I'm planning a pregnancy (going to start trying in January) and am looking for thoughts/experiences with being pregnant and working nights. My initial thought is that I ought to try to get on days when I'm pregnant, as I know being up nights is hard on the body and throws things off a bit with hormones etc. I've never heard of outright adverse effects on the pregnancy, but my feeling is it may be much healthier and make for an easier pregnancy if I'm on days during that time.
Secondly- I'm a new nurse (start 1st job on Monday!!) starting on Tele. Part of the reason we are waiting until January is to give me some time to get settled in to the job, as I know these next few months will be very stressful, and also so that I will have been there over a year when the baby is born. (Would be an Oct due date if we get pregnant right away)
In your experience is a leave longer than 3 months possible? I would like 6 months minimum- was thinking I could take the standard 3 mos maternity leave, then see about applying for an extended leave of absence. Does that happen, or would I typically have to quit my job completely and start over with applying for jobs etc if I wanted longer than the 3 months? I know it probably depends on the facility, but was just looking for a general idea of if it happens or not.
I don't have a problem working nights when pregnant... I'm pregnant for number three now and still kicking out the 12 hr night shifts... I do only work part time though.
It did take me longer to get pregnant this time than the other times but my husband also works nights so we were lucky be be home at the same time twice a week.
I have read that working nights can increase your risk of miscarriage. I had a miscarriage last year and would hate to think that my working attributed to it but I have read that.
As far as taking more time off after the baby is born have you thought about working per diem after your 12 weeks is up. When I had my dd I planned to take a year off and honestly after 12 weeks work called and begged me to do 4 hr shifts. I actually really liked doing those. I wasn't away for long but it gave my husband time with the kids and it gave me time to be me rather than "mom" all day. I plan to take 12 weeks this time but I will only go back to ONE 12 hr night a week so it shouldn't be too bad.
I think that with FMLA you can take up to a year unpaid for the birth of a baby but you'd have to call your HR for specifics.
Make sure your workplace has short term disability (or else invest in it yourself). At my workplace, you have to be employed for a year to use FMLA, and once you are off for 6 weeks you can use short term disability.
Good luck! And, can I recommend a book for you to speed things along once you start trying to conceive? "Take charge of your fertility" by Toni Weschler.
Specializes in ER/Nuero/PHN/LTC/Skilled/Alzheimer's.
Hello:
I just had my first baby in June of this year. I work noon to midnight in the ER but around the time I was one-two months pregnant (I didn't know until 10 weeks along) I picked up extra shifts on the overnights. I had worked nights for a year when I first started nursing and found it was a little tough for me. I gained weight, my thyroid which is low anyway went haywire, and my circadian rhythm was awful (imagine waking up at 3 and not knowing right away if it is 3 pm or 3 am), so I switched to days and then took up the noon to midnight shift. Try picking up some extra hours on the night shift (helpful especially around christmas) and see how you like it. When I picked up the extra night shifts before I knew I was pregnant I got really dizzy and nauseated toward the end of my shift and then was a zombie the whole next day. Little did I realize that it was morning sickness (thought it was my gallbladder, ha ha). If you have problems with it while you're not pregnant, I would think doing it while you are pregnant would compound the situation.
I am currently 20 weeks pregnant now and will be coming off orientation soon. So I will have to work nights until a day position opens for me. I have never worked a night shift job!! Will I ever get used to it???
Specializes in CCU stepdown, PACU, labor and delivery.
We just had 8 of our night staff give birth within a 4 month time frame. I think the general consensus was nursing in general is alittle difficult ( but safe, you will be pregnant not ill) while pregnant. No one had fertility problems. I think my day shift pregnancy was far worse than my night shift pregnancy! - L&D nurse and mommy
crysobrn
222 Posts
I don't have a problem working nights when pregnant... I'm pregnant for number three now and still kicking out the 12 hr night shifts... I do only work part time though.
It did take me longer to get pregnant this time than the other times but my husband also works nights so we were lucky be be home at the same time twice a week.
I have read that working nights can increase your risk of miscarriage. I had a miscarriage last year and would hate to think that my working attributed to it but I have read that.
As far as taking more time off after the baby is born have you thought about working per diem after your 12 weeks is up. When I had my dd I planned to take a year off and honestly after 12 weeks work called and begged me to do 4 hr shifts. I actually really liked doing those. I wasn't away for long but it gave my husband time with the kids and it gave me time to be me rather than "mom" all day. I plan to take 12 weeks this time but I will only go back to ONE 12 hr night a week so it shouldn't be too bad.
I think that with FMLA you can take up to a year unpaid for the birth of a baby but you'd have to call your HR for specifics.