This allows your lap belt to be secured in between your legs - rather than at one side - so it rests on top of your thighs, not under your belly. If it makes you more comfortable, you might be able to utilize a seat belt positioner when you’re pregnant.

Make sure the shoulder portion of the belt is positioned correctly (over your shoulder and down the center of your chest).Consider adjusting the angle of the steering wheel upward, so the bottom edge of the wheel isn’t directly parallel with your stomach.Keep the driver’s seat as far back from the steering wheel as you can while still maintaining easy access to important stuff like the brakes, gear shift, and headlights.Position the lap portion of the belt as far under your belly as possible, not straight across.What little chance there is pales in comparison to the risks of not wearing a seat belt at all.Īs far as getting comfortable using a typical three-point seat belt during your pregnancy (and doing it safely), here are a few tips: If you wear your seatbelt correctly, there’s little chance of injury to your baby during normal driving and even during road accidents. If you’re going to get behind the wheel, however, you need to protect yourself: You should always wear your seat belt, including when you’re pregnant. And that could contribute to you being less alert while driving.ĭriving is still considered a fairly safe activity during pregnancy. In the second trimester, it’s common to be plagued with a whole bunch of super-distracting ills, like fatigue and sleep deprivation, thanks to said hormones. Well, the study’s researchers didn’t look at why this happens, although experts guess it’s your pregnancy hormones to blame (honestly, what else is new?). This begs the question - what’s up with that?! The increased risk also didn’t apply to pregnant people riding in cars as passengers or participating in any other physical activities often connected to injury during pregnancy. In the first and third trimesters, the risks were the same as they were outside of pregnancy. A 2014 study suggested that women were 42 percent more likely to become involved in serious car accidents during the second trimester than those who weren’t pregnant. We’re pretty sure the world would grind to a complete halt, actually, if pregnancy were a disqualifier for getting behind the wheel.īut we need to be real with you: There is a weirdly higher risk associated with driving while pregnant versus not pregnant. Nine and a half times out of 10, driving during pregnancy is totally fine.

Bumpy road pregnancy