Pregnancy and (not) Cruising

[Chefvad]

My wife and I planned a land and sea cruise for November. We booked this in March, and were very excited to be going.

In June, we managed to conceive a child, which has taken more than half a decade to do. So, two good things, right?

Well, looking at the fine print of the Disney contract, women over 24 weeks pregnant will be denied passage. She will be at about 26-27 weeks at sailing. Due to the constraints of my job, we can not move the trip dates.

My questions are:

1) Can they do this? Of course I understand why, but come on!

2) Any suggestions for a work around?

Any comments from someone who has been in this situation would be appreciated.

I guess it is OK to be blessed with two great events; the child and a vacation. I would like to experience both. Kinda ironic, isn't it?

 

[CM_Mom]

Congratulations on your expected arrival.

Disney has the restriction as do most cruise lines because they don't have any provision for emergencies involving premies on the ship. Babies have been known to have minds of their own. If your little packet of joy decides to put in an early appearance, you want to be close to top notch neonatal intensive care units not on a ship in the middle of the ocean.

I saw a post earlier this year where someone mentioned a pregnant cruiser who got off the ship with her whole family part way through the cruise apparently because she went into premature labor.

I recommend that your land/sea be turned into an all land. If you've been trying for more than 5 years, enjoy the baby and cruise next year.

 

[Amberle3]

Also keep in mind that your trip insurance may not cover any complications of the pregnancy (including birth) past a certain time. Travelguard Canada for instance won't cover anything within 9 weeks of the due date.

 

[HooKooDooKu]

Been there, done that.

Any suggestions for a work around?

Only where you don't want to go... miscarriage.

Bad News: 25% of all pregnancies end in miscarriage (that includes a miscarriage that happened so early the woman didn't even know she was pregnant).

Good News: 90% of miscarriages happen before the 12th week of pregnancey.

Since you said you concieved in June, you need to wait until some time in September before you start cancelling your cruise.

If you want to make sure you have some 7-day land reservations, you could contact your TA and explain the situation, make a down payment on a 7-day land package, and in September (before final payment is due) cancel the trip you're not taking.

We've already played the pregancy shuffle game once this year. Booked for November (in October of last year), got pregnant in January, changed reservations in March, had a miscarriage in April, changed reservations back in May (cost a little more because prices had gone up since inital booking in October 2003).

Congradulations... hope and pray you miss the boat!

 

[momof3luvs2run]

How are they going to know she is 26-27 weeks along? Can you tell them she is 23 weeks??? Seriously, just wondering how they check that? Do they require a doctor's slip for pregnant women?

 

[aprilgail2]

Originally posted by momof3luvs2run
How are they going to know she is 26-27 weeks along? Can you tell them she is 23 weeks??? Seriously, just wondering how they check that? Do they require a doctor's slip for pregnant women?

I think they do need a Dr's release for pregnancy stating she is less than 23 weeks. But I know at 23 weeks you could not even tell I was pregnant by looking at me!

 

[jel0511]

Originally posted by momof3luvs2run
How are they going to know she is 26-27 weeks along? Can you tell them she is 23 weeks??? Seriously, just wondering how they check that? Do they require a doctor's slip for pregnant women?

Yes, they do. If you are visibly pregnant, the CM will ask for a Dr's note indicating how far along you are. If you do not, they can and most likely will deny passage. It is more for DCL's protection than the passenger, but DCL is not the only cruise line who doesn't allow pregnant women to cruise, so don't fault them if it bothers you, fault the industry. Congratulations on the pregnancy!! You'll have to cancel your cruise once you pass the magicial first trimester and reschedule something else.

 

[BethA]

I wish you couldn't tell I was pregnant at 23 weeks!! On our recent cruise there were a few visibly pregnant women and i wondered about the rule being enforced.

Changing to all land is a great suggestion. It says they require a Dr's note, so not sure there is a way around it. Better to enjoy all WDW than to be the small per centage to have something happen when onboard.

If I was in your place I'd be quite disappointed too since we plan so far ahead, but you have something better than a cruise to look forward to.

Is there no chance your work could be flexible?

Congratulations and good luck picking an alternate.

 

[mrsltg]

How are they going to know she is 26-27 weeks along? Can you tell them she is 23 weeks??? Seriously, just wondering how they check that? Do they require a doctor's slip for pregnant women?

They want a doctors note. And they should. Having suffered through a birth at 20 weeks in May, I can tell you first hand that stuff happens. My son had no chance due to his extreme prematurity, but if we were 4 weeks further along he would have had a shot if the right medical intervention were in place. The cruise doesn't have a NICU, and you are better safe than sorry.

In short, be grateful for the pregnancy. What you get at the end is about a million times more magical than anything that Disney can do.

Congratulations and best wishes to you and your wife!

Erin

 

[oceanmarina]

Hi. I'm curious as to if they inforce it. We cruised the wonder 4th of July & there was a woman who looked to be 7-8 months pregnant, she was very obviously pregnant, at the pregnancy stage of feet swelling, have'nt seen feet in weeks stage! I myself was curious, I don't know if I would feel comfortable sailing that pregnant.

Also, my friend was on a flight from Vegas to NY. A woman lied about how pregnant she was, and about 1 hour into to the flight she went into labor (I heard once that altitude can do this). They had to emergency land & a lot of people missed their connecting flights. My friend said did that woman get some dirty looks from people! (for lying about how pregnant she was)

Marina

 

[mrsltg]

I'm curious as to if they inforce it. We cruised the wonder 4th of July & there was a woman who looked to be 7-8 months pregnant, she was very obviously pregnant, at the pregnancy stage of feet swelling, have'nt seen feet in weeks stage! I myself was curious, I don't know if I would feel comfortable sailing that pregnant.

It's hard to judge by how pregnant someone "looks". She could be carrying multiples, have a had a baby very recently, have had several c-sections, have had many pregnancies... yada yada yada. I am sure that they checked her paperwork pretty carefully. As fas as the swelling, she could have been borderline pre-eclamptic, swollen from having spent a few days wandering the parks in July, swollen from being in the caribbean heat and humidity... There are so many factors that play into it that it's hard to tell just how far along you are - though I am sure that she'd appreciate hearing that she looked bigger than she actually was supposed to be as all pregnant women do!!!

Erin

 

[ClarabelleCow]

as someone who had a heck of a time carrying my second pregnancy, (something like 12-13 preganacies in 6 years). DON"T CHANCE IT!!!! If something is going to go wrong, it will, but don't lie about it just to go on a stupid cruise! In the scheme of things, what is more important, the cruise or your child!. I just can't believe someone would recommend lying about it.

If you must go, change the dates, go between 13 and 20 weeks, but talk to your doctor, because depending on your situation, they may want to do further testing, (amnio, etc,) and there are time constraints.

Good luck on the pregnancy, and I don't want to see, so cranky about this topic, just don't chance it!

 

[poohnpiglet3]

I'm going to kind of go against the grain here... you asked for opinions, so honestly, this is mine. Take it for what it's worth. To all those here who have suffered loss, I am truly sorry.

My DH and I suffered through infertility for 3 years. Everyday of those 3 years was hell. I know where you're coming from on that angle.

In Jan. of 2002 we went through In Vitro and were SO blessed to conceive our twins. At 25 weeks along, we went on a vacation to Cancun. This was against the advice of my OB, who said he was scared as he!! for me to be travelling at that time because of the "24-week-rule."

All that being said, we went and didn't look back. I knew that a flight to the mainland was only an hour away if need be for medical care. I also knew that a 25 weeker isn't guaranteed to be 100 % ok even with the expert medical care they would receive in a level III NICU. Truth be told, a 25 weeker faces so many challenges that sometimes, well, I don't want to have to type it, but I think you know what I'm saying. This comes from my experience and knowing first-hand what to expect from this type of situation. I am also friends with many, many moms of multiples, many of whom had premature labor and births, and I know the challenges they face because of prematurity.

We went to Cancun at 25 weeks. I wasn't going to live my life by "what-ifs". Being in the pool all day was incredible on my swollen ankles. The beds were so hard, though!!! I was miserable at night, but I was also VERY heavy at the time (I've since lost 125 pounds and am only 13 pounds away from never being "overweight" again according to my BMI.)

Premature labor is scary, but honestly, you have to decide this one for yourself. If something happened, do you have a plan? Could you charter a chopper or something? I'm SURE that something could be arranged. If it were me, I'd have my doc write me a letter ok'ing travelling, maybe not including my due date. Because we were pg with twins, I looked maybe farther along than I really was.

Are you sure you're not having multiples? Have you had your first ultrasound yet?

As for me, I did end up going into premature labor at 30 weeks, found at a regularly scheduled ultrasound. I was in the hospital for almost 3 weeks and finally delivered my twins 5 weeks early. They were tinier than average, weighing 3 lbs, 15 oz (my girl) and 5 lbs 2 oz. (my boy who is now 4-5 pounds heavier!!) They only were in special care for 10 and 12 days, and came out healthy and crying with full lungs.

I am SOOO thankful to hear your story, it truly is a blessing, especially with knowing the he!! that infertility brings. I wish you and your wife a very happy, healthy 10 months or so - and the worrying will not stop, even when you have that precious little bundle in your arms.

One more idea, is it possible for your DW to talk with her OB about maybe getting a beta shot (I think that's the name) for lung maturity, just in case you have a problem while you're on the cruise? Just an idea!

Also, have you called DIsney and explained your situation? Knowing the type of magic they can give, I'd be very surprised if they didn't work something so that you could take your cruise a month earlier.

I hope you are able to come to a decision!

Best of luck!!!

Sherri

 

[CRSNDSNY]

Would you really want to take a chance?

 

[poohnpiglet3]

Would you really want to take a chance?

Not to be contrary, but EVERYTHING in life involves taking a chance. Getting in a car even though you might be in an accident, walking to work even though you might get hit on the way there, eating a lunchmeat sandwich and taking the chance that you'd get listeria, you get my point. If you live life trying to protect yourself from everything and every chance that something might go wrong, you'll never really live life, IMO.

By the way, having worked with my in vitro clinic on their website and from doing extensive research, I can tell you that once you see the baby's heartbeat on an ultrasound, your chance of miscarriage goes down to 5%, and many times there is a significant health problem with the fetus (a trisomy issue) that causes it. That being said, the previous poster who had multiple miscarriages could have had a problem with her progesterone, which caused the miscarriages. Just a thought. (I'm by no means an expert, but these are the snippets of things that I have done some research on, for what it's worth.)

Sherri

 

[mrsltg]

I see your points poohnpiglet3, but it's really a moot point. DCL lays down the law on this one. You can't travel passed your 24th week. The OP's wife will be 26-27 weeks. DCL won't accept her as a passenger. It's pretty cut and dry!

Could you charter a chopper or something? I'm SURE that something could be arranged. If it were me, I'd have my doc write me a letter ok'ing travelling, maybe not including my due date. Because we were pg with twins, I looked maybe farther along than I really was.

For the bargain price of thousands of $$$ you can pretty much have anything you want! Whether or not your insurance will cover it is an entirely different ball of wax.

Erin

 

[jel0511]

Could you charter a chopper or something? I'm SURE that something could be arranged. If it were me, I'd have my doc write me a letter ok'ing travelling, maybe not including my due date. Because we were pg with twins, I looked maybe farther along than I really was.

Unforunately, that scenario won't work. If you are pregnant DCL needs assurance that you aren't in your 24th week, and not including that information could be a reason for DCL to deny passage. If DCL even THINKS you're close to your 24th week, and do not provide proper documentation stating you aren't, they most likely will deny passage. A note from your Dr allowing you to travel, isn't enough documentation. They need to know how far along you are, and the OP's wife will be beyond the allowances for pregnant women to cruise, not to take a vacation anywhere else.

 

[poohnpiglet3]

DCL lays down the law on this one. You can't travel passed your 24th week. The OP's wife will be 26-27 weeks. DCL won't accept her as a passenger. It's pretty cut and dry!

Yes, you're right... I just hate to think about not being able to go because of that reason. Seems discriminatory for some reason.

Ah, well. Such is the life, being a woman. But I got to feel every baby kick (two times over) and my DH didn't. There are perks!

Sherri

 

[jel0511]

Yes, you're right... I just hate to think about not being able to go because of that reason. Seems discriminatory for some reason.

I have to disagree with you. I've been pregnant 3 times, and have 2 children, you do the math. I've also dealt with many years of infertility and infertility treatments, so I know where you and the OP are coming from. I wouldn't want to be on a boat in the middle of the ocean when something could go wrong, and be in a situation where it would be at least HOURS (and sometimes you have to act in mere minutes) before I could get to a place to help save my pregnancy. DCL has these rules (as do other curise lines) for their protection, as well, as the protection of the passenger. You were lucky to have what seemed like a relatively easy and uncomplicated pregnancy before you went into pre-term labor. That isn't the case for others, and wasn't the case for my first and second pregnancies. You didn't go on a cruise during your pregnancy, you went to Cancun, a completely different sitiation. With my third pregnancy I did travel to Florida around 28 weeks. Was it easy, absolutely not, but we did it anyway. I wouldn't have wanted to be that far away, even from mediocre medical care ( you would have had that in Cancun) when pregnant, and on a cruise, in the ocean, there is really nothing that can be done if something were to go wrong. Even charting a helicopter (which by the way can't land on any DCL ship since they don't have a helipad) wouldn't get you anywhere in time if you were at sea.

 

[CRB#33]

This thread is really bugging me.

The rule is the rule. It's set in place for some darn good reasons.

Why anyone in their right mind would risk something that's risky to their child is beyond me.

For a cruise????