Flying When Pregnant

I don’t particularly enjoy flying anytime…but I ESPECIALLY don’t like doing it while I’m pregnant.

This last summer, we traveled by plane a few times – and some legs of the trips were better than others.

I was reminded of the importance of taking it slow, making sure you are comfortable and being prepared for any situation.

With the holidays coming up, I am sure there are MANY pregnant ladies getting ready to fly, so I hope that this post will provide some helpful information to make your flying experience a little less miserable.

But first, a couple FAQs:

Can Pregnant Women Fly?

I mean, can anyone fly?

Okay, that was a lame joke. Yes, pregnant women can fly in an airplane.

You should always discuss travel plans with your care provider, but assuming you have no major complications or issues, there should be no issues flying during your pregnancy.

How Many Weeks Pregnant Can You Fly?

There does come a point in your pregnancy where airlines won’t let you fly, and quite frankly, it wouldn’t be smart!

I mean, I went into labor unexpectedly at 37 weeks – what if I’d been flying because I thought I still had three weeks left?!

The general recommendation is to stop flying after 36 weeks of pregnant. All airlines have different policies, so make sure you check these before your book your flight.

Tips on Flying While pregnant

TSA Pre-Check

Okay, if you are only going to be flying once and don’t plan to fly much over the next few years, then this *might* not be worth it to you.

However, I fly several times a year, so last December, Forrest and I decided to get TSA Pre-Check. It was the BEST decision – this was even before I got pregnant, but I was so grateful I had it when I was pregnant (not to mention with kiddos).

It is $75 for four years, and you have to go and apply in person. The whole process took about 15 minutes. They told us it would take about a month to hear back, but we were both approved within about a week.

Basically, this allows you to skip most of the security line, not have to take off your shoes, and just make the security part of flying SO MUCH EASIER.

I have used it quite a few times, and not only has it helped us not miss some flights, but the longest we’ve had to wait was *maybe* five minutes – if that. And this was during peak travel times (such as the day after Christmas).

It was SO nice when I was pregnant not having to stand in line very long, lean over to take off my shoes or feel like I had to be at the airport WAY earlier than necessary.

Compression Socks

If you are going to be traveling at all (via car or plane) while pregnant, make sure you invest in compression socks.

I never swell when I’m pregnant unless I’m traveling and compression socks can help greatly reduce that.

Flying already increases the risk of blood clots, and the risk is even higher in pregnant women. Compression socks help reduce the risk of blood clots!

They sure aren’t fashionable or even very comfortable, but they can help you feel better in the long run. I hate when I am done traveling, and I look down at my feet and they are like sausages!

Get an Aisle Seat

On a few of my flights, I splurged and paid for Southwest’s Early Bird Check-in so I could for sure get an aisle seat.

This was so worth it to me. On my flight back from North Carolina, I was flying with my family, and since families board before the B boarding group, I didn’t think it was necessary.

Ideally, my boys would have sat next to each other, and I could have sat on the aisle. Unfortunately, World War III about broke out when they realized one of them might not sit by the window, so Forrest and I split up, and I was in the middle seat.

It was THE most miserable flight ever. I was sick the whole time, there was tons of turbulence so I couldn’t get up, and I was starving. This was shortly before I was diagnosed with Gestational Diabetes, and all the snacks I had were super carb-heavy, which made me even sicker by the time I got off the plane.

You want to be able to get up at any time without having to climb over anyone. It’s not a big deal to ask someone to get up and let you out, but it’s a lot easier if you don’t have to – especially if you are battling sickness. I felt so claustrophobic in the middle. As soon as I got off the plane, I ran to the bathroom and threw up.

Throw Up Bag

Airlines typically supply a throw-up bag in the backseat pocket, however, I’ve been on a bunch of flights where these weren’t there.

The flight back from North Carolina was one of them. So I would suggest bringing your own – even if you haven’t had morning sickness, being on a plane can make someone who isn’t even pregnant sick…and you are definitely a lot more likely to get nauseated on the flight when you are!

Bring Healthy Snacks

Most airlines don’t provide snacks anymore, and when they do, they are crackers or small cookies. Definitely not ideal for keeping your tummy full.

Buying snacks at the airport tend to be rather pricey as well, so I would just suggest bringing along your own in your carry-on. Don’t follow my example of bringing carb-heavy items either; make sure they are balanced with fat and protein.

This list of snacks for breastfeeding moms is also a great resource for pregnant mamas.

Comfy Clothes

Make yourself as comfortable as you possibly can be. I’m sure some people would be appalled that I looked like I just rolled out of bed with my clothes…but I was comfortable and really didn’t care what anyone thought!

I got these super comfortable pants from Costco, and I practically lived in them my entire pregnancy – along with some comfy t-shirts. I love the pregnancy t-shirts from Simply Sage Market (and honestly, all their graphic tees are amazing!). You can get 25% off with the code CLARKS25.

Also, make sure you wear comfortable shoes that don’t have a history of swelling your feet. Skechers Go Walk is my very favorite. So comfortable and easy to put on.

Drink lots of water

Don’t count on the flight attendant being able to bring you water during the flight. Those cups are rather small, and you never know if you’ll be on a flight where drink service is discontinued because of turbulence.

Bring an empty, large water bottle with you through security, and then fill it up right before you get on the airplane. I forgot to fill mine once, and it was a disaster. We didn’t get drinks on the plane, which resulted in Oliver crying and crying because he was thirsty, and I was SO thirsty, too!

The low humidity in an airplane can also lead to dehydration. Pregnant women are already at a higher risk of becoming dehydrated, so drink up!

Walk around a lot

There’s a lot of sitting on the airplane and airport, so take whatever opportunity you have to get up and walk around so you can prevent swelling and blood clots.

Before I got on any flight, I took a lap around the terminal. It helped a lot, especially before a long flight.

When you are on the airplane, get up and walk around every hour if you can. Just a lap up and down an aisle should be sufficient!

Be prepared to be sensitive

Sensitive in all definitions of the word – you will likely be more sensitive to smells – even things that don’t necessarily smell bad can really be triggering in a confined space.

If you’re like me, you’ll be more sensitive to anything frustrating or annoying. I had a few experiences when I was flying where I about burst into tears because I was so frustrated. Being pregnant just made everything about 1000x times worse.

And you’ll likely be more sensitive to turbulence!

Something to sit on

Those airport and airplane seats are really not very comfortable! Bringing some kind of pillow to sit on can be really helpful. I would also recommend a neck pillow. I really wish I had one of these!

Seatbelt Extender

If you have found your belly has gotten too big for a traditional seatbelt, you can request a seatbelt extender from the airline. I would look up the rules and availability of these before you get on board, though.

Fly Southwest

We only fly Southwest. They tend to have reasonable fares, I love the family boarding policy, and it’s so nice that you can bring on a carry-on AND a personal item at no extra cost. You will likely have a few more items than usual being pregnant, so not having to pay for a carry-on is helpful.

I find them to be pretty helpful and reasonable, too. We have a couple of Southwest credit cards that we use to rack up the points! If you are in need of a new credit card, this would be a great time to get one. Through our referral link, you can earn 40,000 points when you spend $1000 in the first three months.

Flying during pregnancy is considered safe for both the mother and baby as long as certain precautions are taken. Follow these tips to have a safe and comfortable flight. By preparing ahead of time and being mindful of your body’s needs, you can rest assured that flying while pregnant will be a breeze. Have you flown while pregnant? What tips do you have to share?

Other Posts You May Enjoy:

• Five Pro Tips for Flying on an Airplane with Kids
• 15+ Tips For Flying With a Baby (And Not Going Crazy)

The post 10+ Pro Tips for Flying Pregnant with Ease appeared first on Magical Family Travel Guide.

It’s been awhile since I’ve written a post about traveling with children – my post on road tripping with a baby always seems to garner a lot of attention. Jack is three, so he’s kind of in that range of toddler/preschooler. Since we’ve taken plenty of road trips with him as a toddler, and now a couple as he’s entered that preschool age, I figure that I might as well write a post that focuses on road tripping with young children!

I’ll put this out there up front – Jack is very good in the car. He rarely, if ever, complains or cries, and he loves sleeping in his car seat. So, I’ll admit, my advice isn’t going to have a lot of experience with children who hate being in the car. However, I think that most of this is pretty generic, and I hope you can apply it to your situation!

We recently went on a super long road trip to Northern Idaho. It was over 2,000 miles round-trip, and let me tell ya – it was a doozy! Road trips are normally one of my least favorite things to do, but I think they are even worse during pregnancy. Let’s not even talk about how swollen my feet got.

Fortunately, we actually drove in the same car as my parents and little brother, which made the trip a little bit more fun. Jack loved being in the car with them.

1) Fun Bag

Growing up, the best part of road trips was the “fun bag” my mom would put together for each of my siblings and me. I remember that my bag was yellow, and there was always so much anticipation to getting to the car and seeing what was inside. In hindsight, there wasn’t anything too fancy – just some candy, maybe a small toy or book, but it was so fun to have this to look forward to.

I’ve continued this little tradition with Jack, and he absolutely loves it. I mentioned it to him a few days before this last road trip, and he couldn’t stop talking about it. I just stocked up on a few things from the dollar section at Target, and he was overjoyed when I let him open the bag on our trip. Here are a few ideas:

• New crayons/coloring book
• Small snacks like graham crackers, goldfish, or fruit snacks
• A new book
• A sticker book (or a package of stickers with a blank notebook)
• mini etch-a-sketch or magnadoodle
• Quiet Books
• Window markers
• Homemade Gak
• Car Color Bingo 
• Finger Puppets

You can easily find a little bag at the Dollar Tree or Target. However, I like having something that’s a little more durable and that we can use on multiple trips. We were sent a PaddlePak from Trunki.com, a company that specializes in travel gear for little ones, and it was perfect for putting Jack’s fun bag together. It had tons of room for everything we got him, and it was nice that it was water resistant, in case something spilled inside. Jack picked Ribbit the Frog, and it is so cute and very well-made.

2) Snacks in little containers

I bought several different snacks for Jack to have throughout the trip, but I wanted to make sure he didn’t just eat them all in the first hour we were driving. I got some cute little cups with lids from the Target dollar section (if you can’t tell, I love this section). I used about four different cups and put different snacks in each one. I kept larger bags of the snacks in my bag, so I could replenish the snacks when I needed to. I feel like it kept things more organized and less messy.

3) Make sure they are comfortable

No one wants to be uncomfortable in a vehicle, but I think adults can handle it a bit easier. If your child is uncomfortable, they will definitely let you know! Long road trips are bound to get uncomfortable, but there are a few things you can do to ease that discomfort.

• Regulate the temperature: Depending on the kind of vehicle you have, the backseat may get rather warm, even with air conditioning on. My friend came up with this interesting way to keep your child cool in the car. If you don’t feel like making something like that, I think buying a car seat fan attachment is a great idea, as well as rolling down the windows when you can.
• Bring familiar blankets and other sleep items: This will help your child fall asleep easier in the car!
• Bringing along a pillow probably isn’t the best idea, especially when your child is in a car seat. We were also sent a Trunki.comTrunki.com, and it really is the perfect solution for children in car seats. It helps to keep their neck from getting too stiff or tired, and the fact that they are animals is even more fun. Jack LOVES his, and he uses it even when we aren’t in the car! He has Leeroy the Lion.

4) Be willing to stop frequently

Jack was potty trained right about when he turned three (you can read all about our secret to potty training.) This is something we were very happy about, especially since I really didn’t want to have two kids in diapers once this new baby arrives. However, it does mean that you have to stop a lot more frequently. Jack doesn’t seem to quite understand the concept of “holding it” for awhile, so the moment he needed to go potty, he didn’t let us forget it. This meant that we stopped quite a few times (often on the side of the road – which he thought was soooo cool), and it was something we factored in.

If your child has just recently been potty trained, and you aren’t sure if there are good places to stop at a moment’s notice, you may want to consider having your child wear pull-ups in the car. Jack didn’t want to do this, so I wasn’t going to force him to, but if you’re at that in-between stage, it might be a good idea so you don’t have to worry about it if they have an accident.

It’s also good to stop and let your kids stretch their legs and run around for a little bit. No one likes being cramped in the car for hours on end!

5) Healthy snacks

From all of our road trips, I’ve learned this – junk food may be tempting to buy, but it’s far better to buy healthy snacks. Whenever we just load up on salty snacks and junk food, we always end up feeling horrible by the time we stop. Forrest and I started making sure we had a good supply of snacks that would keep us satisfied, but that weren’t complete junk. While we may have a package of cookies as well, we typically bring a lot of fruit (bananas, cutie clementines, and apples are our favorites), Annie’s snack crackers, granola bars, and, of course, lots of water! We recently started buying Motts Medley’s Fruits snacks from Costco, and they are a great treat to bring along as well.

One kind of candy I do recommend bringing is licorice. Traveling often results in constipation. TMI maybe, but it’s true. This goes for children as well! My mom swears that if you eat licorice while traveling, it helps a lot with travel bloat and constipation. I think there’s definitely some merit in this!

6) Don’t give them all their “surprises” at once

If you are going on a long road trip and have bought different surprises (whether it be a game, a book, or maybe a new movie), don’t give it to your child all at the beginning! Chances are, they will go through everything really quickly, and then they will start to get antsy and act board. Spread out the surprises to be available at the times when they seem like they are having the hardest time. I mean, with Jack, he was content about 95% of the time, but during that other 5%, it was nice to have something to distract him. Some people may not agree with doing this, but with as boring/frustrating/mind-numbing as a car ride can be, I honestly don’t care! If my child is content in the car, that’s pretty much all that matters to me when we are driving.

One surprise that might be fun to give your child when they get to their destination is a new suitcase! We also were asked to review Trunki’s signature product – the Trunki suitcase. It’s a ride on suitcase, available in a variety of different styles, and it’s a lot of fun for kids. When you arrive at your destination, it might be a fun treat for your child to see a brand new suitcase – just for them – that they can ride to their hotel room (or wherever you are staying!) Plus, these are guaranteed for five years – so you know they are built to last (also – random side note – I think this would be amazing in an airport!)

7) Make sure they are in the proper car seat

I couldn’t go through this post without putting a shout-out for car seat safety. I wrote a post awhile back that touched on car seat safety and proper car seats. When you are on a road trip, you are driving for long periods of time, and I think there’s probably an increased risk of getting in an accident. You want to make sure your child is as safe as possible, just in case something bad does happen!

8) Mess-free activities

The last thing you want to do is arrive at your destination (or home) and have a huge mess in the back seat. While your child may love painting or playdough, a road trip is not the best time for this! I recommend finding a variety of mess-free activities for them to enjoy throughout the trip. Here is an awesome list of mess-free road trip activities for preschoolers! We also love finding travel editions of little games, crayons (not markers – unless it’s Color Wonder!) and a new coloring book, or car bingo!

Going on a road trip to Southern California? Be sure to check out Get Away Today before you book your next trip – they have a best rate guarantee, and from my experience, they are the best company to work with. Get $10 off your package when you book using the code CLARKS2015!

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