What's the feeling of waters breaking?

[LouiseT12]

FTM here! I'm 40 weeks this coming Tuesday 😬. Just curious what is the feeling of waters breaking? Is it like you really need to go for a wee? Or you literally have no warning what's so ever and it just comes out of you? Like most pregnant mummas I'm constantly up and down to ten toilet especially half asleep at night! Worried I might mistaken the urge to go to the toilet and my waters breaking?

I think it can vary.

Nothing like a pee.
I had my waters broken first time during labour (40 +1) to speed things up.
Second time mine broke in the hospital corridor while waiting to be admitted.
No urge at all.
I heard a pop- it was audible, and a slight feeling of release, then just a warm gush flowing down and onto the floor.

I've had four babies and they only went naturally with my last one and I was about 5cms and in hospital.
For me it was a massive feeling of pressure and then pop whilst having a contraction.
Nothing like needing a wee though.

My waters broke after I went to the toilet. I stood up and they sort of ‘gushed’ out back in to the toilet. Mine wasn’t specifically dramatic but I knew what they were, it felt to me a bit like when you have a big gush of blood when on your period. When you have to quickly run to the loo to make sure you haven’t leaked 🤣. Hope that makes sense !

Mine were broken by the midwife and they went EVERYWHERE! Even up her arm!

No warning. It's like bubbles popping inside you, then a trickle.. then a warm gush!

I wasn’t aware of them going with my first two.
With the third I was sitting on a sofa and heard and felt a loud ‘pop’! I knew when I stood up there would be a waterfall, and there was!

Felt nothing. Just a big gush of wetness as I was getting in the car.

Mine broke early (34 weeks) while I was in bed - I thought I had wet myself and when I stood up, it was a gush. Definitely not like needing to pee though, the sensation is more like a heavy period I guess?

Mine broke in the middle of the night but no gush, just trickling the whole time until I went into labour. Also no warning beforehand. It was really weird. Not like a wee, just unable to control the trickle when standing up. When they first went, I wasn't even sure if they had broken. It coincided with me having to go to triage as I felt the baby wasn't moving much, and it was there that they confirmed my waters had indeed gone. Seems to vary from person to person going by PP though!

With my first there was no feeling to it, I just started leaking fluid and it was gradual.

With the second two it was during labour and it was a pop and massive gush everywhere.

Both of mine happened in hospital, just before the birth.
Nothing like in the movies where their waters break and suddenly contractions start and it's a mad dash to the hospital!

Mine were broken during induction. Once they popped, it went everywhere and was splashing all over the hospital bed. DH and I found it hilarious as every time I moved more came flooding out, making me laugh. My bump immediately shrunk and felt different too as there was no waters around the baby by that point.

Mine definitely couldn’t be mistaken for pee. No warning, a pop feeling then a huge warm gush. No feeling like needing a pee either.

No real feeling/ warning just noticed it happening with both. It was the first sign of labour for both mine baby 1 came 1hr.20 mins latter baby 2 came 2hr.15 mins latter. Good job I had that warning because the time your contractions theory would never have worked for me.

I had a definite "pop" when sat on the sofa. It really hurt but I'm not sure if it was the waters going or a contraction. Definite fish when I stood up. Pretty unmistakable tbh!

My first was trickling out, I wasn't sure if I was peeing.
My second popped on my first push, I was in the pool so not sure on how that would look, I certainly felt it though.

You will know.

I had a 16 hour labour and in the final hour there was a sudden and very loud bang on the floor! It was like someone had thrown a big water balloon on the floor and it scared me a little! I'm sure I'm in the minority here but that's one way it could happen. It's not always in the early stages.

Mine went with one big contraction which was sharper than those before it and kind of reached a peak, then there was a pop sensation followed by a dramatic splash on the floor. Second lot went about half an hour later randomly but also as a big gush. It turned out I had polyhydramnios though so there was a lot of water!

No urge because it’s nothing to do with your bladder. It’s like a period gush but bigger.

I'm the opposite to most of these replies, I'd been in labour for a day at that point, got some sleep at the hospital and when I woke up and sat up to go for a wee I thought I'd wet myself. Then there was just a slow trickle as I walked to the toilet (further convincing me I'd just lost bladder control 😂) after mentioning it to the midwife it turned out to be my waters so mine definitely felt like pee. I think had I not gone for a normal full wee when I reached the toilet I would have just assumed it was pee and never mentioned it.

I was lying in the hospital bed, heard quite a loud pop then it felt like I wet myself. The second time I heard a pop while I was on the toilet then a gush.
There is no urge it just happens, I was already having contractions for a few hours before hand but they were more intense after.

With DD I felt a definite POP in bed at 6am and knew that was it - but there was no actual water/liquid, apparently because her head was so jammed against the cervix that none could get out! So it is possible to have the pop without the leakage.

It's unrelated to any "need a wee" type feeling.

With my first baby there was very slow progress so midwife broke them- there was a pop and a massive gush (it didn't help).
With my second I was in the birth pool and they only broke just before the baby's head crowned, I felt a feeling of pressure then a pop, then the pain was much worse but I was close to the end then so didn't have to cope for much longer.
I only know one person whose waters broke dramatically, we were in a team meeting at work , she was 38 weeks and she'd had 'braxton hicks' on and off, then her waters went, all over the carpet. She had the baby two hours later.

A pop and an almighty gush here, just like the movies. All over the maternity unit floor. By the time theyd packed me off to change in the toilet, they'd cleared it all up like some fluid cleaning dream team. I wouldn't have wanted to clean it up at home!