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Pregnancy’s effects on work, and work’s effects on pregnancy.
Some women progress happily through pregnancy, working as if nothing has changed. Others feel differently about their jobs or find that their ability to work is affected by being pregnant. Baby fantasies may encroach on your time, feeling poorly may temporarily affect your day-to-day performance, or you may worry that stress or some other aspect of your job will have a negative effect on the baby. On the other side, employers often believe that pregnancy is an indication that your priorities lie elsewhere. They worry about how your work will get done, and whether you will come back after the baby is born.
Frankly, I had greater concerns over my ability to keep my job than concerns over delivering my child into the world. (Jane J., advertising executive)
You deserve to be treated seriously at work even if you are pregnant, and you should expect it. But, you need to believe that in your own mind or it will not happen. Women tend to undervalue themselves. (Jenny K., internist)
At one point my whole office went on a three-day retreat and I spent the time in my hotel room being green and trying to hide it. Everyone thought I was a bit of a stick-in-the-mud because I wasn’t hanging out having drinks in the evenings. But once they found out I was pregnant, everyone was supportive and considerate. I felt less like I had to “prove myself ” than I did at my previous job, simply because the place was more family-friendly and had more women. (Janet G., attorney)
Having children is acceptable, even expected, in many careers, especially in traditionally female jobs like teaching and nursing, where women have a track record of balancing career and family. Other jobs have never had a pregnant employee, and haven’t established maternity policies — or positive attitudes. No matter which type of situation you are in, it is likely that you, your employer, and your coworkers will have some concerns about how this pregnancy will affect your attendance, your productivity, and your long-term plans. You may also worry about how the job will affect you and your baby.
When Should I Tell My Boss?
Many women wait a while before telling people at work that they are pregnant. In deciding when and how to share the news, mothers-to-be typically take several factors into account:
• Privacy, specifically in case of miscarriage
• Honesty, particularly if someone asks you directly
• Having your bosses hear it from you before someone else tells them
• Safety, if accommodations must be made early on to avoid occupational risk
• Ability to hide it, if you are vomiting at work or otherwise showing signs of pregnancy
• Concerns that you will get less respect once you disclose you are pregnant
• Timing, if you are up for promotion or a special assignment. On the side of disclosure, support from colleagues can be valuable if you are suffering with early pregnancy symptoms, so it can sometimes be advantageous to share your news before you’d planned.
I called my boss right after I took the test and it was positive. I think the earlier you tell, the better. It’s good to be honest. (Annette M., store manager)
Disclosing pregnancy in the workplace early on was mutually beneficial. Not having the burden of hiding it made for a healthier, happier pregnancy, and work administrators and colleagues could plan well in advance for my maternity leave. (Anne C., radiologist)
I told my boss at seven weeks because I was so exhausted I was leaving work hours earlier than I used to. It was obvious I wasn’t accomplishing as much, plus I was showing already. Also, I work for a small firm and word travels, and I wanted my bosses to find out from me, not from rumors. They were more sympathetic and flexible once they knew. (Heather H., real estate attorney)
I told my boss I was pregnant at eight weeks — earlier than the end-of-first- trimester they usually recommend. It didn’t affect my job — my boss essentially said, “You look fine—here’s your work.” My job didn’t slow down. (Naomi B., attorney)
I wasn’t going to tell until I was showing, but Hurricane Charley was coming. I told them I was pregnant because I didn’t want to put myself in harm’s way. It was a little awkward, but my maternal instincts kicked in and I felt at peace with it. (Monique F., journalist)
No matter what, hide it as long as you can, because after you tell, that’s all you are, the pregnant employee. I kept buying bigger and bigger clothes to cover it up. Just larger sizes, not maternity clothes right away...because once you start wearing maternity clothes everyone knows you are pregnant. I saved these larger clothes and used them after I delivered, before I lost my weight. (Peggy L., nurse-administrator)
The second time, I began to show right at three months. My belly just kind of popped out one weekend. With the first pregnancy, I had the luxury of waiting to tell people. (Elizabeth S., online producer)
Many women worry that they will be seen as less productive once they disclose that they’re expecting. Although some find that pregnancy really slows them down, most mothers-to-be are able to keep at their usual pace, with only minimal accommodations. Remember the 80/20 rule: 20 percent of your effort leads to 80 percent of your productivity. The keys to excellent work performance during pregnancy are luck, in that you aren’t hit too hard by nausea or fatigue, and efficiency — finding a way to get your work done despite distractions or discomforts.
Even though I was tired, my work habits were still the same. I worked fortyhours per week or more. One week I worked fifty-seven hours. I am just a workaholic. (Annette M., store manager)
I was a little more forgetful than usual — it felt a lot like right before my wedding when I had a lot on my mind — I made lists to stay organized. (Susan G., commercial airline pilot)
Efficiency
Many pregnant and parenting women have told me that being well organized allowed them to keep up even when their lives slowed them down. The suggestions that follow come from a variety of sources — feel free to use what works; you will find your own solutions as you go.
• Make to-do lists. At the end of each day at work, take a few minutes to plan your priorities for the next morning, so you can get right to work.
• Do you hardest jobs when you first get in — or when you are likely to be feeling your best.
• Divide big jobs up into smaller, doable, less overwhelming tasks.
• Prioritize tasks into A, the big important stuff that needs a block of time, through C, the mindless things that you can do when you are working on fewer cylinders.
• Do your “C” tasks at the end of the day or in the waiting room at your OB’s office.
• Protect yourself from interruptions. Deal with calls and email in batches, so they don’t disrupt productive blocks of time.
• Try to pare down your responsibilities. Say no to extra work until you see how you are doing with the basics.
• Try to touch each piece of paper (at work and at home) only once. Open mail when you have time to read it, open bills when you are ready to pay them. Don’t read email or look at phone messages until you have time to deal with them.
• If possible, pay for help at home, or renegotiate the distribution of jobs with your partner. You are the one growing the baby — other tasks may need to be handled by someone else if you are too tired or ill.
• Make copies of a shopping list template with common items in order of the aisles at your grocery store. Circle what you need; when you go shopping you’ll remember everything and you won’t have to backtrack.
• Lay out your clothes the night before, so you don’t have to think when you are getting up and out.
• Schedule exercise and time for yourself into your routine.
A few times, people attributed my forgetting something to the pregnancy and that really bothered me. I was quick to point out that I did not like that, and that my pregnancy didn’t make me crazy — just pregnant. (Jane J., advertising executive)
I’m easily distracted normally, but between pregnancy spaciness and being sick, I really feel like I’m not pulling my weight, and that really distresses me, but all I can do is try to do my best each day. (Ellen B., communications manager)
I had a very easy pregnancy. I never was really sick. The only thing I really had to do was adjust to accommodate all of the doctors’ visits, so I did have to change my schedule for that. (Amanda O., meeting planner)
In the first trimester, buy a couple of pairs of pants one or two sizes larger than you normally wear. They’ll fit well when your normal pants get too tight and yet you feel like a fraud in maternity pants. (Ellen B., communications manager)
Clothing was a big issue for me while I was pregnant and working. It seemed so ridiculous to spend a lot of money, however I had to look presentable. One thing I would encourage is to borrow clothing from friends who have been pregnant, or even women larger than yourself. I borrowed a lot of jacket-type things from my mom who wears things big. (Elizabeth S., online producer)
How Will Working Affect Your Pregnancy?
We have been talking about how pregnancy affects work, but certain aspects of work may complicate your pregnancy as well. Before you start to worry, realize that overall, working women experience a lower rate of pregnancy complications than other women do. Compared to those without jobs, women who work have better health habits such as lower rates of smoking and better prenatal care. Most women work in technical, sales, and administrative positions, types of jobs that don’t cause pregnancy problems. Work that only involves normal
sorts of activities can usually be continued until labor, provided the mother-to-be is healthy and feeling relatively well.
Three kinds of problems may require changes in the workplace, or temporary
leave:
1. Common pregnancy symptoms, like nausea and vomiting, may make certain jobs (like food service work) impossible.
2. Pregnancy complications, such as preterm labor, sometimes require time off or special accommodations at work. These sorts of problems don’t usually begin until the third trimester.
3. Jobs with intense physical demands, long hours, toxic exposures, infection risk, distant travel, and emotional stress may require adaptations to safely accommodate the pregnancy. The Occupational Safety and Health Act states that your employer is responsible for maintaining a safe work environment.
Your Early Pregnancy Work Wardrobe
At first, your looser clothing may still fit fine. Eventually, though, the time will come when you’re not yet ready for maternity wear, but your clothes don’t quite make it around your waist (or breasts) anymore. When this happens to you, try these solutions from experienced moms:
• Buy some larger, soft, loose-fitting clothes. These also will come in handy right after the baby is born, when you aren’t quite back to your old shape.
• Borrow clothing from someone a little bigger than you are — male or female.
• Use a rubber band doubled-up through the buttonhole to extend the reach of the top button on your pants, or leave it open and wear a top that covers
your waistline.
• If you wear a uniform at work, move into larger sizes before hitting the maternity versions.
Excerpted from The Working Woman’s Pregnancy Book, by Marjorie Greenfield, M.D, copyright © 2008 by Marjorie Greenfield. Reproduced by permission of Yale University Press. 
Marjorie Greenfield, M.D., is a board-certified obstetrician-gynecologist and fellow of the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology (ACOG). She has practiced and taught obstetrics and gynecology since 1987, and is currently associate professor on the full-time faculty at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. She practices general obstetrics and gynecology with a specialty of pediatric and adolescent gynecology, but love obstetrics and has a large adult OB practice. She lives in the Cleveland area with her husband and teenage son.