I’m a pretty active outdoorsy person and love to go snowboarding and hiking throughout the year and I’m finding it difficult to navigate planning things while considering that I might be pregnant at that time?
For example my friends are going skiing at the end of next month so in my head I’m thinking, “well I’ll find out about this month in a week (7DPO), so if that’s negative then worst case scenario I could only be about 6wks pregnant by the end of Feb which is maybe early enough to still be okay to snowboard safely by then, maybe?” Same for hiking, since going above 2000m isn’t recommended for pregnant women due to lack of oxygen, I’m like, how do I plan for this?
Some of these trips include paying accommodation ahead of time etc and it could leave me a few hundred out in dollars. Anyone else struggling with planning things more than a month in advance? Any tips for how to tell my friends I can’t plan that far ahead without telling the world I’m TTC?
Please make sure that you have read all of our rules before commenting! In particular, be aware that no mentions of a current pregnancy are allowed, with no exceptions. If you see something breaking the rules, please report it. If you think something may be against the rules, ask us or err on the side of caution. If you think that being sneaky (PMing members or asking them to PM you, telling them to refer to your post history, etc) is a good idea, it is not. Additionally, complaining about downvotes is frowned upon and never helps anything.
I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.
I’ve found myself doing this a lot! For example, I wanted to take a credentialing course for work ( well my career in this state). A month or so I decided to not sign up in case we get pregnant. I recently realized how silly it was! It’s something I genuinely wanted to do, but told myself no in hopes I’d be pregnant.
Someone in another thread said it like this: after TTC, there will be other things you’re waiting for: house, car, finances, marriage goals, etc. pausing life for baby is not really kind to ourselves or our spouses or those around us. Learning to be present in the moment! Not for what I hope it to be or want it to be.
Go on the trip, girl! You’ll be glad you went.
I’m signing up for that 8 week course tonight. Baby or no baby during it, I know it’ll be glad I didn’t wait or delay by the end.
That’s a really great perspective! We can’t always pause our life for everything that could be 😌
I would not turn things down in advance. Say yes to all the usual things. You can cancel a trip, but it's very hard to book it last minute, and you will feel sad and resentful if you end up saying no to things you want to do AND potentially not being pregnant. It's good to go in assuming your monthly chances are low, rather than plan to get pregnant in a particular month, which is unrealistic and outside of your control.
This! I’m 1.5 years in TTC and hopefully that won’t be your path too, but I regret adjusting future plans assuming I would have been pregnant by now. I didnt get a ski pass last year and missed a couple of great vacations (and lots of pow days). Get the insurance when you can and send the outdoor activities 🤙🏼 - your fellow hiking, boarding outdoor girly
Yes, my sister is getting married in October 2026 and I thought she would wait until mid 2027 at least. I’m worried I’m going to miss it, but at this point I’ll just be happy if we get pregnant so I almost don’t care anymore (not in a mean way). It will definitely suck but I can’t put our family planning on hold for it.
My advice is to plan it anyway knowing that you might need to cancel.
Yes weddings are a big one! Especially when overseas travel is involved!
I have 3 upcoming ski trips booked. I figure, if I get pregnant and can’t ski, I can at least go and hangout with my friends afterwards.
Take it from someone 13 cycles deep - plan the trip. do the thing. Don't put your life on hold because of a what if. Buy travel insurance if you're worried about it.
I was doing this too but then it hasn’t happened yet so I stopped planning around it 😂😅 if it happens we will deal with it but for now I’m just trying to live my life for now 🥲😅 we keep talking about a Japan trip so we might just book it later on next year and just go from there 🥹😅
It is such a pain living in a constant cycle of 'i might be pregnant'. For me the biggest issue was being away from my husband when I ovulated. I skipped a Hen Party in another country, despite having paid flights accommodation and for activities, to stay home and baby dance because I was ovulating. I didn't get pregnant that cycle and indeed found out shortly after that I needed ivf due to blocked tubes. TTC is exhausting. Please take care of yourself x
Oh I’m so sorry to hear that 😔 It’s really tough to live in a state of “I need to try my best to give myself the best chance” while trying not to regret every event that you didn’t go to just in case.
Assuming you can comfortably afford it, I think you should just plan the trip. Try to book as much as possible refundable.
If you get pregnant before then, you’ll probably be too happy to be very upset about losing some money.
But also, there’s a lot you can do still do in first trimester. So you may still be able to go on the trip even if you’re pregnant.
That’s a good point re being too happy to care about the lost dollars! It’ll be a somewhat positive problem to solve by then 😌
Totally. I’m not trying at this very moment, but hope to start TTC #2 in June, maybe. I’ve kinda committed to an October marathon with friends but of course don’t know how long it will take. Yes I could wait until after the marathon but I’m not sure that I want to…
Yeah I’ve signed up for a half next year, knowing that I might not be able to run it? 🤷♀️ I knew I’d be sad if I wasn’t pregnant and also not running.
I signed up for a half next fall too! I’m running one next month and I bought a refundable registration in case I got pregnant but turns out I didn’t need it 😕 I’m happy I got it though since the race sold out. Definitely agree with being sad if not pregnant and not running
Good luck in your half! I think most popular races usually have a clause specifically for pregnant women that allows you to defer for a year if you get pregnant so it can sometimes be worth checking the T’s and C’s!
Thank you!! That’s good to know
lol totally fair I have the same feelings - will be sad if not preg and if not running. Have you been a long distance runner for a while?
Yeah I got into marathons awhile ago and trail running in the last year or so. My friend wanted to do a half next year so I signed up with her!
Yes! I’m glad it’s not just me.
It’s my 30th birthday in three months and my husband and I were planning on going on a big trip for it as we love to travel, but I feel like we can’t book anything in case I’m pregnant. I’ve had two miscarriages in the last 7 months and part of me is terrified of being pregnant again and away from home. But equally, I still might not even be pregnant by the time my birthday comes around. I already feel like TTC and going through loss has taken so much from me, but it’s hard to weigh it all up. You’re definitely not alone
Same. I bought concert tickets a few months ago and was like "ugh man, I can do a concert pregnant no problem... but if I'm in the first trimester, I'll be sick." Actually thought about canceling 🤡 if I get pregnant this cycle, I'll be like 5 weeks at the time of the concert, and I have minimal hope cycle 11 will be it 🙃
I've kind of outgrown the mindset a bit by now, because I almost didn't go to 2 other concerts and several events in 2025. I almost backed out of a big family trip to FL with my cousin's family (who I rarely see) and our grandparents (who are in there 80s ) and I'm so glad I planned them anyway. I just spend a little extra for insurance and have good excuses ready for if I do get pregnant and truly can't go to things.
My go to is to say I have norovirus if I end up pregnant and have to cancel something that would be suspicious if I canceled. Spewing from both ends, intestinal pain, and suuuuuper contagious.
Oh, this is totally us too! This past year we got married, started new jobs, moved across the country, and finally have time and money to travel internationally. But we're also TTC.
We've just decided to go for it! Who knows how long TTC could take, and barring health complications, it seems way easier to travel as a pregnant person than with a baby. We've booked a few bucket list international trips already, and I'm definitely not stopping any of my hiking. One of my mom friends even gave me her pregnancy rock climbing harness!
I think if you're someone who's already outdoorsy, you're probably good to keep up your normal level of activity within reason. Also, are you sure about the 2000m thing? The last town I lived in was around that elevation, and none of my pregnant friends ever mentioned having problems. Like I wouldn't do a 14er, but I'm pretty sure normal mountains are fine?
Yup. Literally today I was looking at booking flights to go on a hiking trip to Uluru. But then I hesitate coz what if I get pregnant and I’m ill, what if I can’t hike? What if I have to cancel? Do I pay extra for refundable tickets? But I’m so cheap! Haha. I think I will just go ahead and book it anyway.
Yes totally agree with this! Am glad to hear that it's not just me!
Have been ttc since early 2025. I like to plan holidays in advance and I didn't realise there's quite a number of things that is not advised for a pregnant woman. Can I take rollercoasters at amusement park, hike at altitude, can I go snowboarding and how it may interfere with fertile days if I'm not travelling with my husband.
Oh the rollercoasters thing is a big one! Seems like everything fun I wanna do isn’t allowed while pregnant so I get all nervous that I’ll have to skip the rides that day and have to explain to everyone why!
I'd say book it, but maybe tell some friends that you might have a work thing which might make you need to cancel. They (or you) might know someone who can go if you can't, and if so then you can sell your tickets to them if you do get pregnant :)
I don’t meant to be negative but I’ve had many things come and go that “I could have been pregnant” for. I’m so glad when so decide to book things because it gives me something to enjoy during the TTC journey and eases the pain of waiting. I hope things happen quickly for you and you can always cancel but I’d say book the trips! You’d be bummed to miss them if you don’t get pregnant beforehand ❤️
Same here.
Sometimes I feel crazy but this post makes me feel seen. I want to plan my dream international trip, but struggle to do so knowing I could be pregnant when the time comes and international travel requires several months, if not a year of planning. I’ve been on 3 domestic (within the US) trips in 2025 with no concerns because I know I can book refundable hotels and flights easily but I feel stuck when I think about planning the dream trip.
I wish I wasn’t this way but I definitely am after 1 year TTC
Is there any way you can purchase a sort of… idk travel/contingency insurance for these things?? I’m a runner, so planning on my races for 2026 is kind of tricky. So I’ve just decided to pay for the extra fee that’ll allow me to cancel and get a partial refund (if I’m pregnant or sick)
Well these are all domestic trips and fees are all bundled together through either travel agencies or friends that organise the details for everyone and we pay them back so insurance isn’t really a thing for this 🥲
Yes! We just didn’t go anywhere this year because I thought I’d be pregnant. So of course I want to book a trip for next year but what if I’m pregnant?
Plan the trips and do all of the things! My husband and I have been trying for 5 years. Trust me, take the trips and make memories. TTC is hard! I wouldn’t worry much about the altitude. I live at 1800m along with a lot of others and babies are just fine here ;)
I bailed on a scuba certification course because I’m TTC and don’t know if it’ll happen by the time the course comes but there’s lot of time later in life for that so I just had to be honest with my friends and they understood. I had a horrible time deciding if I wanted to lie and make something up but at the end of the day, being honest with those 2 people about where I was in life lifted the burden. I didn’t even want to tell my family I started TTC, just my partner so I understand wanting to keep it private. As far as plans, If it’s not something you’re medically unable to do I’d keep your plans and alter after a positive test 🤷🏻♀️ life happens as long as cancelling wouldn’t be a financial burden, which I think telling those few trusted people helps keep you out of being in an awkward position being asked to go on all those trips. I totally sympathize though I live in the mountains and am super active as well
I feel this!!!! I wanna say plan the stuff anyway.
In a way I’m stuck too because I want to go deep water soloing next summer and that’s not super safe to do if I end up being pregnant by then, but then I think about it and realize well there’s always gonna be something I can do. Maybe I can swim or snorkel or kayaking and just get a plan another trip later when I can actually climb. Either way it would still be fun to be there with my friends.
Pausing life for something that is currently non existent doesn’t really make sense to me imo. Just booked a Europe trip for our wedding anniversary this spring. I’ll enjoy it whether or not I am pregnant.
I was super cautious with my plans last year because “I could be pregnant.” Well that didn’t work out so here come all of the plans :) maybe it’ll curse us into actually successfully conceiving(and sticking), like when ER staff believe to never say it’s quiet in the ER. Good luck to us and happy traveling!