Bye Phoebe!
Bye. Bye. Bye-bye. Hey I'm Lisa! I'm a speaker, author and
coach, and mom to seven gorgeous kids. And in today's video I'm gonna share with
you some tips on how to fly while pregnant. So over the last few months
I've been traveling fairly extensively, doing a little bit of promotion for my
book The Possibility Mom, as well as relocating my family halfway across the
North American continent from Toronto Canada to Southwest Florida. And so I
have definitely learned a thing or two about traveling while pregnant, and I
just think it's so helpful because traveling while pregnant can be kind of
a scary thing, especially if you've never done it before. Okay, so at time of
filming I am about... 26 weeks pregnant? Oh my gosh, I'm the worst at keeping track!
When you've been pregnant as many times as I have you don't really keep track
anymore. But definitely when I flew for the first time while pregnant I had all
kinds of concerns. Um I was wondering "Is it safe?" "Am I gonna get sick?" "Is it like a
silly idea?" You know, "What's... what's gonna happen if something happens to me?" And I
have thankfully had lots and lots and lots of success. So one of the biggest
things that I think is super helpful while flying while pregnant is to dress
comfortably. So I really like stuff like this. This is like a big onesie
(laughs) from Thyme Maternity. You really want something that's just easy to go to the
bathroom in. You want something that is easy, if you're too hot, or too cold, you
have options. And so, I really like this kind of a thing that's like knit. I love
that it doesn't have a waistband. It is so comfortable and it's like, really
stretchy. Flats always. And I personally like big blazers because you can stick all the things in the pockets
And I also find that dressing in layers is really
helpful when you are pregnant because, I don't know, I'm always either too hot or
too cold anywhere I go. And especially on airplanes, I just find sometimes like the
air is like, stale or, I don't know what, but I just... sometimes it is so hot and
it's no fun to be overheated and pregnant! And so layers, so I could take my
blazer off on the airplane. I also carry a wrap, like a really nice, comfy, cozy
wrap that can be like a blanket or a pillow when needed. Okay I just got off
my first flight to my destination and it is so important to move, oh my word, when
you are pregnant. I mean... anytime, but especially when you're pregnant because
circulation can be a challenging thing. A lot of blood is trying to you know go to
where the baby is and stuff, so you've got to use the opportunities you've got!
Especially between connections, to move as much as you can. The other thing I've
learned that is so important through personal experience is: in connections,
you have got to find out where your gate is. Like don't sit down, don't like (laughs) you
know, get a bite to eat, like, FIND how far away your connection is. Some airlines
will text you um when you land, letting you know
literally where your next gate is. And then of course you can just look at the
map and a lot of airlines will tell you, or a lot of airports will have an
estimation of how long it's gonna (take to) get there.
I one time found myself in Chicago O'Hare thinking I had all this time and
I was just like shopping and eating and being leisurely and then realized that
it was gonna take me like a full (laughs) I think like a shuttle to get to my gate, so
always find out where your gate is especially when you're connecting so
that you're not huffing and puffing as a pregnant mama, and you can just feel
peaceful and not work your way you know into a hot mess. But okay let's talk
about food. I find it super duper helpful to always have a high-protein snack and
a bottle of water in my purse at all times.
I just find sometimes access to food that is low in carbohydrates especially
if you are trying to be careful of a gestational diabetic diet, sometimes the
options aren't always available. So I just find it helpful to have something
on hand, so I'm kind of covered and I'm safe. Now the options available on the
airplane are often pretty decent. Like you can usually get a salad, you can
usually get some cheeses um and that's really helpful but one thing I have
found is that depending on where you sit on an airplane and how busy it is
sometimes these options can run out. So I definitely recommend if you can swing it
and you have time to prioritize eating like get there early enough to eat a
really nice decent meal so that you don't have to worry about it so much
while you're in the air.
So the other thing I find really helpful is to actually bring a bag that rolls. So
whether that is a small suitcase that rolls or your personal purse has rollers (flush) I
have made the mistake too many times where I've carried a really heavy
handbag and it just... you're just so tired when you're pregnant. So wheels are a
must. So if the flight is going to be longer than two and a half or three
hours I actually prefer to sit on the aisle because allows me to go to the bathroom and
you know, get up as I need to. But if a flight is going to be an hour or less if
I actually like to be right by the window
because I know that I will already have gone to the bathroom and then it just allows me to
like go to sleep. Another thing that is just so essential is to go to the bathroom whenever you can.
Like, between every transition. So if you've got connecting flights always go
during connecting before you board your flight, maybe after your flight, like you
just never know when there might be you know a problem with the airplane or some
other kind of delay where you might be stuck in a line and it's just no fun to
be holding your bladder while you're pregnant. So just go to the bathroom at
every transition. It's also like critically important that you hydrate.
Like just drink all the water. Like you think you drank enough water and I know you might
be thinking that's gonna just make me pee but you gotta drink all the water
because you can get so dehydrated especially when you're pregnant. Doing
anything for the very first time can of course be scary, but what I think is on
the other side of fear, especially where a travel is concerned is so much
potential. So do talk to your doctor and don't be afraid to pursue possibility.
That is it! Those are my tips for flying while pregnant. If you are interested in
more travel videos both for yourself and for your family I've made a playlist
for you and I will see you on the other side.