Pregnancy Dilemma - Help!!!

[mousebrat]

I have sent our TA chasing this the answer to this, but thought I would post here as well because somebody has had to have experienced this.

We have some good news and a tough question. We just found out we are pregnant (the good news). The tough question part comes with what is meant by the policy that "Women who have entered their 24th week of pregnancy as of their embarkation date will be refused passage due to safety concerns."

Here's the issue: Our cruise leaves September 3. If (God willing) everything goes well this time, DW will be "24 weeks pregnant" on September 4 or 5 (provided you count using the first day of last cycle method). However, she will be "23 weeks pregnant" and thus have entered "her 24th week of pregnancy" on August 28, at least the way things were explained to us on pregnancy.com. So, does Disney mean the same thing? I've seen it explained different ways for different cruise lines and on difference sites with respect to Disney - Passporter.com says, for instance, "Pregnant women past their 24th week are not allowed to sail" with respect to Disney.

Help!!!

 

[Talking Hands]

I would try to move your cruise or cruise after the baby is born. They are very strict about not allowing anyone in their 24th week to cruise. Not even allowed to cruise as an employee. Lost a great interpreter because of this when I cruised.

 

[mommasita]

I agree with the previous poster. I would try and move the date up a bit, if possible. They are strict, and with validity. The last place on earth I would have wanted to be, would be in the middle of an ocean with pregnancy problems..God Forbid. When I look back, I was hospitalized at around this point for both of mine, with premature labor. There was no indication prior, just whoops there it came. I know this is just one person here, but it certainly can, and does happen. Hopefully you can get your cruise in prior, for you guys to enjoy some time before the baby comes...

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[mousebrat]

We are booked on the first Magic cruise back on the east coast, so that messes things up a bit. We have a great deal on our room, so it's hard to justify spending thousands more on the same room to putt around Mexico from LA. If we can't go, or shouldn't, we will just give up and take the new munchkin with us in the not-too-distant future.

 

[mommasita]

Just wanted to add something...I remember knowing 100% how pregnant I was (honeymoon)..No mistaking that one...But, the ultrasounds all had me less weeks than it was. So, if all is well, ya never know..It is the doctor's letter that counts, and he sure gets his ETA from the ultrasound...

 

[ksjayhawks]

Just a thought---Are you set on cruising disney or just wanting to take a cruise? If it is the latter, I would look into one of the other cruise lines--RCCL goes out of Canaveral and so does Carnival--and move my cruise up a few weeks. Then save up and go on a disney cruise when your little one will enjoy the characters and time in the clubs.

Just noticed you are from texas. What about one of the cruises that goes out of Galveston?

 

[myfairygodmother]

Congratulations on your good news! Personally I would reschedule the cruise--more for peace of mind than anything else. Most babies make it to term and are born without any medical problems/complications. However, there is very good reason for the cut-off being at 24 weeks. Babies born prior to 24 weeks gestation are not usually resusitated as their internal organs are not developed enough for survival outside the womb. Babies who are at least 24 weeks gestation and weighing at least 500 grams can quite often be saved but they must have level three NICU care quickly. The last place that I would want to have a micropreemie or even a preemie is in the middle of the ocean. I would think it even a safe venture to say that DCL would not be prepared with the proper equipment/medication onboard to attempt to save a micropreemie.

Liz

 

[kcashner]

Ok, gang...I'll put on my doctor hat. The reason for the policy is that an infant born at 24 weeks in a tertiary care center had a small but real chance of survival. DCL does not want the risk of a delivery on board as they are not prepared to deal with a premie. Premature labor can occur (and be treated) earlier than that.

Chances are that your wife will have no problems with the pregnancy and all will be fine. However....I'd really encourage you to reschedule the cruise rather than split hairs over a few days when the real issue is safety to your wife and baby. In terms of DCL's policy--they go by whatever the physician writes on the medical form.

 

[zeke11]

Just a little more info for you -

Carnival and Royal Caribbean's pregnancy policy is:

Guests who are 27 weeks or more are not permitted to sail.

My niece was told that the rolling of the ship can sometimes cause labor to begin prematurely. Don't know if this is a fact or not, but just passing along what she was told by her ob's nurse.

Kris

 

[SueEllen]

Just a personal experience on this...I was 24 weeks pregnant when we cruised before. I was allowed to cruise. I had my medical form all filled out and I was entering my 24th week as we were sailing. I did not have any problems at all.
Your doctor fills out your medical form with how far along you will be at sailing so you should be fine.

Congratulations on your impending arrival. It was the same thing that happend to us, but I had to move my sailing up from the end of the year to May because of it (my son was born in September and we cruised Memorial Day.)

Sue Ellen

 

[JennsBabySky]

I did our first cruise when I was 22 weeks pregnant. It was heavenly! In terms of Disney's policy, I'm fairly certain that you need to be 23 weeks pregnant when you start the cruise. It is still within their policy if you then turn 24 weeks pregnant. I told my doctor about the cruise early in my pregnancy (the same doctor I had with my previous pregnancy). She would not promise that I could go, she said it would depend on the pregnancy and we would decide closer to the cruise date. As it turns out, this pregnancy was textbook and I had no real complications, so she happily allowed me to cruise. I made sure to have the medical insurance, so that if I wasn't allowed to cruise, we would be reimbursed. Of course, nothing was more important to us than the health of our child, but in the unlikely event that something were to occur, you could have very quick access to an emergency helicopter and/or emergency flight out. I was very comfortable with our decision.

 

[tvguy]

DW was AT LEAST 24 weeks along with DS, our first, 18 years ago (We cruised in mid-October, due date was mid-January, actually birth didn't come until 10 days after due date on February 2).
This was on NCL, we never saw any thing on restrictions, didn't bring any medical releases, although she did clear it with her doctor who didn't seem to give it a second thought.
The rougher the seas were, the more my son liked it. And since birth, has seemed to be fixated with water....wonder why?

 

[scrapperjill]

Just another personal note to add...preterm labor can start at any time....and be VERY subtle..and start with no warning. I was just in the mist of my 24th week of my first pregnancy (and having a flawless pregnancy...no morning sickness...no discomforts..lots of energy...)...when I started having preterm labor. Thankfully with medications we were able to hold things off for some time...before delevering 6+ weeks early. Now our dd is a happy and healthy soon to be 12yo. ....Thanks to early intervention...medications...and months of bedrest.

So keep in mind that healthy people...who are having what seems to be a flawless pregnancy...can have the unexpected happen at any time.

 

[debm]

If you move your sailing ahead a few months you can sail with the baby. Since it is not very feasible to do it ahead of time you said because of the West Coast proximity I would sail with the baby young. Definitely don't wait until they are crawling! We went with our youngest when he was just 12 1/2 weeks. There were actually 2 babies that young on board. We found out we were pregnant right as we were making reservations with family members so decided to postpone trip so that baby would be surely born--all mine have been late---and then we could sail just fine. I think it is easier when they are that age, especially if you are breastfeeding. We didn't have to take anything extra except diapers and some cute little clothes. DS slept most of the time in the sling and I could come and go to everything that I wanted to. I did feel a bit on the "larger" side since I tend to gain a few pounds while pregnant and takes me a long time to lose it. But who cares! It was a great thing to look forward to and a nice vacation with someone else cooking! We went again when he was 8 months, 20 months and 26 months. The infant stage was by far the easiest. Even 8 months wasn't too bad because he was still happy at dinner playing with crackers and whatever else we gave him. At about 2 he wanted to be everywhere, not sitting with us, and not in Flounders. We didn't try Flounders when he was little---I just never felt comfortable leaving my babies with anyone. But it became necessary with the last 2 sailings if I wanted to eat in peace. And we love late seating so he would just go to Flouders, watch a movie and we would pick him up about 11PM when he was fast asleep on the beanbag. Enjoy your pregnancy and your upcoming cruise whenever it may be!!!

 

[crisi]

Also keep in mind that many pregnant women aren't really comfortable that late in pregnancy. My sister cruised pregnant right at the cut off (not on DCL). She came short of saying she had a lousy time. She couldn't hottub and felt ridiculous in a swimsuit. She never really enjoyed dinner, because while she ate constantly, she was at that "small portions food in mouth" all the time stage of pregancy. A lot of cruise spaces were uncomfortably small. Her husband was doing a "professional seminar" cruise so she spent large parts of her day alone.

But uncomfortable is nothing compared to ending up in pre-term labor (or the other things that can go wrong - toxemia still manages to kill women) without adequate medical facilities.

 

[Disneycrazymom]

Another mom here would was having a perfectly normal pregnancy until week 26. DS held out until week 29 but the LAST place I would have wanted to be was in the middle of the ocean! Thanks to a great NICU at Children's Hospital he is perfectly fine. Most of the time everything is fine and I am sure you will have no problems but you can cruise anytime, she will only be pregnant a very short while.

 

[deefranco]

Congratulations on your pending arrival!! I went on a cruise when I was 20 weeks pregnant with 2nd. Morning sickness started in on me 2 weeks before the cruise. It was the worst trip of my life!! Morning sickness and seasickness...AND I couldn't take anything for it because I was pregnant. Tried herbal remedies and bracelets, nothing worked. Husband loved the food, couldn't stop raving anout it when we got home. I just wanted off the boat!! Personally I would re-schedule. She might not be sick, but also couldn't risk a medical emergency with new baby. Too precious to risk. Hope all goes well with the little one's delivery.

 

[MrsPete]

I'm not really sure why the cruise lines have specified 24 weeks, but I doubt it was a random number. Some of the things other people said do make sense: the rocking of the ship might bring on labor, etc. Perhaps they're afraid that a pregnant woman who was already prone to morning sickness could become seasick and dehydrate herself. But for whatever reason, I wouldn't do anything that the experts term medically risky -- there's just too much at stake, and the cruise line will still be there.

Is moving the cruise to August a possibility? Most women feel great and have plenty of energy during their second trimester. If your wife is average, she'll be "big enough" to need maternity clothes, but she wont' be big enough to be a hinderance to herself yet (I remember so clearly being frustrated when I couldn't reach into the washing machine at 8-9 months!). She'll likely be over any morning sickness, and she'll feel free to eat, eat, eat! Except for avoiding alcohol, I think cruising mid-pregnancy would be quite pleasant!

I wouldn't plan to cruise in October, November, or December though. Life with a newborn is something of an exhausted blurr. Also, it's difficult to predict how well your wife will feel soon after birth. I had an easy first pregnancy and an average labor, but recovery was a different story! I was in serious pain for two months, then I had moderate pain for another four months; I literally thought I'd never be the same again. When I had my second child, I dreaded recovery; however, a week after her birth I was myself again, and I can offer no explanation for the difference in the healing time. If you decide to wait until the baby's born, I suggest waiting until he or she is at least six months old -- that'd be a great age for a baby to cruise.

 

[mousebrat]

We really appreciate the thought everybody is putting in to this. At this point, the question for us is whether we want to go that far into the pregnancy - from both a health and comfort standpoint. Right now, our answer is probably not. You hear so many different takes on the situation

The darn California and repo cruise schedules are the problem with going early. My thought is that we should look in to RCCL in July or maybe early August. The Voyager class ships have Johnny Rockets and Ben & Jerry's, so I'm sure DW would go for that. As indicated in another post, our biggest fear with changing is the smoking issue.

 

[crisi]

How about putting off cruising and doing an all inclusive? The Mayan Rivereria has beautiful resorts. One of my coworkers chose this when his wife was expecting and they were quite happy.

You will be AMAZED how fast time is going to fly and your baby will be ready for Mickey - before you know it worrying about "only going in the ear of the Mickey pool" will be a distant memory.

Edited to add: Cancun isn't far from most of the resorts on the Mayan Riveria, and Cancun apparently has a good "American Class" hospital (for the tourists).