Tell me about your early labour

[bluemoon2468]

10 days out from my due date I'm constantly symptom spotting and overthinking every twinge... it feels like TTC all over again! Would love to hear how your labours started - what were the first signs, what did the early contractions feel like, when did you realise you were in labour, how long before you were in established labour etc. etc.? 🤰🏻

First baby nothing and was induced at 40+8.

Second baby no symptoms until contractions started- had 3 ten mins apart and then they ramped up enough for me to call midwife. Baby was born about 90 mins later. I was 40+10

Woke at 5am with slight cramp and had a poo! Woke at 6am with slight cramp and had a poo! All day had some cramps on and off but mine felt all bowel related rather than the period type cramps most people describe. Was convinced it was something I ate the day before. Went about my normal day fine- a few times during the day they got very painful, for example, I had to stand at one point during lunch as it hurt to sit, went for a walk at 8pm and had to stop a couple of times as cramps came. But other than that i spent the day madly shopping, cleaning and doing last minute jobs. By 10pm I couldn't lie in bed due to the pain, by 10.30 I couldn't speak to the midwife on the phone through the pain- husband had to take phone off me and speak for me. Baby came around 3am.

Good luck. I find it fascinating that everyone's experiences of early labour can be so different.

Due date I went for a long walk with the dog, felt like I was leaking a little, called midwife, they send someone out later to check what I thought was waters (was advised to keep pads to show for her to look at) she confirmed waters had started and told that if nothing had happened by the following morning to phone labour ward to see if they had space for me for induction (due to infection risk ones waters have gone you have to deliver within 24 hours or something similar or monitored) nothing more happened, 8pm that same night was just cooking dinner minding my own and my waters completely went in 3 large gushes. As soon as they went my contractions started practically instantly. I managed a further hour and half at home and found them too painful, arrived at hospital I was 3cm they weren't too busy so said I could go home or stay, the weather had got foggy and not too pleasant so decided to stay as on a good run I live 30 mins from the hospital. Can't remember exactly how long I was in the non pushing stage but was pushing maybe an hour ish and it was decided his head was a little off and so wasn't able to come down birth canal without some help, ended up in theatre having spinal and forceps delivery as they had to move him a little but spinal was incase they had to move onto section. He was born at 5.09am the day after my due date. Good luck! x

Period pains every night when lying down, for a week or so before.

Then on the morning of the delivery, woke up in foul mood, started to have mild contractions - that I ignored as I had stuff to do!

After an hour or so, I couldn’t ignore them any more, And told my DH.
2 hrs later we went to MLU, I was 4cm. Went into pool, baby born 1.5 hrs later!

Hypnobirthing all the way - I strongly strongly recommend it x

I had no symptoms in the run up to my waters breaking at 39+2. 2am in the morning woke up thinking I had wet myself, ftm so I had no idea what it was just thought I was uncontrollably leaking till I realised ‘shit I think it’s time’... arrived at the hospital and was 2cm confirmed for waters breaking, mild contractions that turned into pretty hefty ones in a couple of hours. DS arrived 12.5hours later.

Good luck!

It was about midnight and I was trying to get to sleep. Suddenly felt damp, went to the bathroom had a gush of fluids in the toilet, more when I stood up. Went into triage, the pool of waters on the bed meant they didn't need to do an examine to check if they had gone. I was put on the ctg monitor, they discussed giving me a sweep but needed a Drs approval as I was 38 +6 weeks and they don't do them as standard before 40 weeks but by the time we had finished the monitoring I was having contractions. I could really feel them just felt like a minor stitch. At 3 am I could feel them 3 in 10, 30 seconds long by 9 am they were 60 second long and I went in to be examined (2 cm). I went back at 12 unable to cope any longer at home, I was fully dilated and had her within the hour.