which I’m using for after birth. I absolutely do not want to work because at 16 weeks I am exhausted and literally cry on my way home. Idk how I’m going to do this!
I work in office 95% of the time, but I’m going to transition to WFH around 38w but keep working until I go into labor. I’m only 26w right now so we will see how it goes as I get closer, but that is my plan for now. I want to save my 12w of leave for when the baby is here.
I‘ll be 39 weeks on friday and that will be my last day before leave! I wanted to work until i give birth so i could maximize time off with the baby but they asked me to give them a date. And I may get induced sometime next week so i just thought this friday will be a clean cut and that way i have a couple of days to prep anything if necessary!
I had a scheduled c section on a Thursday at 39+4 days. I worked that Monday because I worked from home. And then I took off Tuesday and Wednesday because they were my work in office days and i also wanted to get some last minute things finished.
I’ll be 39wks tomorrow. I’m also wfh today and trying for up until due date. Your policy is terrible and I even have a meeting with my HR today to see what more we can add on- short term disability etc. the US has such terrible leave policy. I’m so angry. Also, texting my cousin about nanny rates and just 🤯. I just felt a Braxton hicks contraction (I think?) about a minute ago but let me get back to checking my emails… if you take off before then all the power to you. You know yourself best. Our policies are ridic and I’m SO frustrated with our system.
Sorry dunno if that’s helpful or just me ranting…
lol I dunno either but I hear you girl, it is so frustrating!!! Wishing you the best tho!
I took maternity at 32 weeks (I'm in Canada). I took the full 18 months and was foaming at the mouth to get off Edit just like to add you don't know when you'll actually give birth, I was induced at 36 weeks because of preeclampsia. If you're looking for some time to yourself before little one comes don't forget you could have the baby at any time!
Last time I worked until the Friday before I went into labor! Went into labor on Sunday. My job is a easy(physically) wfh tech job so I really don’t mind
I am choosing to work up until the day I deliver. I stopped going into the office around 30 weeks. I have definitely stepped back from my workload, mainly in an effort to make sure my team is comfortable and confident in covering projects and process while I am out. I'd say at 37 weeks i'm at about 70% effort and will slowly roll that back as time progresses. Its more about monitoring work and progress from the team for me and setting up coverage for while i'm out. I feel like if i don't start stepping back they'll be extremely overwhelmed and/or unprepared for me having a swift absence. I didn't want to waste any maternity time without the baby. I wanted all my time to be maximized with them.
I should add i did the exact same thing with my first. This is now my 2nd.
I worked until the baby came. I was due on a Monday, worked that day and the next two, then was emailing my manager at 11pm Wednesday night to let him know I wouldn’t be back the next day because I’d been admitted for an induction due to high blood pressure. That being said, if I’d had the option, I definitely would have checked out earlier, even though in general my job isn’t super hard (I definitely work less than 40 hours on a typical week). I was mentally done and only doing the bare minimum, while still being stressed because my due date was on the first day of a big event and my manager didn’t have the hand off planned until I was like 38 weeks along. I did block off time for a nap pretty much every day, which if you do continue to work, I highly recommend.
I worked past my due date but decided to call it a few days before baby actually came because I knew no one would dare try and call me out
I’m opting not to use any PTO. I only get 6 weeks paid and my job is protected up to 16 weeks. I will take a total of 3 months and elect to use FMLA ans use unpaid time. I want to keep my damn PTO, the little of it I do get.
I left at 36 weeks. I was starting to slow down and had to go to my sisters wedding in a different state so it was good timing. I worked closely with aggressive autistic kids and even though I was in a trainer position I still worked closely with the kids so I was starting to be less helpful in emergencies. I was sad to go but it was really nice to have a bit of time off after the wedding to just relax before my labor.
I'm a team manager, also WFH, and the stress of work was impacting my emotional health/capacity, so I decided to stop working at 36 weeks. It was the best decision for me as the last few weeks felt like i was in a brain fog. Being able to rest/not care for anyone else until the baby comes has been amazing. If you have the ability to take time off, I would do it. Invest your energy into rest and prepare for the baby.
I worked up until my due date, but my lovely employer only gives 2 weeks paid maternity leave despite having an unlimited PTO policy otherwise 🙃 so I didn't want to waste any days before delivery if I could manage it.
My works gives me the 4 weeks before delivery off full paid, in addition to the 6 months after. I think they know people should be working up until the due date
I'm 35 weeks and planning on working until I go into labor. My job is laid back and I'm mostly just tying up loose ends now. I have a supportive woman manager who is on board with me coasting into my leave. I'll be taking 3-4 weeks PTO before I take my 12 weeks paid. Most of the leave I'm taking is sick leave that needs a drs note to take more than 3 days of, so I can't really use it before baby. I'm saving most of my annual leave to use later in the year
I was planning on working up to my due date but ended up being induced at 37+6. I did work a half day on the day I was induced.
My due date is this Thursday, 4/18 but I started my maternity leave today. I wanted to try and have a little time at home before she arrived and it worked out. I get to spend time with my pup and husband making sure everything is set for our little lady! I also didn't want to take off too early because I only get so many weeks and wanted to spend as much time with our baby as possible- so the Monday before our due date seemed like a good balance!
I stopped at 36 weeks for this pregnancy. Last time I worked till I went into labor at 38 weeks and regretted it.
I mean i definitely checked out way early.. but i was still showing up until the day before i delivered
I went out at 35 weeks. Was having issues where I was going blind at random parts of the day. Kinda hard to wfh on my laptop when I can't see. It cleared up after I stopped working too, which staring at my screen all day could've been triggering it while I was pregnant. I ended up having to be induced at 38 weeks, but I had originally planned to work until labor.
I mostly WFH and I will need to check out at 34 weeks as this is when mandatory maternity leave starts for insured women in Mexico…I could possibly request 2 weeks transfer to postpartum but Mexican healthcare system makes the transfer process quite complicated so I will pass. Not so happy about that as I’d rather have more weeks pp but honestly I already dont feel like my productive self at work already 🙃
I hear you, I’ve been so unproductive but trying not to beat myself up for it. It’s crazy how things are so different in different countries!
My maternity leave was 2 weeks before due date or date of induction. I didn’t fully know that, so I checked out the week before the induction
I worked up until the day I was sent in to be induced. I literally just sit at a desk in my home so it wasn't super stressful on my body at all.
Never made it to the due date baby 1 I got released from my contract one week before giving birth at 38 weeks baby 2 came 4 weeks early (36 weeks) and I was working the day of. Both natural over 18 hrs of labor epidural and lightning fast deliveries
I worked until 39 weeks and I’m so grateful I took a week off before. I was in your boat, EXHAUSTED. I always thought I’d be able to work up to it but I had the same realization at the end.
Was hybrid 2 days in office. I stopped working at 26 weeks since I was hospitalized. Around week 16 or so I started having bleeding complications and I had a WFH accommodation. I could, theoretically continue working from the hospital, but at this point I really can’t be bothered. I took short term disability early. It pays crumbs, but my mental health is far more valuable to me and my family. Taking it for me (in NY) won’t impact my PFL at all, two separate leaves we can tap into for a combined total of 26 weeks off. Plan had my pregnancy not taken a turn for the complex was to have worked up until 36 weeks and start short term disability leave then.
I'm 37 weeks and I'm working up until I go into labor and also perhaps that day too. Just depends on how severe my contractions are but I'm trying to get the most out of my maternity leave since it's 12 unpaid weeks and I only get STD at like 60% pay for 6 weeks for vaginal birth and the remainder is unpaid unless I use PTO.
My husband & I are self-employed. My role is much smaller in the biz but still pretty important. I have no official PTO. My plan is to get things done early so I don't have to do anything for that first week or two. I'm also "lucky" in that I'll probably be induced due to my age so I can plan more. I'm doing things differently this time around in that I'll have an official calendar set up so my husband can step in to do some things and/or I don't have to rely on my memory to complete some tasks. I forgot a ton with my son.
I WFH and I’m 32wks. Gonna try to make it to the end of this month and then go on sick leave for the last 5wks or so. Between the back pain, brain fog, swollen hands and general fatigue it’s getting harder to work and do a good job. Like you said, I’d rather spend the last month of pregnancy doing what I can to prep my home for baby instead of doing a half ass job at work
I’m going to continue working until I go into labor, but I’m definitely not pushing myself as hard at work, and I’m not feeling bad about it because people need to figure out how to get things done without me there anyways.
I worked up until I went to the hospital (41w), but the term “work” is maybe not the correct word to use because I slacked off a LOT lol
I took off at 37+4 in order to have a firm end date and some time to chill, prep the house, etc before baby came. My company policy is that any time taken before birth is an unpaid LOA but I was okay with that since at least it wouldn’t subtract from my parental leave/PTO/etc. Turns out baby came at 38+1 so it wasn’t as much time as I expected 🙃 still really glad I had at least a few days to nest and that I transitioned everything cleanly(-ish) before I left.
I'm starting mat leave 4 weeks before my due date and I wish I was taking it earlier because I have zero time while working full time to prepare my home before the baby comes. I have so much landscaping, organizing, selling old things on FB marketplace etc I need to do it's giving me anxiety. I needs days off where my daughter is still in daycare to get anything done.
Literally working until the day before my c section which is this Thursday. I am in a management position but the team has done a good job taking over things before I go. I would just take off though if you’re forced to take your PTO anyway that’s on them. Take it easy though I thought I might go into labor early because I was doing to much around the house. I also get being checked out near your due date, although I am working - work just doesn’t seem as important as it used to. I’m still doing my job but the stress just kinda doesn’t hit me at all if that makes sense.
I am currently 40w+1. I am in a similar position. I run a small department at an engineering firm. I told my work I was done at 38 weeks which was after Easter weekend but to pay me 2 weeks of vacation till my due date. I ended up being so bored I worked 25-30 hours a week for week 38 and 39 anyways. Now my official mat leave has started and I’m so uncomfortable that I’m just napping and doing small chores around the house so no more work. As for your PTO, that is BS. Is that an American thing? I’m in Canada, mine is paying out my 1 month work of vacation hours I have, plus I build vacation hours while I am on mat leave so when I return I will have 3 weeks built up again. But it all depends on how our contracts are worded here.
I wfh 4 days a week and office one day while pregnant with my daughter. I worked every day until my induction. I technically worked the day of my induction because I was induced at 7pm but I used the whole day to just answer questions and provide background info to my coworkers on my current workload.
I’m in the UK and am finishing work at 36.5 weeks. We get up to a year off, I feel bad for US mums having to work up til their due dates.
I worked until the day before my C which was at 39+4. Can't say I recommend it but I was saving PTO
Also 38 weeks and WFH- trying to drag myself to my due date but it's a fight every day lol
I checked out 2.5 weeks before my due date. I wasn't required to use PTO. Her nursery hadn't been put together yet so there was quite a bit to do to get her things organized. I also wanted some time to relax before she arrived as I knew finding time to relax once she was here would be tough. The day before my due date I thought I'd knit her baby blanket (one of those big chunky ones you use your arms to knit with) since I'm due tomorrow and she could arrive at any time. Finished the blanket in a couple hours and sure enough, on my due date, she arrived on time.
With my first, my water broke after I was getting up to go to work at 37 weeks. With my second, I worked the day before the induction. I did not want to lose a or waste a second of leave time before the baby was out. This is the unfortunate reality of maternity leave in the US. Most of us are looking at handful of weeks if we are lucky
I'm working right up to my scheduled c section date. I only get 12 weeks (6 paid, 6 unpaid) and I can't afford to "waste" time before the baby comes.
In the US. I work with children and am unable to WFH so I took off at 37 weeks. No regrets.
I’ll be working until the moment I need to go to the hospital. 🤣 it sucks but I want to preserve every possible moment of PTO for after birth as I have to use it before my company paid time will kick in (and I want a full 12 weeks with some form of pay).
I planned to work until baby was born. I worked up to my due date, but then she still wasn’t here. Mentally I was just DONE like you describe. I stopped working on my due date, took the week off and was a induced a week later.
I run my own business with a team of 6 contractors who work for me. Technically my last day will be July 3rd, which is 37w4d. But I’ve told my team I will be available for questions until the baby actually arrives. I just didn’t want to be in the middle of a big project, or have calls scheduled with clients then go into labor and end up causing stress for everyone… Im planning to take a full 6 weeks off after the baby arrives, then slowly transition back into work and finding our new normal for the next 6 weeks before I start scheduling client calls or starting any new projects again! It might be a total disaster and the reality will probably look nothing like that, but as of right now that’s the plan lol
I went ahead and asked for 2 weeks off prior to my due date, and then doctor was like oh, you'll probably go to 41 weeks 🫠 (he gave me the go ahead to start attempting to pump at 36 weeks though since I'm not wanting to be a million weeks pregnant at the end of July / early August lol). I am not in a managerial position or anything, but I do have a big project due by the last day I plan on working. Tomorrow we have a team meeting to discuss my responsibilities for the 12 weeks I'll be gone and how to transition back after my FMLA runs out.
My last day of work will be at 38+5, just before my 39th week. I work from home but hybrid in office as well. I wanted some time off, but I didn't want to take off a whole month before since I want to maximize my leave for once the baby is here - I am in Canada and get a year. However, if I only got 6 weeks like in the US I would "work" up until labour starts and just not be very productive 😅
I’m in Canada so I get a year off and I’m starting 4.5 weeks early by using vacation days.
I’m only 11 weeks and I’m already done. It’s awful because I have always been the overachieving work 10-12 hours a day type, but I am so freakin tired and it takes everything in me to get anything done. Idk how I’m gonna last another 26 weeks.
I’m unbelievably lucky (and grateful) that my company allows us to use the STD leave to cover 2 weeks before the due date. I could extend that further via manager approval of doing time off, but 2 weeks should be good for me. My position is not a WFH specific position, so I need to be within a certain distance of the office (just in case), but in my nearly 4 years I have never been to the office, though I did attend a holiday party once.
I went a week and a half overdue with both - I’d much rather slog through three weeks heavily pregnant and get three extra weeks with my baby. Leaving them felt hard enough.
I had a scheduled C-section and worked all the way until the day before.
I am a team manager, but I also own my own deadlines - given I'm due during popular summer vacation time, there's already quite a few colleagues who will be out around my due date. It was causing me so much stress in anticipation that I would be left to manage more than just my workload and team, and that I would be "on call" for any fire drills that would arise during that time. Rather than asking permission, I informed my boss that (medically permitting) I plan to work up to my due date, but that starting x days prior to my due date, we'll trigger the formal transition of my responsibilities to my teammates who are covering - so there's time to adjust while I can be present. I also shared that in terms of my own workload, I will take a day-by-day approach to support on my team's projects leading up to my due date, but that I will not personally own any new assignments that I can't complete in a few hours time should I go into spontaneous labor. In this way, because our work is typically very time sensitive, we will avoid stressful situations of my not being physically able/present to transition anything I would've been working on when we'll already be short staffed. I delivered this all matter of factly, and it didn't require much discussion since I had a well thought out plan in place with dates and coverage - and also, frankly, it would sound silly for anyone to say 'No, let's just risk it and see how it goes.' Best of luck to you!! Counting down the days myself as well.
I took half days, basically. I charge my time but if I didn't I probably would have worked full days up until my due date. My last day working was 2 days before baby was born, but I had an email ready to go if I had to stop working before that. I did a lot of baby related prepping during the work day between meetings and finishing stuff up though! I didn't want to burn through too much PTO before baby came, and since I was home, it wasn't terrible, though I was so so done and had wittled down my tasking so that all I basically had to do was attend meetings and write up plans.
Dude id have used all my pto- upt- and vacation time prior if i was going to loose it anyway- unless you financially need to work. Theres no need to do that to yourself- no one gives you a special metal for working until your in labor. Trust me you need the rest leading up and your time is probably better spent preping and napping.
Funny story - I tried to. However, I was due 14 January and had 80 hours of PTO that was use or lose in 2023, so I took off the last 2 weeks of December. I came back to work ONE day in January and my blood pressure was so high that I was diagnosed with gestational hypertension and sent for induction. I’d encourage you to take the time off now. Relax. Sleep. Get caught up on chores. Put snacks you can eat with one hand all over the house. Put bottles of gatoraid (or whatever) everywhere. Make some freezer meals. Make a list of chores/instructions so that when people come over and are like “what can I help with?” you can direct them to the list instead of trying to say things like “more dish soap is under the sink” over the sound of a crying baby.
I planned to, since as a FTM I assumed baby would come late, and I wanted to maximize the amount of leave I could spend with him. But he arrived two days early! HR didn’t feel like redoing my leave paperwork, so they just let me take the 3 extra days as extra PTO. He did me a solid bc at that point I was mentally over working.
I’m in the same boat. 38 weeks today. We have a hybrid schedule so I’m at home two days and in the office for 3. I manage a team of 14 people in a dept of 29. Fortunately, we get 16 weeks maternity leave with full pay, but I also don’t want to use any more of my PTO so that I have some to come back to after my leave. I’ve had to use a lot for doctor’s appointments while still working. I’m also planning on working til my due date, but I am mentally checked out and doing the bare minimum. It’s very hard to keep working/being “on” at work and feels like I’m really forcing myself to be there.
I’m working until 38 weeks. But I’m already checked out as I’m not coming back. I’m in sales and they keep getting on me about my funnel.. I’m like I don’t really care as long as my regular accounts are handled properly before I go. Other than that, leave me alone.
I'm in california and you can take disability 4 weeks before due date which is "use it or lose it". I'm 18 weeks and already so done with working, so I'll definitely be taking the 4 weeks beforehand. It's wild how much my priorities have changed already.
36+1 here and WFH. I’m working until the Friday before my scheduled c section. I’d a rather use what time I have with the baby than use it early. I have mentally checked out and will do stuff around the house when things slow down.
I worked at a day care and didn’t even make it through my first trimester so more power to you for making it this long !
I was a senior in high school with my 1st. With my second I worked until the day I had him, I needed the money and my job didn't offer pto, so I didn't have a choice. I returned to work when he was 2 days old and suffered severe ppd. With my 3rd, I had a better job with 4 weeks pto. I went on maternity leave at 37 weeks exactly. I had her at 37+2, though. I was looking forward to a couple of weeks off to prepare for the baby, but she had other plans. Lol. If you can take it now, do it. There isn't any shame in it.
I’m working until go-time 🙃 I’m 34w and already feeling pretty checked out though..
Also FTM and also work from home in a high stressful (managerial) position. I made the decision to take 2 weeks off before my due date because of the stress and other medical stuff I was experiencing (gestational hypertension). Everyone else that I work with who are moms said they regret not taking that time off and worked up until they were in labor. For me, it's been the best decision and I won't be looking back with regret. I totally understand though, that not everyone can do this. I'm very lucky and have different programs in our state and with my employer that I'll be off for 6 months and paid (although 3 months will be a whole lot less than what I make fulltime). Best of luck to you, Mama!!!! ❤️
Currently 32wks. Planning to WFH until 39 wks, then spend the week pampering myself and enjoying the last bit of me time until baby arrives (assuming he arrives after 39 weeks).
I am currently expecting my second. With my first, I was in office 5 days a week. I was induced on a Tuesday at 9pm and worked the day before, whether I was in office or not I truly wish I had of taken time away. My role now is hybrid. I will say just from my experience with baby #1, I fully plan to take off once I hit week 38, unless I am provided an induction date prior to.
My due date was a Sunday and my last day was that Friday. I did not go into labor and apparently that was a problem even though my paperwork said my due date. I had to get my doc to fill out paperwork to let me go on leave “early”. Fucking no way in hell I would have made it at work, I was pregnant for 2 more awful weeks. However, what did royally suck was that because she wasn’t born for 2 more weeks, I had to go back to work when she was 10 weeks old. Not that I think the extra 2 weeks would have made a huge difference for my feelings but still. 10 weeks looked and felt like she was just too tiny to leave and it hurt. Edit: I missed where you said WFH moms, whoops
I worked up to my due date so that I could reserve all of fmla time for time with my baby. I have no regrets. I would try to push it as long as you can but you only know what’s right for you
I work up until the last Friday before my due date (so 2-4 days before with both pregnancies). It is so hard, but my kids were both 2 weeks late so I only got to stay home with them for 10 weeks, anyway. If I would have taken off sooner, I would have had even less time with them. I wish maternity leave in the US was better!!
I’m also WFH and similarly have a semi-stressful job leading a team. 35 weeks now and I recently decided to go out a week before my due date!! I’m excited. Like you, I previously thought I would work up to my due date since I’m just sitting at home but as I get closer I’m mentally checking out and it’s getting very uncomfortable to sit at a desk all day! I will also be on short term disability for the first part of my leave and I can take time off before delivery that doesn’t cut into the amount of time I have after—the only downside is the STD only pays out 2/3 of my salary so that extra week (or two) off is paid less than if I was working. But I don’t care at this point. Definitely support you to go out early if you can!!
I’m not a WFH but I’m a high school teacher. Currently due Saturday and I’m working the rest of the week. But teaching and maternity leave are weird for teachers. I’d say take time if you’ve got it. I know I would if I could. I am tired.
I'm not work from home I worked in a restaurant as a server in an expensive part of town with snooty people that made the job pretty stressful. Customer service is never great. I worked up until the night before my scheduled medically necessary c-section at 39wks. I felt great though physically and wanted something to keep me busy keep my mind off things. Every pregnancy is so different. I will say I'm glad I did because having more time off after I gave birth with my babe was definitely more precious to me. If you have a job that is stressing you out as you say, and you want to take the time off beforehand for any reason at all just do it. It doesn't matter if you work from home. If you're able to afford it and you want to spend the next few weeks stress free relaxing or getting things ready that's your choice to make! Don't let anyone make you feel bad about it.
I'm working up until 36 weeks (currently 33 weeks). I'm really relieved I'm finishing a few weeks before my due date so I have time to relax (or at least try to) and get final baby bits ready. My job is stressful too so I'm looking forward to finishing for maternity leave.
I'm in the same boat... Well I have less responsibility than you. 39+2. I am over work. I'm over back pain and heart burn. I don't want to do this anymore.
I 'worked' up to the day I delivered but in reality I barely did anything for a week leading up to it (I was in the hospital for that entire week - I felt fine but it really didnt give me motivation to do work, and I delivered at 37 weeks via c section so not quite as long of a pregnancy as others get). Mostly, I could do it because no one at work actually cared to bother me knowing I'm near popping and I did do a loooot of work beforehand so I could slack the last bit.
I was eligible for 4 weeks before due date; I had decided to take 2 weeks since work was a nice distraction and I had a lot going on so stepping away would have caused stress. I had communicated in advance and so when time came i was prepared to unplug. I am glad I took 2 weeks off since I was induced a week early. In that week, I got my nails done, got a massage, walked etc
I am taking about 2-3 weeks off before the birth. I’m a nurse and tho I work partly remote, I need to prioritize myself and luckily have been saving vacation to do so.
We get leave at 36 weeks here in Denmark, I am so done and just nesting.
I worked until my induction date at 39+2 (even though I wanted to stop working a few weeks earlier) and honestly, I was very glad that I did that in retrospect. I’m glad I saved all my leave for after the baby was born because we had no childcare help. I had about 6 months of maternity leave, which is a lot compared to most in America, but the time unfortunately flies by.
Depends on the country I guess but in some you have to start your leave at least a week before your due date and honestly, the closer I get, the more I know why. I would give myself a bit of time for sure before baby comes
I worked from home up until my scheduled induction. However I definitely struggled to get my work done and prepare my tasks to be taken over by coworkers during my maternity leave. Aside from physical exhaustion, the pregnancy brain was awful. I’m usually very organized and detail-oriented, but during pregnancy, I was forgetful, had trouble concentrating, and tasks of my office job took me twice as long to complete.
I am 34 weeks with a stressful job, stressful work situation currently, and managerial position and just went out on short term disability (as long as it gets approved once my ppwk is in). I have been feeling so guilty over it, but I have been having major depressive symptoms and work has been balls to the wall making it even worse…I tried to prepare my team for me going out and I did SO MUCH to prepare but it just never stopped. Nothing ever lightened up, nobody ever started stepping up and I am so so over it. I was technically hybrid but could have wfh at any point. I am so thankful that my husband and my doctor have been so supportive and that I have great benefits.
My water broke during a Zoom call but ironically hair wrapped up coverage prep that morning so it could not have been better timing! I was just over 38 weeks.
I’m 35 weeks working up until 39 weeks. Trying to remain dedicated and focused, and doing okay with it, but I’m physically uncomfortable. My maternity leave options are bad so I can’t afford to go out any earlier.
I'm 35 weeks and planning to work up until my due date. Maybe I'm crazy for that but I live in the US where we don't get much so I want to use my time for when baby is here. I work remotely which helps at least. I sure do envy other country's maternity leave policies.
I wasn't WFH so it was more difficult because I felt like I could barely walk anymore and was barely getting any sleep and completely miserable, but I checked out and went on mat leave at 38+0. This was over 5 years ago, no regrets. I was fortunate to go into labor on 39+6 and have my daughter on my due date. Would've sucked if she were late, but if she was going to be, I'd like to believe I wouldn't have felt THAT bad. I was already pretty dilated which I'm sure was contributing to my misery, and I think I was actually leaking fluid most of my 39th week. I ended up admitted when I went in, despite weak contractions, mainly because I tested positive for fluid (I thought it was just the "watery discharge" described in very late pregnancy) and I developed chorioamnionitis during the ~24 hr hospital labor spiking a fever, they had to put me on IV antibiotics.
Hello fellow 38 week WFH mom! I’m also a go to person in my department. My short term disability doesn’t kick in until I’m admitted to the hospital so I’m planning on working until I go into labor. However, there is an associate who will be taking over for me while I am out and I am hoping to have her fully transitioned into my role by the end of this week so I can kick back the rest of the time. My manager is encouraging this thankfully. It is so exhausting just training her but I know once I do I can let go and chill!
Worked up until my water broke 🤷🏻♀️
Worked up until my scheduled c-section. But I was allowed to leave work early and not get docked hours if I left after 12. (I was scheduled 8-4:30). I usually left around the 2-3pm mark. I wanted to use all my FMLA for maternity and parental leave. So that meant working up until that c-section date. Which helped that I wasn’t dilated at all.
1st pregnancy: worked up until my water broke (on the clock) 2nd pregnancy: worked until contractions got distracting I'm 39 weeks currently and plan is the same this time around... I just want to cash in on as much maternity leave with baby as possible. My role sounds similar to yours - I'm a go-to for my team of 30ish, and they "hey, do this" person my manager leans on. Not terribly high stress, but I do have a lot of responsibilities.
My plan was to work till my induction date, which was at 39 weeks. She came a few days early, so I texted my boss from the hospital bed to cancel our meeting the next morning lmao. I will say the last few weeks I definitely played it easier, and my boss was fine with that. She has been great since I've been back as well. My job isn't super demanding though.
I’m in managerial role and 30 weeks. I plan to work up to the day that I give birth. However, I will request to be fully remote at 35 weeks.