Tell me about the day your labour started

[Marghe87]

Obsessing over labour stories as I have just passed my due date and nothing seems to be happening...
I am curious to hear about your labour: when did it start, how, what were you doing etc :)
Thanks for keeping me entertained whilst the wait consumes me XD

I had been so sick with a cold the whole weekend, lay in bed and finally had a shower on the monday, went into labour that evening 2+4 weeks early. I was so glad i washed! I had a waterbirth and the midwife took a photo of DH, DC and I while i was still in the water and my nose is bright red 😂

I felt rubbish all day. Low dull ache in pelvis. Then waters went on the playground!! Contractions started at 4am, thick and fast. Was holding our boy at 8:30am. Was all very quick!

Waters went at 5am, contractions didn’t really start until the following night around midnight! Although I had really dull aches in the day which I now know were the start of contractions! X

I woke up at 5am with aroma h a he thinking I'd eaten something off. Went to the loo then back to bed it still had stomach ache. Sent husband to work and as the day went on it became apparent I was in labour. Stick my TENS machine on and bounced on the ball. Got husband back about 3pm. Had a bath and when I got out it had started snowing, by this time contractions were 3-4 mins apart so rang hospital and set off. Got to hospital about 4pm was assessed and was 6cm. Moved to delivery suite and had my epidural about 5pm. After that it was all pretty chilled out. Had to go on the drip and baby arrived at 5:30am the next day via ventouse in the middle of the 2018 Beast from the East blizzard. I was watching the snow as I was pushing.

I woke up at midnight with some aches and pains. I didn't really think anything of it as I wasn't due for another 2 weeks. The pains increased and I spent a few hours in and out of the bathroom. I told hubby that I must have a dodgy tummy . The naivety!

Hubby looked worried but I assured him I wasn't in labour - it was just something I'd eaten. Around 2am, I was bent over with pain, moaning and had severe pressure. I told my husband that it was obviously the bug - it couldn't possibly be labour! Hubby was now packing my bag and loading it into the car.

Thank God that he ignored me and bundled me into the car. Got to the hospital and was 7cms dilated.They popped my waters and baby was born about an hour later. The tummy bug disappeared too... weird!

I was induced on my subsequent pregnancies so the labour was much more obvious.

Good luck with your labour OP. Fingers crossed that you fly through it.

I woke up so achy and like my stomach was pounding and I couldn't get back to sleep and I knew it was it. Still took another three days of contractions though.

I was 6 days over when mild contractions started in the might. Saw midwife at midday and had a sweep where she said I was 1 cm and had soft cervix. Stayed home bouncing on my ball and using TENS until 11pm then went to hospital. Waters broken due to babies reduced heart rate at times. Forceps delivery at 8.30am the next day after he got stuck behind my pelvis.

I was due on a Thursday but was a little late. A twinging pain in my back woke me up early on a Saturday morning. It gradually strengthened all day so I rang the hospital Saturday night to warn them. I went in at about 2pm Sunday and ds was born Monday at 7.50.am

I was due on Christmas Day. On the night of the 23rd I started throwing up and vomited several times until about 2am. At 4am I started having mild contractions. Had a quiet day pottering around the house with my boys and husband. We decorated gingerbread houses, watched Christmas films, etc. The contractions were manageable and I thought it would be a while before she actually came. My waters broke at 6.30pm, as my DH was putting our boys to bed. Things ramped up a bit and I had a bath, listening to positive birth affirmations and breathing through the contractions while my husband sorted out the Father Christmas stuff.

We decided it was time to get to the MLU up the road, but never made it. She was born in our bathroom, caught by my DH, at about 8.05pm. The paramedics arrived about five minutes later. I felt like a superhero.

Both times I was fast asleep and woke up in the wee small hours with a sensation of somebody trampolining on my cervix, and pretty swiftly some serious contractions. My body does labour pretty quickly. Both times I was at the hospital within 2 hours of waking up, and first time I was 6cm on arrival and fully dilated within an hour or so of that, and second time they didn't check me as they told me I was too calm for it to be proper labour, and 30 minutes later I had a baby!

I’d had a sweep the day before and had some light bleeding.

Went to the supermarket at lunchtime - a big one with homewares - and bought a nice new duvet set and some cushions. Changed the bed when I got home so it was all nice and fresh (that was my only nesting urge) and had what I was fairly sure was a contraction at about 3pm.

Watched some tv and the contractions became more frequent. DP ordered a Chinese takeaway and I didn’t want any but then ended up eating loads of it 😅

Phoned the hospital at about 11pm, they told me to have some paracetamol and a bath. I didn’t but stayed in the living room listening to music and using the bouncy ball to sit on whilst DP had some sleep. Went to hospital at 4am, DS was born just before 9am. I’m glad it didn’t last for days!

I got backache and I wet myself! It wasn’t my waters going- they needed help later- I think he was just lying on my bladder.

With my first I had high blood pressure, my waters went and I contracted for about 10 mins then nothing. I went to ward for monitoring, no movement after 24 hrs so had an induction. All good for about 4hrs, was dilly dallying about whether partner should go home for rest, but felt things move along. Was assured by midwifes it was a side effect of the Pessary and wouldn’t be i labour that quickly. Suddenly pain intensified, I was mooing, could feel his head, (the ring of fire) midwife shouted for another midwife and they wheeled me to the labour ward rather quickly! And he was here a couple of mins later.

2nd I woke up feeling awful, got a surge of energy mid morning cleaned house from top to bottom whilst ignoring the period like pains, took a bath felt the pains increasing, went to hospital to check due to previous quick labour, midwife checked 3cm, but the pain was immense and not having an idea from my last labour as it was so quick, I dreaded getting to fully dilated. Midwife left to do paperwork, 20 mins later I couldn’t bare the pain anymore felt the ring of fire again and told partner to ring the bell, and he was here again within 10 mins 🤣.

I don’t think I’ll have a 3rd I’m too scared I’ll end up giving birth in the car park next time haha

Literally just a normal day, didn't have any niggles no nothing, woke up at 12am thinking I needed a wee, stood up to go to the toilet and my waters went.. went to the hospital half an hour later, had my daughter within 38 minutes of Labour!

DD2. Two weeks before Due Date. Normal weekend day. We were decorating. Went to Homebase & B&Q. Lots of walking around. Was having what I thought were uncomfortable Braxton Hicks, but not really painful.
Super busy day. Went to the toilet at 8pm and had a show. Told DH that I think labour will start soon. He had just ordered a film on Sky Box Office. Sat down to watch film. Contractions started. Every 3 minutes. Said we really should think about heading to the hospital as we lived in the country and it was a 40min drive away. My friend lived 5 mins from hospital so said we go to hers and then head to hospital when we needed. He begrudgingly agreed to stop watching the film and we set off in the car. Then the contractions were coming thick and fast.
No time for friends house. Straight to hospital. Went to be assessed. Midwife had to remove my clothes and panicked. Said she could see babies head. Cue bundling me into a wheelchair and this little old midwife running down the corridor pushing me. All a bit of a blur, but DD was born within 15 minutes of arriving at the hospital. We went home 6 hours later.

I was 39+4. I had an appointment with the midwife in the morning and she told me that baby was engaged and in the right position etc. I had a bit of mild periody type pain but thought nothing of it. Went home, did some DIY (painted the kitchen, made some curtains for the nursery, and re-laid a carpet we'd taken up to avoid paint splashes). Felt fine. Went to bed about 11:30, midnight my waters went. Went to hospital, got sent home, by 6am I was 10cm and pushing on the way to the hospital in the car. Baby arrived at 7:50am

Child 1: was 40+10, was due to go in to be induced that afternoon but woke with mild pains at 5:30am. I had felt fine up until that morning, went for a meal out the night before with my DH, I felt quite OK I remember and had a massive Hunters Chicken. Labour was just under 24 hours and progressed slowly, DC was born at 4:20am the next day.

Child 2: Was 38 weeks & Woke up with mild pains at about 5:30am! 2 days before I’d taken my 3 year old to an activity farm and joined in everything including wriggling through tunnels and climbing a bit. I think this may have started it. The next day I felt exhausted and achy all over, all I did was go to the hairdressers and I drove there as couldn’t face a walk which is unusual for me, perhaps it was starting that day. Labour was much quicker, 12 hours ish, DC was born at 5:25pm that afternoon.

Thank you for sharing all these stories! I am 40+3 and still no signs of labour :( I am hoping it can strike me at any time though!

All very uneventful days really!

1st I was having a pizza at a restaurant and started feeling cramps

2nd normal day and was asleep when I first felt cramps

3rd I'd been looking after the kids all day, done the school run, bath, then felt it whilst reading bedtime stories hahaha. Well timed really as I put them to bed and when they woke up he was here!

On Thursday evening I went out for a curry with a couple of friends, had a grade hotter than usual, and at 2am on Friday I woke up needing a pee. As I was hovering I realised that I had stopped peeing and it was my waters. The first contraction hit a couple of hours later. I went to the hospital the next morning and they kept me in that day but let me out in the evening. The next day they started me on induction meds because I wasn't progressing, and my daughter was born in the early hours of Monday - her due date.

I was 11 days late, been for my second walk of the day & resigned myself to the induction scheduled for 2 days later. I started getting a bit of cramping at 9pm out of the blue, tummy was a bit upset too, I went to the loo at around 9.30/10 and had a bit of blood. I was timing my cramps but they were 10 + minutes apart so we went up to bed but I couldn't sleep so I got up at 11ish, I bounced on my ball & had a shower until 4am when I woke my husband, we went to the hospital at 6am and after a forceps delivery had my baby girl at 5.45pm. It was only 3 months ago but feels like a lifetime ago.

Good luck with everything, I hope you get to meet you baby soon 🥰

Completely normal day, absolutely zero signs of labour approaching. Went to get in to bed and had a very sudden contraction. No slow build up or anything. 10 minutes apart for around 24 hours. Then 3 minutes apart for another 20 or so hours. Then 1 minute apart for 12ish hours (that’s when I went to the hospital). Waters broken around 4 hours before pushing started. unfortunately it was a very poorly managed labour and the midwife missed a cervical lip until I had been pushing for 2 hours and son was becoming distressed and passing meconium, so ended in a c section.

No pain relief aside from bath and shower and he was posterior so it was absolute hell!

I woke up at 37+6 at 9am and felt a bit damp, didn't know whether it was waters or discharge so popped a sanitary towel on and lay back down for half an hour. When I got up it gushed all over the floor. Went to get checked at the hospital who booked me in for induction the following day if labour didn't start.
Contractions started around 2pm but felt fine, we even went to visit DH nan who was in a different hospital. My waters were still going and at one point in was on the floor in his nans hospital room!
By around 7.30pm I was getting 3-4 in 10 mins so went back to the hospital and was really disheartened to find out I was still only 2-3cm, I'd been 2-3cm on the morning when I'd been examined. They let me stay as they were quiet.
Things progressed and DD was born at 10.30am the following morning. She was back to back, had a second degree tear but I look back at it as a positive experience.

Hi @Marghe87 any sign of your LO yet?

I had my first 12 weeks ago. The day before (39+1) I felt a little 'gush' after going for a pee first thing in the morning, when I went back to check, I had some light spotting. Called triage who advised me to put a pad on and lie down for an hour then check to see if the pad needed changing (it didn't). I didn't lose anymore fluid but the spotting continued all day.

Went to bed at midnight and woke up at 3am for the loo, just as I climbed back into bed I felt a massive gush, followed by another, then another... I ran to the bathroom and found that my mucous plug had come away in one massive glob and my waters were literally pouring out of me - Hollywood style! Contractions started immediately and I felt a bit nauseous.

Got to hospital and was examined, I was 3cm dilated (1.5hrs from waters breaking). I was scheduled to have an ELCS 5 days later so they prepped theatre and took me straight down. DS was delivered at 6.37am. My whole world changed within those 3.5hrs 🥰

Best of luck/congratulations!

I had a friend over, moaned loads that I would be pregnant forever. I felt very agitated and anxious after she left and sent my consultant a long email begging to be induced before due date (I was on crutches with severe SPD and couldn’t walk). Later I sat on my gym ball to watch TV and my waters just went suddenly. My friend thought it was so funny when she woke up to a text at 6am the next morning saying baby had arrived after all the moaning I had done the previous afternoon I didn’t even have a twinge until 8:30pm, contractions started slowly like a belt tightening round my middle and built up. Ended up with an emergency c section in early hours of next morning due to baby being in a difficult position.

All the best for your delivery and new arrival