 Poster: A snowHead
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Can anyone help - We are booked to go to La Plagne in January, my Fiancee will be almost 7 months pregnant but she's staying in the chalet with her mum whilst we're out skiing. Has anyone ever been at altitude whilst this many months pregnant? if so what are the main things she needs to be careful of apart from dehydration.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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what are the main things she needs to be careful of
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feeling bored and left out and resenting it? 
She should maybe get some advice from her midwife or GP. And then rent some snowshoes (and for her mum too) and get out and enjoy the mountains.
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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samuelsdad, congratulations. I imagine the local residents do it all the time! I'm sure someone will be along with more practical advice....
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Pfff, she'll be fine. It won't be like that bit in Event Horizon where the guy falls out of the airlock into space and all the blood comes out of his eyes. It's only 1800m.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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How are you getting there? I am sure 7months if very close to the point the airlines don't like you flying and you may need a doctors note to say he is happy for you to fly.
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samuelsdad, babies tend to arrive early at altitude. Or so I'm told by a friend in Colorado who had two arrive at before 8 months. However, La Plagne is so ugly the little 'un would probably do anything to stay on the inside.
Mention it to your travel insurer.
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How are you getting there? I am sure 7months if very close to the point the airlines don't like you flying and you may need a doctors note to say he is happy for you to fly
We are taking the Eurostar - more room to move around
Will check the insurance , thanks
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Mention it to your travel insurer.
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very good point.
But the fact that "local residents" do it doesn't mean we can. When the Spaniards took their families to La Paz their babies didn't survive, even though locals had babies up there OK. But La Paz is over 3780m and you will presumably be staying rather lower than that!
My daughter had a doctor's letter when she travelled, at less than 7 months - though she did look as though she were about to pop. Was still a bit of a hassle at check-in, much to her irritation. Her main problem was having to pee every 25 minutes; made the journeys to and from the airport a bit longer than usual and meant that her bottom got very cold!
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| samuelsdad wrote: |
How are you getting there? I am sure 7months if very close to the point the airlines don't like you flying and you may need a doctors note to say he is happy for you to fly
We are taking the Eurostar - more room to move around
Will check the insurance , thanks |
Good choice - btw congratulations.
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Thanks for your help everyone
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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samuelsdad, ooh, not sure good idea!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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My sister visited us in La Tania when she was about 7 months (it was a big family Christmas).. Doc said it was alright, we made sure she had good shoes on so not to slip over!
Make sure you know where the local doctors is just in case. And if it does decide it wants to be a French baby the nearest maternity unit to La Plagne would be Bourg (so really not to far away) and then if complications Albertville. I suppose bringing her notes would be a good idea too..
Best of luck and I hope she has a relaxing week sitting by the fire, sipping hot chocolate, reading soppy books, having quality time with her mum and generally being pampered.
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samuelsdad, can't help with your question but congratulations and good luck.
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You know it makes sense.
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we made sure she had good shoes on
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I had forgotten that point! My daughter felt very insecure - and she had had a couple of nasty falls on ice in the UK. We got her some of those crampon things which go onto walking shoes.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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I had forgotten that point! My daughter felt very insecure - and she had had a couple of nasty falls on ice in the UK. We got her some of those crampon things which go onto walking shoes.
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Definitely, Amazon has some great ones that look like plate racks for about 4 quid.
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Poster: A snowHead
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samuelsdad, Good Lord, she's 7 mths pregnant not at death's door   . Of course she should go if she wants to and I wouldn't expect any problems if the pregnancy has gone well to that point. If you are going by surface transport I shouldn't think there is a problem. Be sensible - Yes, check with her Midwife (but I can't see an issue), Yes, mention to travel insurance, and be prepared to pay a small extra premium if asked to though make sure they understand that she won't ski - though if she felt fit I'm sure a gentle pootle around the blues and greens if it wasn't too busy wouldn't hurt, Don't let her lug around the suitcases, liking SnowRetreat's, advice above about knowing Dr's locations, also pam w, noting that she should indeed still be get outside and enjoy the fresh air well wrapped up with snow shoes or sturdy soled shoes if she doesn't ski - she might be able to use gondolas, chairs (I've seen some chairs that will run folks with walking boots up and down) and cable car to get around the mountains on nice days. Congratulations and I hope you both have a great trip.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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I imagine the local residents do it all the time!
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yes, I thought this about young babies at altitude and my GP said it was fine to take my (roughly) 12 week old baby to Courch. However, the baby was very niggly and couldnt sleep well at all. I wouldnt do it again. For those who are living there their bodies have adapted to the altitude so its no biggie.
Megamum, I certainly wouldnt ski at 7 months preggers - especially if its not been part of my pregnancy routine.
samuelsdad, hope your wife has a fab time. Congratulations!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Shimmy Alcott, it depends on your ski fitness and personal ability of course, but we don't know that she hasn't been enjoying her local snow dome on a weekly visit throughout her pregnancy. Mind you it's all down to the individual person. Personally I felt indestructible whilst I was pregnant and did all sorts of things that I didn't tell the midwife about and I have personally tripped over more often in the last three years from tripping over my own two feet than I have fallen over skiing.
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Shimmy Alcott, Megamum, I was huge at 7 months and would not have fitted into any ski kit, even husband's! Luckily was at that stage in autumn. Played badminton till my skirt wouldn't do up (one of the traditional slider/velcro jobs) - about 5 mths. After that I couldn't bend over any more. I have fallen over more walking about, on and off snow, than I do skiing so that would be my main worry if I were in this situation. The altitude might make her feel a bit queasy I suppose (drink water) but the fresh air will be good.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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Played badminton till my skirt wouldn't do up
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snowyowl, Def. the 'right' attitude IMO 
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Megamum, I don't think it was pretty...but I couldn't suddenly stop playing 3 times a week...(I gave up matches at 3 months). 
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At three months I did a helicopter dunk tank, smokey hole & BA, firefighting and lifeboat survival training course. It sounded so much fun I deliberately didn't do the pregnancy test until I got home. Like I said above I felt invincible. If I had been booked to ski and wasn't too huge to make it awkward I'd have gone skiing if I had been able to do it then. Though I think as will all things you would have needed to have had a straight-forward pregnancy to that point, but assuming that then why not?
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| Megamum wrote: |
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Played badminton till my skirt wouldn't do up
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snowyowl, Def. the 'right' attitude IMO |
IMO the right attitude is to do what you feel like doing, so long as its what was part of your normal routine.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Megamum, theres a LOT of difference between being 3 months pregnant and 7 months pregnant. I climbed Snowdon when I was about 4 months preggers but unless skiing was part of my normal weekly routine I wouldnt be doing it at 7 months - regardless of how I felt about falling over etc my aerobics teacher carried on doing loads of classes until close to the birth and Paul Radcliffe carried on running...but the important aspect is that they had done this regularly since the beginning of pregnancy
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My daughter wouldn't have skied at 7 months. She'd been sick throughout (as she'd been through her first pregnancy) and also had that condition which effects pelvic stability - she'd had a series of specialist physio sessions at the hospital and the physio had advised her not to walk too much, as it would exacerbate the condition, and generally to treat herself with great care.
Not all pregnancies are the same. I had straightforward pregnancies and was still windsurfing at 8 months with my third - but it was Barbados, and warm, and I didn't have to find a wetsuit to fit. But it'd be crazy for me to advise somebody else that it would be OK for them to windsurf at 8 months!
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Not all pregnancies are the same
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indeed. First one was a breeze and I felt rubbish for the second one - nausea and headaches for the whole time.
Yes, being pregnant doesnt mean you need to sit on the sofa for 9 months but equally I dont think its helpful to laugh at someone who is asking for a bit of advice when hes being considerate about his heavily pregnant wife in a different environment.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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but she's staying in the chalet with her mum whilst we're out skiing
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OP has already said she won't be skiing.
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but she's staying in the chalet with her mum whilst we're out skiing
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^^^^^that is what the OP said, and I'm sorry I don't need the need for it if the PG lady is otherwise fit and healthy - I can't see that a certain amount of gentle exercise will do any harm, and TBH skiing a few gentle blues and greens sounds a darn sight less strenuous than the snowshoeing that was suggested first. I didn't mean it to sound like I was laughing at the OP, but it did sound like he was being a little over protective and I just wanted to present to him the notion, that when a lady is pregnant it doesn't necessarily mean that she has to be wrapped up and protected from herself if she doesn't want to be. That's all.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Poster: A snowHead
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Jonpim, well, I don't think anyone is getting unpleasant in this thread - just some variation of views, no doubt coloured in part by the pregnancies of ourselves or those near us (different for you doctors, of course who have a wider perspective). I was fortunate in my pregnancies, was well (after the first grotty exhausted nauseous trimester) and continued to work and play hard. I had a brilliant, if rather bossy, book written by a physiotherapist prescribing exercises for the "Child Bearing Year". I did them, and regained a pretty flat stomach each time. I am a strong proponent of the "pregnancy is not an illness" thesis and I think it's a huge shame that so many women so give up on all attempts to keep themselves fit and strong that they spend the next 30 years moaning about their sagging stomach muscles and blaming the poor kids for the fact that they're fat. 
HOWEVER. Some people are really unwell in pregnancy and hyperemesis gravidarum is an incredibly miserable condition. At the beginning of her second pregnancy my daughter spent 48 hours prostrate on the settee, unable even to crawl upstairs for a shower; her midwife arrived and promptly expedited the prescription of the drugs which enabled her to function for the next 8 months. She's an active person, normally, but the Pelvic Girdle Pain she suffered - less in the second pregnancy than in the first - made it very hard for her to do as much exercise as she wanted. Those of us who were lucky to have uncomplicated pregnancies and carried on playing badminton, or skiing, or windsurfing do need to acknowledge that others have it harder.
However I do agree that sitting in a chalet for a week is a sad waste of time for a healthy pregnant woman surrounded by mountains in which she could be out enjoying herself and getting some exercise.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Thanks ,appreciate all the replies
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Pregnancy threads are always controversial, funny to see one popping up here!! Hope she has a lovely relaxing trip without getting bored. Is she usually ok with altitude? Combined with 7 month bump even a relatively low altitude could leave her feeling breathless & drop her blood pressure, make sure she's mindful of that till she adjusts, in case of faints/nosebleeds. And bring some massage oil- you can both benefit from it after a long day in the mountains lol!
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I think my worry skiing that late on is more about the other people crashing into me than anything directly physically related. I was walking four miles a day two days before my little man arrived but the unpredicableness of those around me on skis would stop me from skiing. It's almost like the crazy eejits are magnetised to those who are nervous or have bad knees when it comes to crashes...
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| L_555 wrote: |
| I think my worry skiing that late on is more about the other people crashing into me than anything directly physically related. I was walking four miles a day two days before my little man arrived but the unpredicableness of those around me on skis would stop me from skiing. It's almost like the crazy eejits are magnetised to those who are nervous or have bad knees when it comes to crashes... |
This point is important. Even at very low velocity people can fall (or be felled) very awkwardly and sustain significant injuries. Add to that loss of normal balance due to added weight, and the risk of catastrophic consequences for the baby in case of a bad crash (bad crashes happen on beginner slopes as there is no policing of excessive speed in France), and the lady has no business on the slopes. But from OP she is not intending, she is planning on staying in chalet
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I would be concerned re altitude, La Plagne is very high (2000m), which is definitely enough for altitude sickness in normal people. While there are changes and enhancements in oxygen carrying capacity of blood in pregnancy, the relative anaemia and increased oxygen demands could put someone at that stage of pregnancy at increased risk of altitude sickness, which is not pleasant. I just don't know but your obstetrician should.
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marmotte16, yup, OP made no mention of skiing but then a SH gave a response. My contributions have been made to give balance to the
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I did a helicopter dunk tank, smokey hole & BA, firefighting and lifeboat survival training course
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posts. Its not a competition.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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samuelsdad, would be great if you could leave some feedback on this thread once you are back - let us know how she felt
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I can say now that even with regular morning sickness, just riding the button lift at Hemel is a pretty icky experience (as I found out a few months back!)
I wish I could ski longer in pregnancy, especially once the morning sickness cleared, but I stopped at 11 weeks when a) my ski trousers didn't do up any more and b) The risk of hurting the baby becomes higher from the second trimester onwards in the event of an accident - personal judgement call and c) I could feel my SPD/PGP (the pelvic instability pam_w refers to) coming on. I always produce a lot of the hormone (relaxin) responsible for this in pregnancy and not only does it absolutely ache to walk more than a few hundred yards (I often end up in a wheelchair third trimester), but a bad injury is a lot more likely with the ligaments so loose. All women are different and some have few or no issues at all. Paula Radcliffe really made life hard for mothers by giving us a lot to live up to in pregnancy.. although I seem to recall she had issues with her birth partly due to her super strong muscles..!
Anyway, back on topic - there are raised risks above 5000 feet: http://www.babymed.com/daily-living/high-altitude-elevation-during-pregnancy-and-complications especially doing anything strenuous - it's up to the OP and his family whether they're happy or not, personally I don't have a clue what I would do!! One thing I do know - I will also be 7 months in January and I would be thoroughly miserable going on a family ski holiday and not getting to ski but that is just me  Heck, I feel jealous of them going over to Hemel!!
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