So are 3rd labours different?

[knackered76]

Just that! I'm expecting no.3 to turn up soon and the other 2 were 6hrs and 4hrs, straight forward with no stop starting or anything else. Helpful people have begun telling me that 3rd labours are unpredictable, nothing like the others, etc. What have your experiences been? Just wondering whether to give up hoping this one arrives near due date as the others did and it will be as straight forward as them

[snotdroolanddirtybums]

the labour itself with my 3rd was no different from the other 2. it started and lasted my usual 8-9 hours. However, he was 7wks early and started with my waters breaking....

[HattiFattner]

i was induced with all 3, so cannot compare starts. But No.1 was 18
hours, No. 2 was 4 hours and no 3 was 1hr 45 mins. All from a cold start.

[Bogeyface]

Only unpredictable in the way that all labours are!

All of mine have been pretty much the same, just getting gradually shorter, going from 8 hrs down to 3. Waters broke, got contractions, got stroppy, got even more stroppy, threatened to smash DH/MW/anyones face in, had baby!

[lollystix]

Mw told me they stop and start and take ages to get going but once they do they are quick. Was totally true for me - almost a week of false starts - so annoying but then 4 hours when it properly got going after a sweep. Going for ds4 now and wondering what this one will be like.

[libbyssister]

My 3rd was like my 1st. 14 days overdue, induced after early labour didn't really progress, meconium, foetal distress, ventouse, blah blah blah. The only improvement on 1st was that once they broke my waters he was born 3.5 hrs later.

I was really surprised because DS2 was so different: on time, water birth in MW led unit, calm, quick. I thought I'd put all the rubbish bits of the 1st birth behind me....I thought 3rd would be similar to the 2nd. Ha!

[growing3rdbump]

I had my beautiful 3rd baby on 10th may at 9.35pm. She was born 6days early at home after 2.5 hrs of labour. The labour itself matched my 2nd birth almost exactly!!! (dc2 was born 11th may 2007 at 8.36pm, 7 days early and also born at home after a short 2hr labour). The main difference I found with dc3 was that I had lots of braxton hicks in the week before which kept making me think things were starting and would then fizzle out. I've been lucky with having 3 short, straight forward births despite also being told 3rd births are unpredictable!!!