Forum home Pregnancy Pregnancy

maternity leave

hi,now this is gunna be a long story lol
im 12 weeks on tuesday!and for the past 3 weeks ive been off work ill, as i have very bad sickness and just physically cant do any thing which is getting to me now
also i have a very bad cold at the min so im so tierd n feelin really crap image
but i have to go bk to work on saturday as i cnt afford to stay off any more
but i really dnt feel ready to go back to work yet i havnt got the energy to walk upstairs never mind do a full days work
but wen i go back i gotta go thru some paper work and decide wen i would like to take maternity leave???
now that just confuses me wen would be best to take it? im due 15th july!
i really hope things get better soon im just havin a ruff time at the min image
any advise would be great image bec x x

Replies

  • hi bec me again, when i was pregnant with my first i worked in a pub and therefore for that reason i took my maternity leave at the earliest convenience as it was a 500 capacity pub and would have got too much for me. I took this at 29 weeks which is the earliest you can take it.
    I think it is all personal choice as a lot of women work for longer so that they have longer pay when baby is actually here. I think i would have done that if i were in a different job. I think you have to give your employers around 6 weeks notice of when you are due to leave but other places are later.

    It is a lot down to personal choice but I am sure you are still allowed to take maternity leave from 29 weeks, also what i did thinking back i saved up my holiday and took the 2 weeks previous off too so therefore left at 27 weeks. Word of warning though boredom does set in quite quickly!

    Hope this helps

    xxxx
  • i dnt wanna take it soon i was just wondewrin wen would be the best time to take it???? i think i will save my hols i have 5 weeks from now to wen i go so i mite take 2 off then in 4 1 then off 4 3 then mat leave
  • What kind of job do you have? Because if you have a job where your on your feet all day you're advised to have maternity leave at 29 weeks which is the earliest you can start it. I guess it depends if you're planning to go back as well. I know how you feel feeling crap, despite eating healthily and taking vitamins I have a cold almost constantly, then again no different to any other winter. I was at uni but at 11 weeks I got flu and was laid up for 3 weeks, my sickness was awful as well and I got so behind I had to take leave of absence. Get betta soon.
    Philippa
    22+3 x x x
  • hi you say you have to go thru the paperwork when you go back, i might be wrong but i am sure that you dont even have to tell your work that you are preg til your 6 months gone, so dont rush into a decision just now. i am assuming your work wants you to go thru it when you go back? if so i dont think they can hold you to anything just yet as you say you are only 12 weeks and the time for mat leave is a long way off, and you may feel better/worse by then
  • Take your time deciding, you have until 15 weeks before you are due to tell them when you would like to finish up. I totally sympathise that you feel crap just now. So did I, and unfortunately still do sometimes. I have never been off sick before, and have been off 6 times since I found out I was pregnant. Get your first three months out of the way, see if you start to feel better before you make any decisions. An employer cannot take any action over pregnancy related sickness other than insisting you start maternity leave early, but even that I'm sure is only if it occurs in the last four weeks.
    When you finish up will be totally personal to you, but remember you might regret not having that time with new baby later on. You need to try to stop worrying just now and hope you start to feel better soon. xx
  • i only work 19 hours a week as it is now and hopefully ill drop them 2 16 after bubba born so it wnt be that badimage i just dnt feel ready to go back just yet image i just dnt know about my pay! i guess its not that wat matters its me n bump that matter! i thought my sickness had calmed down but it hasnt and i just dnt eat much now! im lucky if i get 1 meal a day down image
  • Hi Bec,

    Try not to get too down about it all, the first few weeks are the worst but you will more than likely suddenly start feeling much better. I wasn't being physically sick during the first 12 weeks but the smell of food was too much for me and I really struggled to eat. I ended up losing over half a stone in weight which apparantly is pretty common during the first few months of pregnancy. Once I got to just over 12 weeks my energy levels started coming back and the nausea was less constant. By 20 weeks I felt fantastic and really had the 'blooming' feeling everyone talks about. So try not to give up hope, I know the first few weeks are rubbish but you are more than likely to start feeling good again soon.

    As for work and your maternity leave, I worked as a HR Manager when I lived in the UK and generally speaking Companies like to talk to their female employees about what their thoughts are re maternity leave partly so you are informed about what you can take and partly so they have an idea of what cover they are likely to need. Its nothing to be too suspicious about and it is very common for ladies to change their mind towards the later stages of pregnancy and ask to start it earlier.
    If pay isn't important to you then you are in a good position to be flexible with when you start your maternity leave. I started to feel more tired and struggled sleeping because of the bump at around 32 weeks. I worked up until 37 weeks but was probably ready to stop at 36! Everyone is different so it is hard to advise, the time does go quicker when you are working!
    I'm 40 weeks today and as you can see from the time of my post sleep is getting nearly impossible I am so uncomfortable!

    Good luck with whatever you decide and keep your chin up, it will all be worth it!

    Liz xx
Sign In or Register to comment.

Featured Discussions