Do chiropractors really have a clue about impending births?

[Asher]

I love love love my chiro, but when I saw her today, she told me she thinks I'll have him within 10 days.

No worries, I'm not excited by that prediction. I'm not planning on it or expecting it. I'm just wondering what makes them guesstimate. Something they can feel in our body/bones, maybe?

I *am* having a lot of hip pain and she said it's b/c he is settling down in lower so I'm wondering if that's what she's going by.

Meanwhile, I woke up last night thinking I absolutely, positively do not feel like I will have this baby within a month or so. I always have prodomal labor for weeks if not more with my babies. This one, though? No signs, symptoms, feelings, nada. An occasional BH or contrax, but that's about it.

He just wants to be different.

[Sadie Lake]

You know Asher, I have to wonder if the stress you've been through in these last weeks/months has had anything to do with you not feeling/having prodomal labor? Maybe you've been so busy and worried/stressed that you haven't been able to relax enough to feel stuff going on down there?

I only say that because my MIL had my dh a "month early" (never asked her how many weeks she was) but she didn't know she was in labor until she was vomiting in transition. I think sometimes when you're not mentally prepared, the labor stuff affects you different.

What do you think?

Sadie

[Asher]

Ohhh...that'd be nice. I'd not mind at all not realizing it until he's about to pop his head out.

I had been chalking it up to his position, but my girls never went heads down until 37 weeks, either and I still had lots of bh and prodomal labor with them so I'm not sure.

[j_p_i]

I don't know about chiropractors and guessing... but it seems like everyone around me is giving me the same prediction! A couple weeks ago, people were saying they didn't think I'd make it until May. Now it's within two weeks. EVERYONE is saying this to me - strangers, friends, family... it's hard not to be like "hmm... could everyone be wrong?!"

Perhaps the stress has had something to do with not feeling the symptoms you've felt in the past Asher. I wonder about the hip pain too - this started for me recently.

[chaibaby]

Speaking as a chiropractor, I can tell you that we, along with everyone else other than you baby, cannot tell you when you're going to go into labour. While it would be great if we could predict something like that, it isn't going to happen. Sorry!

If I were to predict labour based on hip/low back/pelvis pain alone, then every mother I see would be going into labour immediately. Including me!

Hope that helps?

Andrea

[Asher]

It does! Thank you! Maybe she's psychic? (Kidding!) When I saw her, she asked how I was and I said "I'm ready!" Maybe she was just trying to encourage me?

[the_lissa]

No idea. My chiro hasn't mentioned anything either way. I can't imagine they could know.

[trauerweidchen]

My chiro looked at my ribs flaring and how much room I had between my uterus and my sternum, basically, and said that it seems to him that when women run out of room and have their ribs start flaring that they're about ready to have the baby. He doesn't think I'll make it to my "due date" either, and none of my family and friends think I'll make it to late May, but I'm hanging onto that "May 11 to June 8 is my due window" concept so I'm not disappointed one way or another. May 11 is as early as I'd like to have this baby anyway, with everything that's going on right now for my DH (finals and a big project at work).

I haven't had a lot of contractions or signs that would lead me to suspect this babe is coming early, other than my own gut instinct that I'll be close to my due date but probably not over, but then again my mother didn't have any pre-labor signs that she recalls before she had me, so... it's different for everyone!