[dakotamidnight]

okay, I've been having contractions on and off again tonight. Some of them pretty strong. When I went to the ladies room earlier, it kinda felt like maybe I was leaking a little, but you really couldn't tell yes or no.

Are there any ways I can tell if my bag of water is leaking without going to L&D?

I've heard you can use a microscope and check for ferning - is this true and how should I do it?

I don't really want to go in since I'm not having really regular contractions yet.

 

[AllisonR]

Well, I felt a trickle. So I smelled it (smelled like nothing), squished between my fingers (a bit thicker than pee and slippery) and tasted it (nope, not pee!)
Trickled for a few hours, no major gush.
Fast forward 24 hours. First VE, mw said "no, your waters are still intact," in a tone that meant I had lied or was a moron. Well, it was NOT my pee. So what was it then? Well, mw is ALWAYS right, and I was just another stupid first time mamma who must have peed on herself, right?
Actually, no. There is actually an inner and outer bag of waters, where the first can break and the other remain intact. Also a possibility, though rare, is a break, but then the bag reseals itself.
If you think it is your waters, it probably is. Don't worry though. Throughout your labor you will keep producing more. There is no such thing as a "dry" birth.
Wishing you well,
Allison

 

[kittylove]

my waters went when i was sleeping i woke up and thought i had wet the bed because there was only an egg cup for but the best way to find out without going in is to put a pad on and if its damp then chances are yes but its true what they say you just keep on reproducing your waters i was losing mine for three weeks before i went into labour (they wouldnt induce me cos i was only 31 weeks) but your best going to get yourself checked out

 

[boscopup]

Since you're full term, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just follow basic infection-reducing rules such as keeping people and objects out of your vagina (including cervical checks!). You can go days, weeks, months with broken water. And at full term, the baby is fully developed, so you mainly just need to keep infection away. I went 4 days with broken water at 29 weeks with DS and never got an infection. I didn't let those nurses check my dilation.

I would definitely stay out of L&D, as they'd want to get your labor moving and put you on that stupid 24 hour time limit, which wouldn't be necessary if they weren't doing all those useless cervical exams.

 

[mama2toomany]

Quote:

Originally Posted by boscopup Since you're full term, I wouldn't worry too much about it. Just follow basic infection-reducing rules such as keeping people and objects out of your vagina (including cervical checks!). You can go days, weeks, months with broken water. And at full term, the baby is fully developed, so you mainly just need to keep infection away. I went 4 days with broken water at 29 weeks with DS and never got an infection. I didn't let those nurses check my dilation. I would definitely stay out of L&D, as they'd want to get your labor moving and put you on that stupid 24 hour time limit, which wouldn't be necessary if they weren't doing all those useless cervical exams.

: