Prodromal Labor

[ColwynsMommy]

Has anyone had a lot of prodromal labor with one birth, but not subsequent births? I really don't want to repeat that part of my last birth.. it was so exhausting. Anything I can do to try to avoid prodromal labor?

Thanks!

[SashaBear]

I think I remember someone saying on here that prodromal labor tends to come with a malpositioned baby. Check out spinningbabies.com. Its a very detailed website but is user and parent friendly. Start with mapping to learn the position of your baby. Good Luck

[Becken]

I had none with my first, and am on week two of sporadic prodomal labor with this one. She's perfectly positioned, too. Just biding her time.

I have no idea if there's a way to keep it from happening; I kind of thought it was a good thing - your body is doing a lot of prep work before the actual onset of labor; maybe it'll go faster?

[GreenMamma]

Honestly, I don't think there is much you can do to really prevent it. Prodromal labor helps to prepare your uterus and baby for the actual show. Once labor got going for you last time, how long was it? There are many women who will experience a long prelabor or early labor but once it gets going, baby comes fast. It's the body's way of getting the contractions organized and helping baby to find a good position.

But to help with a long prelabor/early labor remember to rest as much as possible, eat and drink, sit in the bath, or consider using aromatherapy, acupressure, or homeopathic remedies.

[sanguine_speed]

Me, mama.
If you're like me, when you say "prodromal labor" you mean painful contractions that come frequently but not regularly and do not help you make significant progress like "true labor". There is no sleeping through contractions, or putting your feet up--they feel like real labour but just don't go anywhere for days. It is truly exhausting! It doesn't feel like early labour at all--it feels like active labour without rhythm.

I did have this with my second, who was probably positioned badly. Anyway, I'm happy to report that other than those regular pre-labor strong B-H-like 'getting ready' contractions, my third came without the prodromal bit.

[ColwynsMommy]

Yes, the contractions were painful (but not horrible) and I absolutely had to be upright during them. They were pretty consistent, always between 7-10 minutes apart. There was never a break, so I got zero sleep for two nights in a row. They didn't do much to my cervix.

However, 'real' labor was a snap.. there was one contraction that was different than all the rest (not more painful, but all of a sudden it drove me nuts that people were talking during it), and the baby was in my arms in under an hour. It was intense, but the contractions weren't actually that much more painful that the prodromal ones.. which is why I hesitated to call the midwife and she missed the birth. So, in a way, I was grateful that I had such an easy birth from that perspective, but those 48 hours were so incredibly wearing. If it had been off and on and I could have gotten some rest, it would have been totally different.

I don't think she was malpositioned, though I did do some exercises in case that had been the problem. The change came right after I had told my midwife that I'd had it and if the baby wasn't born by that evening, I was going to the hospital. I was sitting and talking with my mom (who works at said hospital) about the specifics of transferring, and that's when I had the first 'real' contraction. So I don't know if there was some sort of subconscious/psychological aspect to it.

I'm just hoping that I'm not sleepless for several nights before giving birth, 'cause that truly sucked.