Chorevia

Day 53 of 280 · 7 weeks + 4 days

Trips and long sits

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 5 sources · Plain-text version

Travel is generally fine if you're comfortable. Today: the walk-every-hour rule, what to pack, and the clot signs that mean care right away.

Size this week
about the size of a grape
Length this week
around 10 mm from head to bottom
A woman stretching her legs beside a parked car at a highway rest stop, her partner and a school-age child at a picnic table nearby, flat midday sun.

Seven weeks and four days. A holiday, a work trip, a long drive to tell the grandparents: at some point you'll sit still for hours. Today is the rule for that.

Your baby

A single green grape on a plain pale wooden table, close up, soft window light.

Around 10mm from head to bottom, about the size of a grape (NHS). The face and eyelids are developing, and the arm buds are getting longer, with flattened ends that will soon become tiny hands (NHS).

Your body

Travel is generally fine if you are comfortable and safe, and MedlinePlus says to talk to your provider before planning a trip (MedlinePlus). The one rule that matters most is movement: get up and walk every hour (MedlinePlus). Pregnancy and long inactivity both raise the risk of blood clots in the legs and lungs, and fluids and movement lower it (MedlinePlus).

The rest is packing. Keep your normal diet and drink plenty of fluids; wear comfortable shoes and clothing that isn't tight (MedlinePlus). Pack crackers and juice for nausea, and bring a copy of your prenatal records (MedlinePlus). And don't take over-the-counter medicines, including motion sickness or bowel medicines, without talking to your provider (MedlinePlus).

Try today

  1. The travel hour

    Time: 5 minutes, before any trip over an hour

    1. Set a repeating reminder on your phone every 60 minutes for the length of the trip. When it goes off, get up and walk (MedlinePlus); on a drive, that means the next stop.

    2. Pack the bag: a bottle, crackers and juice (MedlinePlus).

    3. Add a copy of your prenatal records once you have some (MedlinePlus); until the first visit, a note of your last period date and your provider's number does the job.

    4. Dress for it: comfortable shoes and nothing tight (MedlinePlus).

    Make it work:

    If you usually take something for motion sickness, ask your provider before the trip, not at the gate (MedlinePlus).

Watch for

  • Normal

    stiff legs after a long sit.

    Go to the ER

    for chest pain, shortness of breath, or leg or calf pain or swelling, especially in one leg; MedlinePlus says to seek care right away (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    nausea on the road, which can come at any time of day (NICHD).

    Call your provider

    before taking any over-the-counter remedy for it, including motion sickness medicine (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    tiredness at the end of a travel day (NHS).

    Call your provider

    for severe swelling, redness, or pain of your leg or arm; the CDC counts it at any time during pregnancy (CDC).

  • Normal

    a list of warning signs you've read all week and never had.

    Call your provider

    if you feel like something just isn't right, even if it isn't on the list; the CDC's advice is to contact them if something seems wrong (CDC).

For you

Two destinations to rule out early: the Office on Women's Health says to avoid altitudes above 6,000 feet, and not to scuba dive during pregnancy (OWH). Everything else is a conversation with your provider before you book (MedlinePlus), not a reason to stay home.

If you're the partner: you run the reminders. On a drive, you're the one who pulls over on the hour; on a train or a plane, you're the one who stands up first so she doesn't have to be the one asking.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

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