A little freaked out--can you ease my mind?

[NYCVeg]

In Brinda's thread about PTL, she mentioned that she noticed her fluid was leaking b/c she had wet undies. I have wet undies a lot of the time--I always thought it was just vaginal discharge, but it seems to be a bit "wetter" these days (not thick like discharge might be, wet much of the time). Should I be panicking? Would there be any other symptoms? Are there things that could tell me this ISN'T what it is? I'm going to call my mw's tomorrow...but I'm a little freaked out in the meantime. If it does happen to be a leak, is there any harm in waiting until the morning. I had the 20 week u/s on Jan. 6 and there wasn't anything wrong then.

Thoughts?

[vicky72]

Wet undies are normal in pregnancy:). Breathe. It prob is not your bag of waters. I feel that amniotic fluid has a very charateristic smell to in, kinda like semen...... Your midwife can do a very simple test called a nitrazine test to see if it is leaking. My undies are wet most of the time too, kinda damp, was that way with my son too. I hope this helps

[Heidi Jo]

Don't worry the wet panties IS normal. If there was a fluid leak there would be other issues. Everything will be fine. I know bad news from others can be very scary when you think about your own experiences.

All the best,

[busybusymomma]

Aw :Hug Don't panic! If it would feel better, you could have the test strip done but it's likely just cervical fluid. Sometimes I have tons of ewcm and sometimes just more like damp panties. Oh the joy of cervical fluid! ;)

[Rowenta]

it could easily be urine! I have that and it concerned me so I had my doc check it out. Turns out i am leaking urine :(
but it is always better to have it checked out first (I did) just to make sure.

[Snowdrift]

Mine has also been heavier the past week or so. I chalked it up to normal discharge. I *hate* wearing undies though. I am already looking forward to August--I figure by then I should be able to ditch my all my undies again.

[ThatLinGirl]

Totally normal to have wet undies, expect them to get wetter as we get further along. :wink

I've gone from cloth pantiliners to Natracare disposable ones because I was getting sore from never feeling dry.

Just one of those minor annoyances.

[NYCVeg]

So I managed to check out some of this discharge this morning. Amniotic fluid isn't white, right? It looks to me more like vaginal discharge (a little creamy-colored), just FAR thinner than what I normally have.

Thanks for the calming words!

[SpudinPhilly]

Urinary Incontinence and vaginal secretions are normal on the most part. The former can be treated by you doing your Kegel exercises RELIGIOUSLY. As for the latter, here are some of the warning signs I read about in one of my preg. books*:

Warning signs:
- if you also experience soreness, pain, if your discharge becomes greenich-yellow, foul-smelling, or watery.

It said the symptoms could indicate an infection or premature rupturing of your membrane.

It says not to use douching products, vaginal deoderants, or any sort of perfumed soap.

It's says it's best to report any increased vaginal discharge if you've had amniocentisis performed, since it's poss. that you may've experienced an amniotic fluid leak. Don't panic though, these leaks often repair themselves.

* This is all in summary from p. 308-310 of The Mother of All Pregnancy Books.

[Xiaguan]

. Should I be panicking? Would there be any other symptoms? Are there things that could tell me this ISN'T what it is? I'm going to call my mw's tomorrow...but I'm a little freaked out in the meantime. If it does happen to be a leak, is there any harm in waiting until the morning. I had the 20 week u/s on Jan. 6 and there wasn't anything wrong then.

Thoughts?

TMI alert: When I was leaking fluid I had that feeling of constantly being wet like you are when you are in a state of arousal :o ~ Not change your panties every hour wet but a real annoyance~ I also just knew something was not right~ Follow your instinct & if you feel something is off just call your provider~ It is a simple litmus paper test that takes a few seconds & can really ease your mind~ With my last DD she was in open membranes for 13 weeks & has been just fine thanks to all the prayers & common sense we recieved that pregnancy~

HTH's calm your fears some~

Warmly,
Melissa

[NYCVeg]

Argh...I don't know what to do. Talked to my midwife and she said it *sounds* like normal vaginal discharge (WAY TMI ALERT: what I managed to look at today was a little creamy-colored, as I said, and some of it dried on my panties leaving that yellowy-white residue that discharge does; to me, it also smells like regular vag discharge--she said that amniotic fluid usually doesn't have any smell). I've always had regular "gushes" of discharge, so I don't think I could tell discharge from fluid by the way it feels coming out. OTOH, she also said (of course) that they can't be 100% sure w/o checking and that if it IS a fluid leak, I wouldn't want to wait. They only have office hours Thursdays and Tuesdays, but going in today would be horrendous. It's an hour travel time for me each way (walk to metro, train, transfer, train, long walk to BC), I have a Bradley class in the late afternoon so I'd be cutting things really close even if they squeezed me in...AND I pulled a muscle in my hamstring, so I really didn't want to running around today. I don't have a strong "something's wrong" vibe at present. Honestly, I think I got myself worked up over nothing (if not for Brinda's thread, I would never have even noticed this, I think), but there's always that tiny "what if" thought in your head.

I dunno...WWYD?

[peilover010202]

amanda,

Jumping in from August...

I just wanted to add that my discharge is exactly as you describe, and it's completely normal for me.

You need to do what makes you feel most comfortable, to ease your worry, but it really doesn't sound like AF to me.

Mine also did have a distinct smell and is just like water in consistency.

GL in making your decision! :)

[ltk]

ditto here, constantly wet! It has a funky scent, but it isn't "gushing" which is what we are supposed to be concerned w/, right? I can understand your fear though...I just have a hard time staying "fresh", even w/ mini pads. sigh...... :(

[NYCVeg]

Okay, I went to the mws. Everything is fine (of course). And, happily, they didn't make me feel at all like an idiot for over-reacting (unlike my old gyn). :lol

[Xiaguan]

I am so glad to hear that! I have been thinking about you~ I know that the visit was hard to get to but now you will get a good weekend rest~

Warmly,
Melissa