Do people go into labour when they are suffering with bad colds?

[TheProvincialLady]

Because I am 38 weeks and have had a bad, bad cold since Sunday and it is only getting worse. I spent sunday in bed but unwisely got up to go out for dinner, had a normalish day looking after DS yesterday and then back to bed today. I have a burning throat, fever, running nose, streaming hot eyes, aching limbs and a cough that is making me wee myself

Basically, I feel rough and I am a bit wooried I might go into labour on top of all that. I am having quite strong BHs and backache but it's not labour at the moment.

Would my body really be stupid enough to send me into labour in this state? What happens if it does - do you just forget the cold symptoms or is it doubly worse?

It's a bit unusual. The body normally waits till it feels safe before it goes into labour (ie stress etc stops things) but if it did happen you wouldn't be paying much attention to your snotty nose, don't worry.

BTW I had a caesarian when I had a bad cold, it was horrid because I kept sneezing afterwards and it was soooo very painful!

Oh WMMC that sounds painful

I suppose looking on the bright side, I might not need to push - a few good coughs and he'll fly out!

That's the spirit! You'll be fine in a couple of days don't worry. You wait, you'll be cursing on Christmas eve when you have a regular and insistent pain which possibly isn't wind

I had a massive cold before DS2 was born and I was worried just like you are, but he waited til the cold was over and was a week late. I had the cold on my due date. You should be fine. Like WMMC said, you will forget about the cold when labour gets into the swing of things!

Good luck and hope it all goes to plan for you.

Good luck TPL, I had a bad, very long-lasting cold with dd3 (not as late on as you but in the third trimester) and every time I coughed, I peed myself a tiny bit. Once I answered the door to dh (he had left his keys at home), coughing, and saying "hi, sorry, need to go, I've just wet myself"). That's a nice welcome from your wife after a day at work.... sorry to stray off the point!!

Best of luck with the birth xx

I've been thinking along these lines this evening. I've got a throat infection and can't stop coughing, I can feel my stomach tightening around the baby and worried that on top of the rest (32 weeks been having proper contractions almost 8 weeks) that I'm going to cause her to come.

I had a really bad fluey cold when I went into labour with my third. I didn't give the cold a second thought whilst I was actually in labour, but I did find it the most tiring and hard work of all three of my labours, and it took me much longer to recover from afterwards, I was just really worn out.

I had a dreadful cold around dd1's due date - she was two weeks late thankfully!

PMSL snooks - I just got my DH to fetch me an inco pad as I was literally wetting the bed, so that's the romance gone from our marriage (like there was any left after DS)..

Looks like most babies have the sense to stay put until the cold is better then, and if not then I won't notice it. I'm sorry your labour and recovery were harder with your third idontlikesundays. It is too much to manage on top of the normal recovery anyway I should think.

Tinsel - look after yourself and try not to worry Your baby will probably stay put and 32 weeks is a good gestation if the worst happened, as I'm sure you know. Poor you, having contractions all that time.

I had a bad cough and cold just before I was due with ds, it got better for a couple of days during which time I gave birth but unfortunately it came back with a venegance afterwards and I was really quite ill for several weeks

TMI sorry but the 'wee' on the inco pad has dried pink Oh please Lord tell me this is the not the beginnging of a show..

I gave birth a fortnight ago with a terrible cold. i whispered my way through labour cos i couldn't speak and spent the whole time blowing my nose to clear the huge amount of snot i was producing. Midwives think my cold may have contributed to my less than impressive pushing - took 3 hours of pushing to get him out. thankfully i avoided another section (had a vbac) as the coughing would have been agony. As it was my stiches twinged every time i blew my nose or coughed afterwards. Cold has only just cleared this week.

Oh dear nulgirl that sounds rough. Congratulations on your baby and on the vbac - coughing after a section would definitely have hurt.

I AM having my show and am a bit concerned as show preceded labour by about half an hour with DS I feel a bit better this morning because I slept well last night for the first time in about a fortnight, but DH has what I have now and MIL is here looking after DS. The absolute last thing I need is for DH to be feeling sorry for himself whilst I am in labour. He ALWAYS manages to do this when I need to be the one who is taken care of (Poor DH...)

I was in your position a few days ago. 39 weeks along and DD and I both for fevers, coughs etc etc etc. Three hours before it hit I had been given a sweep and as I lay in bed shivering I had a big show and lots of cramps. I was terrified. The good news is that my body totally shut-down as I got iller. Today is my due date and I am raring to go but even a second sweep has not reawakened my uterus.

Good luck!

Oh artichokes that is just what I needed to hear! I am going to stay in bed and hopefully the lack of activity will hold things off too. Best of luck with your birth too

(Did you get your family history question sorted BTW?)

I did get it answered. It was quite interesting. I located my grandmother's death certificate which said cancer was the cause of death (as I had always been told). I relayed this to the relative who had been told suicide and he did some digging (he is a doctor and seemed to have access to more info). It turns out she was dying of cancer and took an overdose to relieve the pain . Suicide was such a taboo in the 1940s that my grandfather (also a doctor) made sure that it was never officially recorded.

Now go and get some rest and get that womb of yours to relax .

Oh gosh, the poor thing I'm glad you got your answer anyway.

Off to rest womb!

Me and DS had a stinking cold when I was 39 weeks with DD. She stayed put until 41 weeks when my cold was alot better. Unfortunatly it came back after and I didn't completely shift it until she was 5 weeks.