2nd labour, how quick to act?

[Goldenvalley]

I'm confused about how quickly I should act once I think/ know I'm in labour - do I immediately get childcare sorted for my daughter or do I see how I get on with the early phase for? I don't want parents etc arriving if I'm going to be labouring at home for many more hours first. How did you know when to start taking it seriously?

[Jayne266]

I think it depends on what your first stage of labour is. I have just given birth and I started with contractions. I rang the hospital to confirm the process and rang my DM to inform her of what stage I was at and the plan. I was having contractions for 15 hrs before I went to hospital but would have been 22 hours before I was suitable to be admitted. With my ds my waters had broke so they asked me to go in straight away and can possibly keep you in at this point.

[scrumptiouscrumpets]

I've just had DS 2 and was asking myself the same thing. I started having contractions at 7.30 pm, by 1 am, they were regular and 7 mins apart. The midwife had told me to come in at that stage because my first labour had been very quick, so I called my mum who lives 20 mins away. Drive to the hospital was 30 mins. I gave birth 2 hours after getting there, so it all worked out perfectly. If I were you, I'd take into account how long it takes for your parents to get to your place, how long it takes for you to get to hospital and how fast your first labour was. And how fast labour is progressing, of course - I found using a contraction timer app on my phone really useful. On the day, I'm sure you'll know when the time to go in is right!

[MissCalamity]

Quickly! My first labour was fairly quick & straight forward (although it didn't feel like it at the time!)
3 days before DC2 was due, I went to bed feeling a bit crampy but I had this a few nights ago which resulted in nothing. Went to bed & read and thought oh they are coming every 10 minutes or so. Panicked a bit as I needed to wash my hair

Got in the shower just after midnight, texted my mum she was still up but had had a drink! Ended up waking up DP at 3am for him to go & get mum. Hospital at 4am where waters broke in the car park, I was only 2cm when checked but DC2 arrived 2 hours later!
Hospital did want to send me back home when I was only 2cm, but they weren't too busy (thank God!) plus after I was checked the contractions rammed up so there would have been no chance of me getting my bottoms on & waddling back out of the door!
Good luck! Trust your instincts, you've done it before so you know.

[Josie01]

Quickly! I woke in the night for the loo, as soon as I stood my waters broke, called the hosp, my mum, my son woke with the lights on and the commotion, so had a little chat with him. Quickly took one last bump photo, then left, labour from start to end was 2 hours. Contractions didn't start right away after my waters broke, but then started in the car.

That was after a 19 hour first time labour.

[mummytobecabz]

Id say quickly!
I had my first baby in july and started having contractions while i was in the hospital, they checked me and i was 3cms they sent me up to delivery as they were coming fast and by the time i got there i was 7cms and started pushing within a few mins, my labour was 2hours 44mins and it was only that long as the gas and air really affected me and i was drowsy by the time it came to pushing so took quite a while xx

[NickyEds]

Quickly.My second labour started with an almighty contraction at midnight, followed by another 4.5 minutes later. After a third 4.5 minutes after that I called my sister who was going to come over andlook after ds. We couldn't get through to her! I'd had lots of false alarms and stop start contractions the night before but when everything had tailed off during the day I gave her the green light to go to an 80's party! We got through to her at 1 ish and she came straight over. Her initial suggestion was to wait as long as I possibly could at home.......3 contractions later she just said "go to hospital"! I got to hospital and was told that I wasn't in labour and should probably go home. I just knew that I was, the contractions were so intense. They let me wait in the closed induction suite and that's where dd was born a couple of hours later. Labour was 5 hours from first contraction to birth so not super quick but quick enough to not want to be waiting about for babysitters to sober up!

[Wolfiefan]

What was your first like? My first was fairly quick. Second was born in under an hour!

[NickyEds]

My first was 30 hours. Waters broke first and contractions started straight away. Labour had to be augmented with the drip after 24 hours and it was another 6 hours after that. 5 hours is much better!

[LotisBlue]

How long was your first labour, how long will it take your parents to get to you, and how long will it take you to get to hospital?
I called my parents at the first sign of labour so that they were on alert, that was in the evening so I told them I would probably need them the next day (I had a long first labour), but to keep their phones on and be ready to leave at short notice.

Second time around you will definitely know the difference between early labour and full blown contractions.

[Mummamayhem]

Get ready quick! From 1st twinge to baby being delivered by shocked husband..1 hour 45 mins!

[cudbywestrangers]

I wouldn't hang about! Ds1 waters went then was g7cm in 7 hours on admission to hospital (then emcs for breech!). Ds2 was born 5 hours after waters breaking. Contractions started straight away. Dh phoned his parents who then faffed around for so long we had to phone a friend so we could go to hospital after 2 hours of contractions!