How "sudden" is labour?

[Dontjumptoconclusions]

I'm 38 weeks pregnant with my first. Really excited for my Christmas baby!

I've read a lot online about how to know when you're in labour - contractions, water breaking etc. But how sudden are these instances?

Are you just going about your day, taking a walk, having a shower and bam... First contraction? Or is there more of a build up with BH, mild cramps and then progression to contraction and birth?

I woke up at 2:30am, couldn’t sleep and achey back so had a nice warm bath.... which it turns out was masking my contractions. In hospital birthing pool by 4:30, baby arrived about 6:00. So quick I didn’t push 😂

Bit of back ache in the morning, a few hours later lost my plug (thought it was my waters going but got checked out and it wasn't - I was 1cm dilated), contractions started gradually that day and became more regular that night, was still able to sleep. Next day contractions stopped completely, started again at night, more intense. Contractions continued the next day and night, sometimes regular, sometimes irregular, didn't get much sleep over these days. Next day went in and was 3cm dilated, back home, contractions much more intense, went back in at 4am, still 3cm. Very tired by this point. Went back in at lunchtime, still 3cm, given pethidine to have a rest which worked, when checked early evening I was 5cm and finally admitted and in active labour.

Was not at all prepared for early labour being so long and exhausting. By far harder than active labour.

So first signs of something happening were the Friday, not in active labour until the Tuesday, baby born Wednesday lunchtime.

I woke up on my due date with contractions first stage was very slow had my waters broken in hospital so it does vary.

4pm: find a little leak, but ignore it as I've heard that happens in pregnancy (34 weeks)
11.30 pm: woken up by sudden gush, go to the loo but still not sure if its anything
12am: phone hospital and midwife says to go down
1am: midwife says I'm in labour
2am: given sleeping tablet as unable to sleep
5am: still unable to sleep due to odd 'sensations' every 30 minutes or so. Woman in bed opposite suggests it might be contractions?
Contractions gradually increase over the next 12 hours til DS born by caesarean

My plug went about lunchtime - it looks like gooey snot and may have some blood streaked in it - and I started contractions about 11pm. Baby arrived in time for lunch the next day.

Both times I had period type cramps that ramped up. Waters went hours later.

First babies are more likely to be slow, TV deliveries always make it look much too quick!

I lost my mucus plug in the morning but knew it could still be weeks before anything & I didn’t feel any different at all. My waters broke unexpectedly that night but I had no contractions until about 36 hours later which was really confusing to me as tbh I didn’t know that could happen! Sounds so silly now but I just thought either I’d have contractions alone or contractions followed by waters or waters & instant contractions but not waters no contractions! Aaaaanyway. Good luck! Exciting times ahead :)

With my first, contractions started around lunchtime. No painful, just there. Was in hospital late afternoon. At 8pm, waters went... Still having non painful but regular contractions. Wasn't fully dilated.
Baby was born 10minutes later. I was alone, resting in the hospital room as I wasn't in full labour apparently. DH ran out of the room to find help, and in the 10seconds he was gone the baby was born.

Second time round... Similar. But I wasn't left alone for a second by the midwives (homebirth). In the morning I went to the nursery bake sale with toddler. In the afternoon I had a baby.

Didn't have any painful contractions with either. More just a sensation.

I woke up around 4am having period like pains until 6am went back to sleep and nothing else happened, waters went at 10pm that evening as I was sitting on the sofa, totally unexpecred at 36 weeks after a very smooth pregnancy. No contractions then, went into hospital and was given steroid injections 24 hours apart and antibiotics incase of infection, went home and had a contraction every hour for 3 days until full blown labour came. Went into hospital 6cm dialated and he still took another 14 hours to arrive. He was weirdly impatient then seemed to change his mind 🙈

Lost my plug on the Friday, woke up early hours of Sunday morning with contractions, waters never went and had to be broken by the midwife, had ds Sunday evening

Bloody show around 11pm at night, contractions started 12 hours later which woke me up (first pregnancy, 8 days overdue).

Waters didn't break until seconds after epidural was administered. 26 hours of labour and no interventions. Pushed out within an hour of being fully descended.

I woke up at 3am with just tummy discomfort, almost like the beginnings of a period. Within the hour I was breathing through my contractions and had lost my mucous plug. My waters had to be broken for me in hospital. Baby was born 17 hours after the first contraction

Both of mine 8 years apart mind! Water broke at 3am
Light contractions till 3/4pm then the magic happened first one 5.45 second one 6.45 pm

Were a weird bunch here! 😂 both were winter babies

I woke up at 4am having contractions. Very painful from start to end. By 8am I was gripping chairs and anything else and couldn't speak through them. Baby arrived 12 hours after the contractions woke me on due date.

Second baby I woke up at around 4 am again. With contractions and had her about 6 hours later. One day after due date.

Third baby I woke up at 5am and felt my waters break. 5 minutes later, contractions in full swing. Baby born 3 hours later. I've no idea if he was late or early as I didn't really keep tabs on a due date. I knew it was sometime around early to mid month.

@Indoctro jeeesssusssss you ok?!

for me I was meh-ish period type cramps for a couple days then one morning the was a weird pop feeling and a show and my waters irritatingly trickled out so slowly, pain got worse and more regular so i went in. Got told it was going to be ages and to go home, resisted for a while then gave up and had DD 30 mins after getting home.
10/15 mins later the ambulances arrived. About 10-11 hours from pop to baby.

Very sudden for me. Every time I’ve gone from fine one minute to LABOUR the next. In different ways, for example with one it was straight into massive back to back contractions, with another my waters spontaneously broke with a massive gush. Everyone’s told me it’s only like that on tv. The only thing that didn’t happen was a mad dash to a hospital and I’m very glad in retrospect

Fastest baby was 45 minutes

First time was induced so it came on pretty quickly - but even then it was over several hours. Second time I got very minor contractions/tightening and lower cramps like bad period pains but I was at soft play with my toddler and sister and I just kind of knew that it wasn't urgent (but I definitely knew that I was in labour). I had driven us there so I drove home while my husband came home from work and we went to hospital early Eve. None of it was 'sudden', there was definitely lots of time with both labour to finish what I was doing.

[quote olderthanyouthink]@Indoctro jeeesssusssss you ok?!

for me I was meh-ish period type cramps for a couple days then one morning the was a weird pop feeling and a show and my waters irritatingly trickled out so slowly, pain got worse and more regular so i went in. Got told it was going to be ages and to go home, resisted for a while then gave up and had DD 30 mins after getting home.
10/15 mins later the ambulances arrived. About 10-11 hours from pop to baby. [/quote]
Ha ha yeah it was a bit of a shock at the time as you can imagine but looking back now least it was over super quick and I wasn't in labour for hours like some

It's called a silent labour supposedly, where your completely unaware your in labour and feel nothing

Only thing that I still think about is the doctors told me when a baby is born so quickly like that the risk of hemorrhage is very high and had that happened you need to get to theatre within minutes. The fact I'm nearly 1 hour away from hospital means both me and baby would of likely died they told me. Luckily though all was fine

I don't recommend delivering your own baby though at the time it was pretty dam scary and extremely confusing seems I'd just woke up.

Should of said I had both a silent labour and a precipitous birth , all over in less than 2 minutes.

My contractions started at 10pm feeling like period cramps then gradually ramped up overnight. Show appeared in bits during the morning. Waters only broke when I started pushing, and baby was out by dinnertime.

I slept through mild contractions (I presume) and was woken with a start at 2am with a decent contraction, every time! So, sudden for me.

Both of mine started at 4:30am in the dot. With DD, I had 10 hours of mild contractions, but went for a walk, ate lunch etc. Then waters broke and everything got more painful and serious.

With DS, waters broke at 4:30am, but contractions were nothing much to worry about, went to hospital after 12 hours, they kept me in and as soon as I got on to the bed things started moving along.

First one was a build up of back pain...took 2/3 hours to realise it was labour (back to back labour).

Second one I was on the phone to my mum saying I haven’t started in labour (day after sweep) when, bam, huge contraction hit, next one five minutes later and I knew for sure.