Well this is my first post.  My LMP was 17 Apr 2008.  My husband finially agreed to ttc on May 3, 2008. He's still not really wanting to have a baby yet, but agreed to give it a go for my sake.  I doubt we got a go at it  early enough this cycle, but am hoping anyway. 

My biggest concern is work.  Work would not be very happy if they found out I was ttc. I am engineer that goes to oil and gas rigs and use radioactive sources.  Not exactly pregnancy friendly.  I'm worried about how work will take it and what will happen when I do show up and say guess what "I'm pregnant" I mean I can't exactly do my job for the next 9 months.

 Any advice or anyone else in a  similar situation.  

Does your employer have a occupational health office?  I am a biologist and work with radioactive substances every week.  When I started, I went through their "Reproductive Risk Assessment" because I was very concerned about the risks I would face if I were to get pg unexpectedly.  If you are working with radioactivity, your company should have something like this.  You should also have dosimeters that you wear when you are around radioactivity.  (whole body badge and rings) 

Fortunately enough, the assessment concluded that the amount that I am exposed to annually is far below the OSHA recommended allowance for a declared pregnant woman.  (I'm exposed to 50 mrem/yr, the threshold for pg woman is 500mrem/yr)  So no additional precautions are necessary from that standpoint.  We are exposed to background radiation every day from electronics to the environment, so basically every preg. woman is exposed to it in one way or another.  We just need to be more careful and aware since we are also exposed at work.  I told the RSO that I needed a report of my dosimeter activity every quarter just for peace of mind.  And sure enough, everything he said was right. 

I was also worried that my employer would freak out if they found out I was TTC or pg.  But in all honesty, my lack of information was the issue.  Check with your Occupational Health Service Office.  They can't fire you for getting pg.  They may not like it, but by law they have put your safety and that of your unborn child first. 

 Hope this helps!  : )

Hey thanks for responding.

My work does have me wear a dosimeter and they check it more often for females in case of pg. In fact they check it monthly.  I probably average 100 mrem/mo, so it would definitely be a concern once I got pg.  I think I will research my company and see if they have something more information, but all of our Occupational Health Service stuff is contracted out.  I don't plan on letting my boss or anyone at work know of my plans though until I am more certain.  I just wonder what they will do with me if and when I get pg because my current position is not safe for pregnancy, even besides the radiation.  Well I guess time will tell but in the mean time its good to hear from someone else with the same concerns. 

Thanks  :)

I'm glad to hear you have a program at work.  And I completely understand about the concerns you have with it being contracted out.  Nonetheless, it is better than nothing.  Also good you get the reports monthly. 

I wouldn't tell your boss about your plans to get pg, but you might want to consider letting OHS know.  They may put you through the risk assessment now simply b/c in the beginning there are 2-3 weeks that you will be pg and not know it.  You'll still be exposed during that time.  Just something to think about. 

Your employer will come up with something for you to do when you become pg.  One of my co-workers went through this and they limited her exposure/etc. by changing some of our responsibilities around.  It was up to me and another colleague to do the physical part that was dangerous for her and she ended up doing all our paperwork.  I think she got the raw end of the deal b/c I hate paperwork but we worked it all out in the end.  And everyone was happy to help out. 

They will work something out for you also.  Professional women that work with radioactivity have gotten pg before... they will deal with it somehow. 

I am a nuclear medicine technologist and we covered all of this in our radiation biology courses.  You need to tell your employers ASAP when you are expecting as you will wear a separate dosimetry badge for the baby, at the uterus level.  I could quote all sorts of ugly statistics to you about early exposure so suffice it to say, be very careful during the early weeks where the most damage can occur.  My co-worker is on her 4th pregnancy, so being aware and careful, limiting your exposure even to low E sources will ensure a healthy baby!  Best of luck to you on ttc!