As if hurricanes aren’t stressful enough, it seems the last thing you’d want to do is sleep under a desk in a crowded hospital to wait out the storm.

That’s what my very pregnant friend had to do as Hurricane Wilma bore down on South Florida in 2005. Doctor’s orders. (The hospital; not the sleep-under-the-desk part.)

I am now in my 34th week of pregnancy, at the height of hurricane season. South Florida dodged a Category 4 bullet this week with Hurricane Bill. But it got me thinking. (It doesn’t take much; I thrive on worrying.) Why and when do pregnant women become a concern during a hurricane?

There is widespread debate about whether a rapid and steep drop in barometric pressure -- the weight of the atmosphere pushing on the surface of the Earth -- can induce labor in women who are at or near term. The lower the barometric pressure, the more intense the storm. And, according to several local hospital accounts in past years, the higher the number of deliveries. Broward General Medical Center received 17 babies in a 24-hour period during Hurricane Frances. Holy Cross Hospital delivered 21 babies in one day.

Official studies are inconclusive. But, in my humble arm-chair estimation, I can see how there’d be some kind of effect with such a dramatic change in pressure. Right now, I feel like I’m headed for the delivery room every time I stand up quickly after sitting down for a long period of time.

In any case, if you’re pregnant, here are some things to keep in mind before and immediately after a hurricane:

- Talk to your doctor well in advance about what precautions you should take. I called my doctor’s office this week, and they faxed me a notice from my hospital stating that pregnant women who are considered high risk or are within 1-2 weeks of their due dates are encouraged to sit out an approaching hurricane in the hospital lobby. The main concern is that you avoid having to travel during a storm if you go into labor. Hospitals usually don’t allow spouses and others to stay during a storm.

- Careful what you drink. Everyone needs to be mindful of boil-water advisories that tend to pop up following big storms. But pregnant women, in particular, are at greater risk of complications if they get sick, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Better just to stick with bottled water.

- Carbon monoxide poisoning. The CDC, in its advisory on hurricanes and pregnant women, warns moms-to-be of steering clear of generators, kerosene heaters or camp stoves indoors. Those pieces of equipment should not be used in a closed space. The colorless, odorless gas is toxic for anyone. And it can poison both you and your baby.