Enlighten Me...Tell me about the onset of labor?

[CityChic]

Just wondering if you remember what the "start" of labor was like. Were you pretty sure you were going to be in labor soon? What were the signs? Did it just hit you like a ton of bricks, no warning?

Yes, I am getting antsy! I know babies come when they are ready, I'm just impatient!

[2Sweeties1Angel]

I woke up with hard contractions one morning and that sort of tipped me off

[nurnur]

for me the onset of labor was slow, my membranes released first and it took a while before I really felt anything in the way of contractions. I would describe the beginning ones as mild cramps that didn't really stop me from what I was doing at all, they were spread out quite a bit like 15 to 30 minutes in the beginning too. It certainly was not like a hollywood movie where one minute Im standing in the grocery store line and then I clutch my abdomen and scream "the baby's coming", no not at all, for me it was a slow process with plenty of warm up stuff. I comiserate with you though, these last days of waiting are the hardest, there just isn't a true linear process to it!

[~~Mama2B~~]

Ooh me too!

I've been having these weird, slightly painful feelings (maybe contrax? ) in my groin area. I've heard that true contrax envelope the whole abdomen, but I'm wondering what's going on down there! Plus baby's feet have been digging into my stomach til I want to cry. I keep trying to push them back in, but I'm just waiting for that "Alien" moment when s/he'll rip out of my gut and growl...

Kristi

[SublimeBirthGirl]

WIth my first I sprung a leak, started having short, mild contractions 15 minutes apart. It took almost 28 hours for her to be born. Loooooooooooong period of pretty short, easy contractions, early labor signposts. I only knew it was labor because my water was broken (just the forebag I think).

With my second, I went to bed one night. I had, over the course of an hour or so, 3-4 VERY strong contractions. They were definitely stronger than the ones I'd had for weeks. I was tired but could not get comfortable. I knew she was coming. I got up, active labor kicked in immediately, and she was born less than 4 hours later.

[St. Margaret]

Originally Posted by ~~Mama2B~~

Ooh me too!

I've been having these weird, slightly painful feelings (maybe contrax? ) in my groin area. I've heard that true contrax envelope the whole abdomen, but I'm wondering what's going on down there! Plus baby's feet have been digging into my stomach til I want to cry. I keep trying to push them back in, but I'm just waiting for that "Alien" moment when s/he'll rip out of my gut and growl...

Kristi

I kinda feel that way-- it's not hurting really but it squicks me out!

[Jilian]

My onset was gradual. I wasn't sure if it was really labor or not. I had random contractions all day, sometimes 5 mins apart and sometimes 20 mins apart. They kept stopping and starting and it was really frustrating. I got lots of rest then in the evening I hopped in the shower and they really intensified. They were coming regularly 5 mins apart after the shower. They got stronger, lasted a bit longer, and got closer together - that is how I knew it was the real thing.

I did have a few false starts the week before DS was born so I was worried about knowing when labor had really started. Once you get to a certain point your *know* that it is truly labor. You know when it is taking a lot of energy and focus for you to get through a contractions. And you'll probably stop smiling between contractions too

[Peony]

Originally Posted by 2Sweeties1Angel

I woke up with hard contractions one morning and that sort of tipped me off

Yep, both times i just woke up in labor.

[cottonwood]

For me it's always gradual. I start off with a twinge (was that?... I think it might have been... wait wait wait... oh, there it is again... yes, i think something's happening.) Fairly quickly it starts to feel like very mild menstrual cramping and slowly over time becomes like more intense menstrual cramping in active labor.

I didn't have any warning with my first three labors, but with my fourth I was having cramping and bearing down urges and loss of mucus for about three weeks before the birth, then two nights of prodromal labor before giving birth the third night. It sounds like it would be a pain, but actually I really enjoyed having that slow build-up to labor.

[Jenlaana]

last time my labor was very gradual (and I am praying for the same this time). It lasted 2-3 days, but it was so slow that I was able to write it off as a tummy ache for a good day and a half (my DH didnt even know about the first day, lol) I had no idea how long it was going to last, and was prepared for it to last a week if it had to. I found that the fact that I wrote it off as "not real, probably braxton hix or something I ate" made it MUCH easier for me to handle the length of the labor. Its one of the few situations where lying to myself is a good thing. I remember saying at like 3 or 4pm on the last day that "if it lasted another day and a half I would go to the hospital, because I was starting to get tired". We were even joking about if the contractions would ease off enough for us to watch Monday Night Football. I had my DD at 4:30pm exactly. (and we did get to watch MNF I almost hadn't asked my DH to stay home from work that Monday, but I figured that I was uncomfortable so wanted some company, and he wouldn't mind an extra day off.

[starhalo]

Well, I just woke up at around 2:00 a.m. with contractions and knew that it was the start of something. I had always wondered if I would really know when I was going into labor and everyone always told me "you'll know" and they were right. My midwife recommended I go back to sleep and rest as much as possible. So I did, and then around 7:00 a.m. things progressed and then it was full speed ahead after that. My water never broke until I was actually at the birth center in full labor. My midwife actually broke it for me since I was all ready to go. After she did that, our baby girl was born an hour after. Ahh, the memories

[Lousli]

With my first I had full on gushing broken water, and went to the hospital pretty quickly because she was preterm. They monitored me and apparently I was having some mild contractions, but I didn't really notice them (this was about 2 hours after my water broke). It was about 1.5 hours later when the contractions started to really intensify and become uncomfortable.

[Spark]

I just do a whole bunch of stop/starts (ctx will get as close as 90 seconds apart lasting for 45 secs) that peeter out. This will go on and on for weeks or months until my due month, increasing in frequency & duration. At some point I get frustrated and broke down. Then, I cry and know I'll ever go into labor. Then, a week or so from there, I actually go into labor.

I realize it's the start of labor FOR REAL when my ctx spread out (10-8 minutes apart) and it's more intense than the labor I've done in spurts for weeks on end... or my water breaks. Water breaking is a good indicator.

[amityfree]

Well, hubby and I had sex. That was essentially the start of my labour.

Towards the end of my pregnancies, I always get a dull ache in my nether regions after sex or when I've been standing for long periods. After our little romp in the sack, it started with a dull ache. It progressed to what felt like mild period cramps. They just grew into intensity until I had to breathe through them to cope.

Both times, my water broke close to or during transition. Breaking waters has never been the start of labour for me. Rather, it's the end!

[Romana]

My labor started at 5 a.m. with regular, mildly painful contractions. They were about 30-45 sec long and coming every 2-5 min right from the first one (for the most part, the ctx were 2-3 min apart). I had only had one or two ctx when I needed to go to the bathroom, and had bloody show (mucus/blood)

It was really, really obvious it was labor. The contractions kept up like that for the next 21 hrs until dd was born.

Julia
dd 1 year old

[pinksprklybarefoot]

I had significant bloody show that tipped me off that things were about to start. For me, the beginning part of labor ramped up gradually, the contrx getting longer, stronger and closer together, just like my midwife said they would. I was so afraid of thinking I was in labor when I actually wasn't that I labored for a long time (almost 24 hours) unassisted. I was also deathly afraid of being told that I wasn't as far into things as I thought I was, based on pain. I had heard too many stories of women thinking they must be at 5cm when they were barely in labor. That would be pretty discouraging for me. So I waited until the last minute to have my labor support come to our house. I spent most of that time alone (bf was trying to get some sleep in case it was a long night), which allowed me to get into a good place mentally. By the time I got to the hospital, I was only 2 hours from seeing my little man.

[mezzaluna]

the timeline is starting to get hazy in my mind for baby #1

friday: lost mucus plug
saturday: had a spontaneous nosebleed for the first time since a few days before i tested positive
sunday: awoken that night with mild contractions that went away within an hour
monday: mild contractions coming no closer than 10 minutes apart, able to carry on my normal activities. they would come for a couple hours and then be completely absent for a couple hours. they would come more reliably if i walked or bounced on an exercise ball. that night as i showered i noticed some blood tinged mucus going down the drain.
monday night: awoken 10 minutes after falling asleep very a *strong* contraction, had my baby 6 hours later!

[wendyland]

On my due date, I remember sitting outside writing in my journal and thinking that it would be a good day to give birth. That evening, we went to go buy a puzzle to give us something to do while we were in the waiting stage. Soon after we started doing the puzzle, I started getting a really bad backache/crampy feeling. I laid down and it just got worse and worse. I didn't really feel waves of contractions, just constant pain. I felt that it was probably labor, so we went to the hospital to get checked out. By the time we got there, I was so miserable. I was definitely in labor. I don't remember any other signs that it was coming. I didn't notice my mucous plug come out or anything.

With my second daughter, my water broke a week before her due date, and I was induced.

[Radish4ever]

For 2 weeks prior to my due date I had that feeling I was going to wake up in labor. LOL
1 day before my due date (on my bday!) I woke up at my normal time, DS punched my bladder really hard, and suddenly I was in labor! lol bloody show and all. Had him 4 hrs, 56 mins later!

[Meg_s]

I knew it was coming because I was about 6 days past my due date, but it hit my like a ton of bricks because I expected the contractions to start and then to increase in intensity over several hours. They started off immediately at scary intensity, like holy sh*t I wasn't expecting this!!!! But it was all over in a couple of hours so that was the reason.