So for the loooooonnnngg prodromal labors...

[RachelGS]

...how did you know when it was the real thing? I swear I've had so many contractions and so much cramping over the past week that I'll have to have my water break or the baby actually crown before I'm willing to believe I'm in labor. With my first baby, my labor just started out of the blue in the middle of the night. This one is taking forever to warm up, and I'm not going to be easily convinced.

[Stephane]

I feel the same way! I've convinced myself at this point that it won't be the real thing until the baby IS actually crowning! :LOL

[aishy]

It was 8:45 before I figured it out (when I told my husband to call my friend who lives an hour away I was still thinking she didnt need to come waste another trip down only to be dissapointed again) and I was complete at 9. lol. I had nooo idea it was going so fast either, I thought I was maybe hitting transition when the midwife showed up despite the fact that I felt pushy already.

Hopefully your labor goes that quick and you have no time to think. Makes it really nice. I realized tonight her birth was just *fun* right afterwards as I got up off of Jason so he could go change (heh. we're calling those "the birth jeans" from now on) someone said to him "So Jason she came out beetween your legs" and he quickly responded "Same way she got in"

Aisling

[momma2finn]

Originally Posted by aishy

"So Jason she came out beetween your legs" and he quickly responded "Same way she got in"
Aisling

:LOL

[bebetuck]

Too funny, I was just telling DH last night that we're not going to the hospital again until I can feel him crowning!!

I am with you about the cramping and contractions, been dealing with that BIG time the last 3 days or so, especially at night when I'm trying to sleep

To quote someone on another thread recently: Baby. Out. Now.

[Bookworm]

I had the same thing. Timing contractions every night, they were intense and close together for weeks before the birth! Then, one night, I woke up at three in the morning, and my whole abdomen and thighs were sore. Not contracting, just really sore. I went to take a bath to relieve the pain, and when I was getting in the tub, a tiny bit of my water trickled down my leg. I only knew because I happened to be naked and it was pink. Later, I noticed in the Bradley book, that sore thighs can be a sign of labor. The contractions felt different after that, and were ten minutes apart. Unfortunately, I didn't have the baby for 34 more hours, but it was labor, alright.

[teachinmaof3]

I had prodomal labor with my third and fourth.

With the third, I just felt different. The cntx weren't really different (felt just like bh and like I'd been having for the 2.5wks prior) but something in me said something was happening.

This last time, I had bh-like cntx for about 3hrs but they suddenly changed! Still, the "new" cntx felt like ones I had had a week prior so I wasn't sure for a while. Then I started feeling "pushy". That's when I knew it was real and it was happening FAST!

[operamommy]

I'm starting to get nervous about the same thing. I'm just praying that I have a big sign like my water breaking early or bloody show early to let me know that something *finally* is really happening instead of another fake-out!