Marjorie Greenfield—

An article from today’s WSJ online column “The Juggle” says that moms do better if they take off time before the baby comes. Havng interviewed over one hundred women for The Working Woman’s Pregnancy Book, I’d say new moms are split on this issue. Here is what I have learned:

Pros for taking leave before you are due:

• Some women’s jobs are not manageable at that point in pregnancy (think airplane pilot, telephone line service technician)
• Some pregnancy complications preclude working, like gestational hypertension and pre-eclampsia
• Some women feel so uncomfortable by the end of pregnancy that working either isn’t possible or is just too much
• And from the medical literature: Exhausted moms are more likely to have cesareans than moms who are well-rested

Cons–in favor of working up until labor when possible

• Taking time off up front usually diminishes maternity leave allowed after the baby arrives
• Many women who are used to working get bored and irritable when not busy
• If your delivery date isn’t scheduled (and most aren’t) you don’t know how many weeks you are taking off ahead of time–stopping work at 37 weeks may mean a planned 2-3 week leave turns into 4-5 weeks as your due date comes and goes

The comments online after the WSJ article reflects these arguments, and then some. I am so glad to see these discussions coming out into the open!

What do you think?

Marjorie Greenfield, M.D., is a practicing, board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist, a fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and associate professor of reproductive biology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Dr. Greenfield has written hundreds of articles for the Web and currently blogs about pregnancy for Yahoo.com.

Further Reading: