OK, this thread has been done so many times...

[LissyGlitter]

...but when do BH become "real" contractions? It is my second baby, but first was breech and back to back and prem and generally all wrong, so I suppose things might not be as immediately horrific this time round.

I'm getting tightenings every 5 minutes or so for the past hour, lasting about 40 seconds, they are more achy than painful, but in my back as well as bump. Also a lot of pressure in my general undercarriage. Boobs are wet through with colostrum. No plug (although I think that may have come away a couple of weeks back) but lots of discharge (but have already had one false alarm thinking my waters had gone, and they just said I had a lot of discharge for no apparent reason)

I have a section booked, do I start panicking now or just ignore it all?

Ignore it for an hour and try to go to bed. If it is real labour you will not be able to sleep and will be up again in half an hour and calling the hospital.

If you really want to have the section, you probably need to keep an eye on them. FWIW I had BH for over a month with DS and he still decided not to come out and had to be surgically evicted

Good luck

Don't want to panic you, but my BH signalled the arrival of DS within 6 hours. By the time we realised it was labour proper I was in full flow and pushing, fortunately we had planned a home birth anyway. Contractions were 4 mins apart lasting for 30-40 seconds right from the very start and they never got any longer (which we were waiting for as a sign of labour proper).

Lying down and getting in the bath didn't help slow things down - speeded up if anything. Waters conveniently went in bath (or so we assume as they had obviously gone when he arrived)

I have to have the section, I'm at a high risk of rupture due to DDs section being weird (so weird the doctors and midwives tend to not believe me when I tell them and have to check my notes)

I had a stressful day, due to DD playing up, so could be just BH set off by all that.

Have a bath and a small glass of wine. If they go away they are not the real thing.

I find real contractions different to BH - not so much in terms of where they hurt but because they seem more ferocious, even the mild ones. If you suspect that something is starting I think you should call your doctor. In your circumstances it sounds like you ought to be extra careful.

any news?

No news, I keep getting a couple of hours of these regular BHs, that slowly get more and more painful, then tail off again. Today I'm getting pains, but this time they are not at all regular. I'm just about to take DD to her dancing lesson, and I'm hoping the walking about might get things either going or stopping. Going, preferably!

if the bh are a pita, a warm bath will usually stop them.

Good luck

if you go into labour are you going to labour or will you still have the c.s? you maybe need to chat to labour ward to get their advice if things look imminent if you don't want to labour.

definitely try the bath to see if it stops things

lulu apparently it would be too dangerous to labour, which is a shame, as I would have liked to try for a VBAC, but I would much rather be safe, iyswim.

Well, I rang them, and they made me go in. They checked me over, I am having contractions, but they aren't doing anything, cervix is still long and closed. They debated keeping me in, but said that as long as I promise to go in if the contractions get regular for an hour or so I could go home. So looks like I will spend the end of the pregnancy in and out of hospital as that keeps happening.

See my other thread (called is this SPD? On pregnancy) for more moaning