Suden exhaustion and tearfulness in pre-labour phase?

[Sniffwitch]

I am 39+5 with DC3 and have been doing pretty well. Last 4 days I have had pretty bad period-style cramps, pressure on pelvic region/bum bones, several 4-6 hour runs of convincingly painful contractions varying 5-20 imns apart but never building to anything and lots of backache and loose stools - presumably all classic prelabour - but I have felt quite robust emotionally and physically and able to wait it out quite serenely and do a lot of nesting bit and stay active with the other DCs.
Today the physical symptoms have been if anything slightly less and I have suddenly totally disintegrated - very grumpy and irritable, taken to my bed for a 4 hour nap, abandoned other DCs to DH when I normally like to be as present at possible, feeling like a wet rag and very very tearful and desolate - not feeling excited about the baby - just feeling shattered as if I am about to get flu. Is this another one of those secret phases no one tells you about - or am I getting flu or something? DH has been ill the last few days.

[GetOffOfMyCloud]

Yay for you!! So pleased everything went smoothly.

Huge congratulations.

Do you have a name for her yet?

[Sniffwitch]

Slightly lost track of time, sorry!, but baby is now here and arrived Monday 12th at 19.35pm.
Here is the full tale for those who are interested...
Sunday night (EDD) had yet another set of prelabour/false labour contractions. Was so fed up and couldn't sleep and was due for consideration of term+1 induction anyway (for medical reasons) that morning so went in to labour suite. Contractions stopped, as they had every night, and I was examined and just 1cm, not fully effaced, and everyone pulled . At 10am that morning we "negotiated" a sweep and 24 hour pessary. And nothing happened. And nothing happened. And nothing happened. And I walked round the hospital. And jumped up and down. And went up 300 stairs. And nothing happened. Then my right arse cheek and leg went suddenly totally numb! And I had this massive urge to lay on my left side and raised my right leg in the air in a weird sort of preggo yoga. And felt the oddest graunchy scrapey sensation as ?presumably the baby shifted into position, and then contractions suddenly began! And were 3 minutes apart with a huge urge to push! I was desperate for gas and air - but got fobbed off with 2 paracetamol - but was making so much fuss that I was examined after 20 minutes of this and was 9cm! Cue transfer round to labour suite kneeling on wheelchair and baby born 25 minutes later, 2 pushes, no tearing. And she is gorgeous and perfect. And we were home 2 hours later. Weird "labour" but good!

[Allboxedin]

A couple of days before I had dd I was very irritable, I knew something was up and also very teary. Went to the midwife as usual in the morning and was nearly in tears - went into labour that evening. I was a few days early and not expecting it though!

[HeidiKat]

I was in such a foul mood at 39+4, actually felt like I wanted to kill someone. Went into labour that night in the early hours, DD born 23 hours later.

[Flisspaps]

Is that bump still giving you grief Sniffwitch?

[MultipleSoManyPapercuts]

I know how you feel, I burst into tears last night and ranted at DH that there was no point in him getting nappies as we weren't having a baby anyway. Genuinely feel like if it hasn't happened now then it's never going to happen.

[Sniffwitch]

Black ears have washed off. Black mood worse. Thoroughly thoroughly hacked off. And also have this weird idea that if things haven't got going by 9pm on any one given day e.g. today then they are not going to. And that the more I think about it the less its likely to happen. And that's there one last job I must get done before the baby arrives - but I don't know what it is. And hat this baby will in fact be the first in history to never ever ever arrive, and be reabsorbed over the coming 9 months..!!
Gah

[LoveBeingAMummyAgain]

Hope you got some plans for tomorrow, I was having ds when I should have been watching the inbetweeners

[Boosaphena]

I was in a really good mood until the night before I had dc2. Then I decided a full on fight with dh, a good shout at dd1 ( ) a cry at one born every minute, and a glass of wine was needed. I'd been contracting on and off whilst dilating for 5 days. Went to bed and at 5 woke up with 'wind' 2.5 hrs later was holding ds in a birthpool in my kitchen. My husband and daughter forgave the mood!

[StainlessSteelCat]

39+4 here, also had false alarms - some contractions, pressure in pelvis - enough to put a TENS machine on. Then the buggers fade away.

Fed up and increasingly grumpy here! Am at the stage where any sign is a sign that things will happen soon. Or they better bloody well start happening soon.

Hope it all kicks off for you both soon. Before the grumpiness really gets going :o

[Sniffwitch]

No no no no no. So bored and hacked off now!!

[Imnotaslimjim]

Any sign of baby yet?

[Sniffwitch]

tee hee. nope indeed.
but I have got lovely soft feet, and slightly black ears.

[Flisspaps]

So, have you had that baby yet?

[Sniffwitch]

Hello RVCrapp. Ho;ds out MN high-fiving hand..
Got my hair dye on and waitrose baby butter on my ears so no better time than now for contractions to crack off..

[Flisspaps]

[Flisspaps]

Do some lunges. Worked for SIL.

Wear your best knickers too, waters are bound to go if you're in your nice nicks.

[Sniffwitch]

Ooo wonderstuff that would be great!
I am planning a relaxing evening of clipping my toenails (could be a challenge), filing my hooves, doing my roots (with a term-baby friendly herbal poultice_natch), trimming the ladygarden and eating haribo. And I'm going to go and watch a weepy film whilst bouncing on my birth ball.

[wonderstuff]

I had runs of contractions for a few days before I had dc2 -and I was dilating through them as well -I got grumpy the evening before the event I think - though I was pretty grumpy throughout entire pregnancy. In the end I had a really active labour - it was fairly short and I recovered really quickly afterwards (ds born on Fri morning - walked to pub on sat afternoon)

[MultipleSoManyPapercuts]

With DS I had loads of contractions tat amounted to nothing from 37 weeks, then two days of nothing followed by me being in a really irritable mood, crying at anything then my waters breaking with no warning and DS was born the following morning!

So hopefully you could be on your way! Fingers crossed, though am very as I'm 38+5 and very ready for this one to be born.

Keep us posted

[Imnotaslimjim]

I agree with FP, I think a comfy seat and some popcorn and is needed, we could well be in for a long night

[Flisspaps]

I have, but please don't be brewing a 42 weeker like I did, I don't think I can handle three weeks straight sitting on this chair. And I need to cook tea. :)

[Sniffwitch]

Aww lovely FPs, if you didn't have such flissy paps I'd hug you.. thanks for marking place - feels like you have settled down to wait it out with me [emotional wreck icon]

[Flisspaps]

From threads I have read in the past, then a change in mood can be Good News