Would you/have you travelled out of the country while pregnant?

[gordo]

Dh and I want to go away (without DD) in January. We are actively TTC and would hope to be pregnant by then. We originally were thinking Dominican Republic, but now are looking into an all-inclusive in the Riviera Maya.

My mom thinks I am crazy for even considering going to Mexico while I am pregnant. I don't think it is that big of a deal. We will be staying at a very nice resort and I would plan on only eating at the resort. Anyone BTDT??? If you wouldn't go to Mexico, are their other places out of the country you would go?

[buddyleebaby]

Dup. post!

[buddyleebaby]

I went to South America in my first trimester without hesitation.
I just made sure to drink bottled water.

[SnuggleBuggles]

I had a chance to go to Russia when I was 6 months along and chose not to go because I thought if something went wrong when I was there that the medical care could be sketchy. But, I would have gone somewhere like the UK without hesitation. :)

Based on that thought process I would think a bit harder about Mexico but on the plus side you are very close to the States if something happens. I'd probably do it.

It sounds like it would be fun!

Beth

[tarabenet]

I would go! And enjoy it immensely. I'd choose a place that was supposed to be fairly well developed, touristy, even, to help minimize the chance of problems.

TTC doesn't always go as planned (for many, it does go exactly as hoped!), and it is a dangerous thing to try to arrange your life around it. How ticked would you be if you decided not to go, on the hope of being pregnant, and then weren't? And then imagine getting that BFP the very next month, and knowing you'd passed up your vacation chance once already? But imagine planning a vacation and looking forward to it, and then getting away with your DH and your beautiful pregnant self for one more fling before Baby #2 arrives? Go have fun! Be careful, but have fun!

[Wife_and_mommy]

I'd go as long as my pg was as low-risk as my other two. I've had no reason to restrict myself due to pg and wouldn't start now.

I have had terrible morning(i.e.all day) sickness which would really suck to have depending on how far along I was but I think I'd still schedule the trip.



I love them most when they are sleeping.--Me
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[jesseandgrace]

I've gone to Mexico during all three of my pregnancies. With ds I went at about 6/7 months, and with this baby I went at about 16 weeks. Can't remember with #2. It is not a problem at all. It was a blast every time!

[kransden]

I have a friend that went to Mexico, she won a trip, during her second trimester. She got food poisoning or something and lost the baby. She stayed at a nice place, did all the right things etc. but it still happened. So when my DH and I wanted to do something fun when I was pg, we went CA instead.

Karin and Katie 10/24/02

[MommyAllison]

DH and I went on a trip to St. Petersburg, Russia when I was 2.5 months pregnant with DD. Obviously we had planned the trip before I got pregnant, though we knew there was a good chance we'd be pregnant by the time of the trip. I was sick sick sick because of morning sickness, especially after travelling for about 24 hours straight each way, but other than that everything was fine. I had been to Russia 4 times before, so knew what to expect, drank only bottled water and sought out some food that didn't nauseate me.

I would go to Mexico though. Honestly, you can get food poisoning in the USA too, though maybe the risk is slightly lower. You aren't that far from the US if you needed to seek medical care (well, closer than Russia anyway!) and I'd love to take a relaxing vacation before baby #2 arrives. The PP's story about her friend is very sad though :( and did make me think twice. Good luck with your decision!

ETA: I was careful to avoid milk there too, since I don't think it was pasteurized (and nobody could figure out what we meant by "pasteurized" to know for sure!).

Allison
Mama to DD 11/05

[julieakc]

We went to Australia when I was about half-way through my pregnancy.

I'd go to Mexico....I think I would just avoid third world countries or similar - an all-inclusive resort in the Riviera Maya doesn't raise in red flags in my book.

[galvjen]

Went to Paris in 2nd trimester with a low-risk pregnancy. Great time! Salty foods led to water retention, but it went away quickly when we returned home to our usual diet. I avoided soft cheeses which I presumed were not pasteurized and undercooked meat (duck & beef). I'm definitely glad I had a chance to see Paris before having a child.

[BeachBum]

We went to Italy when I was preggo with DS. We waited until right before to book everything just to make sure I was feeling good. We had a great time.
Honestly, I'm not sure I would go to Mexico.

[gatorsmom]

DH and I took one last great trip to France while I was 6.5 months pregnant with my first baby. We spent 3 weeks there touring all over the country. We had a great time.

The most uncomfortable part was the flight over there but by a fluke we were put in first class!!! I made sure to walk around a lot and stretch out as much as possible on the flight back.

Ahhhh... the memories...:)

Lisa
Mom to Gator July 2003
And Cha-Cha July 2005
and surprise! twins due 11/07!

[sweetpea]

I wouldn't go to Mexico (sorry).

I would stick to countries with excellant medical facilities, and less "fell off a balcony" tourist "accidents".

[daniele_ut]

I went to Europe without hesitation when I was 20 weeks pregnant with my first. We contemplated going later in my pregnancy, but my doc didn't want me out of the country past 30 weeks or so.

An all inclusive in the Riviera Maya sounds like it would be perfectly fine.

[californiagirl]

I went to Australia TWICE while pregnant with DD. There are lots of reasons that wouldn't have been my first choice, but the pregnancy wasn't an issue (for me or my OB, who was much more concerned by my traveling to San Diego, since it was on fire at the time, but I didn't have a lot of choice on that one, either).

I would not go to the Dominican Republic. I would be cautious about where in Mexico I went. And I know people who wouldn't go anywhere. But I have no qualms traveling to places where I trust the medical care (more of an issue for me than normal stomach issues).

[gordo]

Thanks for all the info everyone. Obviously I have to make this decision for myself. I did talk to my OB and she was not concerned about me going since I would not be in my 3rd trimester at the time. Hell, I might not even be pregnant by then. I think we are going to go for it. I will make the best decisions I can when I am there.

Thanks again everyone.

[emilyf]

I would definitely go to Mexico, and lots of other places but I would avoid Dominican Republic and anywhere else that might have a malaria risk since you can't take malaria pills when pg. I had a cousin cancel a Dominican Republic trip for that reason, and another who had to avoid certain parts of Costa Rica. The Riviera Maya is wonderful by the way, we've been lots.
Emily mom of Charlie born 11/02 and Zoe born 9/05

[maestramommy]

I would've traveled out during my first pregnancy, but not my second. Second time I was very uncomfy a lot of the time, and just didn't enjoy eating. Of course, a vacation might've distracted me from my troubles.

[kep]

Okay, I know I'm more the exception than the norm, but I traveled to Germany while 10 weeks pregnant with Luke. It was hell. Absoluete hell.

I had severe hyper-emesis at the time, and spent the entire plane ride over there with a migrane headache and vomitting. Fun. We were over there visiting dh's BFF who was getting married. We stayed at his house that was in the process of being closed up to move to the new (shared) house. It was dirty, and there was almost no food in the house, and neither dh or I had an international driver's liscense to drive and get food. Or a car for that matter...

I spent the trip getting sicker and sicker each day, until finally our friends found a German OB for me to see. They usually saw doctors on the military base, so they had to scramble around to find someone who would see me. We had to pay the doctor up front in cash. Did I mention that in Germany they don't exactly have the same modesty standards that we do in the US? Yeah, there were no drapes to be seen. Anywhere. I had to beg the nurse for a blanket to cover my nakedness. Gah.

The doctor wasn't much help, but we did see the baby on the ultra-sound, and he looked great. :) I continued to be sick the rest of the trip, and by the time we got back to the States, I was pretty much ready to be directly admitted to the hospital. I was soooo sick. Instead, we stayed the night at our IL's house after we got in that night, and then drove 4+ hours back home the next day.

The rest of the pregnancy was spent in and out of the hospital, IV's up the wazoo, and tons of meds.

Hmmmm. This story is a lot more depressing after I got it all typed out. Sorry!

I guess that first trip kind of scared me. I would definately travel with future pregnancies, but only in the States. Other country's health care systems are not always as good as our's is for access to care, esepcially emergent OB care. And there's not much your own OB can do for you when you call them in a panic from halfway across the globe.

And I totally agree with one of the PP's, only drink bottled water. And be careful of ice in drinks. Blah, blah. I think you will have a great time. :)

Kelli

Proud Mommy to Lukey (2003). Weaned after 3 years of happy nursing!
And Mommy to our newest baby, Joseph, born 3 days after Christmas.

[Wife_and_mommy]

Yeah, that's what I meant in my pp. I was never hospitalized but I was really, really sick. It wasn't enjoyable for me to be conscious so I wouldn't have enjoyed traveling. I did travel towards the end of the sickness period when it was pretty under control/mild.



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[Sandra]

I am an expat and had all three DC in the Middle East. I've done a lot of traveling while pregnant and I've known a lot of other pregnant ladies overseas. For me it comes down to 2 things: do you expect to have serious morning sickness (or medical risk factors) and will being overseas while pregnant worry you or your family sick. In my case I was able to answer "no" to both of those.

Access to good quality medical care is also important -- if you speak Spanish well you could see 'the best OB in town' if you have any problems/concerns, if not you are stuck with 'the best OB in town who speaks English' who might not be the same doc at all.

Good luck, Sandra

[Globetrotter]

I've travelled during both pregnancies, mostly during the second trimester. I also did some travel in the first trimester. Though it was okay, I had a lot of food aversions in the first few months so it certainly wasn't as much fun as it would have been otherwise!

I find that second trimester travel is pretty nice. Personally, I wouldn't go somewhere that was heavily polluted (since I have asthma). I would also be extra careful about what I ate and the water. If you have a smooth pregnancy, I see nothing wrong with going to a nice resort! I've done more adventurous travel during my pregnancies (covering an entire country in 2-3 weeks) so a resort sounds like a piece of cake :) Make sure that your ob gives the green light. Since you would be staying in one place, it will be easy to find out the good doctors in advance so you aren't scrambling at the last minute. Also, make sure you know your insurance company's policies regarding overseas travel. Most will reimburse urgent/emergency care.

Kris

[jadamom]

I agree that it depends on you. It wouldn't be the right choice for me. I felt really nauseous thoughout most of my last pregnancy and even lost weight. I happened to be at Disney World when I started throwing up in the parking lot. Traveler's diarrhea is very common in Mexico. That on top of morning sickness would not be good for me.