Is is more common to have a really soft cervix with 2nd or beyond pregnancies?

[AugustLia23]

So I decided to do a little self exam the other day. I found that the baby's head(yay! he's vertex!) was about a finger's depth in and my cervix is quite soft and reachable(not posterior like with my first). I don't think I'm dilated at all, but I didn't really try to hard to see. I am 28 weeks.

I carried low with my first pregnancy(this is my 2nd pregnancy), and by 38 weeks ds's head was about 2 knuckles from the outside of my vagina. I still carried to just past 40 weeks, and only went into labor with the help of membrane stripping.

I'm not feeling like I'm going to go into labor anytime soon, that's not why I'm asking. I think that's just how things are right now for me and wanted to see if it's been this way for others.. Please tell me this'll make giving birth faster and easier the 2nd time around(ds#1 came after 29 hours of labor, including a 9-10 hour stall)!

[courtenay_e]

Well...you might consider that with the last labor you had your membranes stripped. This may have started labor sooner than your baby and your body were ready. Perhaps the 29 labor was not "normal" for you, but perhaps it took that long because your body and/or your baby were just still GETTING READY for the birth! Maybe if you were to just let your body go into labor on it's own, without any prompting, it would possibly be more efficient at the work of labor...

I do know that with my second, my cervix was softer and anterior sooner. I had him ten days sooner than I had my first, though, too. I think that every labor is different!

[AugustLia23]

Yep, I definitely realize that. I don't plan on any membrane stripping this time around(who would do it? I'm going unassted). But I was just wondering if most people had softer cervices with subsequent pregnancies. Or is there a chance I could actually go early(ier)?

[Maggi315]

Yeah, i would say some people do have softer cervixes and it doesn't really mean too much.

Good luck!