# Did you go into labor with no signs shortly before?



## Ambivalent Dreams

I am 39 +1. I have a had a few contractions here and there, but nothing very painful at all. My cervix is still long, closed and posterior. I am reading about so many people with prodromal labor and it is making me feel like I am never going to go into labor until I start having some of those prodromal-type symptoms. Anyone go into labor without anything leading up to it? What was it like? Did you just suddenly start having contractions? Did your water break? How long was your labor?


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## forumyonly1

with my third baby i had been having regular BH contractions through out my pregnancy.. but for about 2-3 days before i went in to labor i didnt really have any.. maybe one here or there.. nothing like prodromal labor at all.. i felt great the whole day and cleaned like crazy so i was super tired by the time i got the kids to bed.. got in bed to watch dexter.. seriously debated skipping it because i was so tired.. decided to stay up and watch and then just as i was getting comfy and the credits started rolling.. BAM first contraction.. lol by the second one i knew it was the real deal.. they were that different from the BH contractions i'd been having. it was pretty much out of no where.. so yeah.. it can happen ANY time! lol

that labor was 13 hours long.. but he had both hands on top of his head and i refused to get out of the tub so i'm sure that didnt help speed anything up..


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## MsBlack

Is this your first baby? Many women with their first do not have any or much sign of impending labor, until real labor actually starts. And while it is more common for women to have prodromal labor with subsequent babies, it's not a rule by any means! Just heard from a mama who had her 3rd baby just after due date, 3hr labor--and NO prodromal labor to speak of. The condition of your cervix right now is meaningless, by the way. Some women's cervix starts to soften, thin, open prior to birthing day--some women's cervix just doesn't. It's all normal. Maybe you could stop having (or doing yourself) cervical exams--they have no predictive value...well, except in a case like yours: when there is no noticeable cervical change close to due date, internal exams are a strong predictor of maternal angst about that fact!







But also these exams, for women like you, can predict a doc who starts to get antsy about whether or not you'll 'ever go into labor on your own'--bringing the notion of induction into play with no real cause.


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## MyFullHouse

Most of my births have been induced, but I didn't have any real "signs" before hand. They were 40, 41 and 42 weeks.

I did start having Braxton Hicks-like contractions with #3 about 12 hours before my water broke. That's the most "notice" I've ever been given.

I thought I was in prodromal labor with #4 at about 40 weeks, but that turned out to just be really bad gas.







He waited 2 more weeks.


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## paxye

I have had prodromal labour with 3 of my pregnancies... starting at about 39 weeks... two of those went to 42 weeks, the last went to 41...

My second labour however started with my water breaking at 38 weeks. I was so surprised and really not ready. There was no sign before and because my first had gone to 42 weeks I was certain I had another 4 weeks ahead...


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## Ambivalent Dreams

This is my second baby. With my first baby, I was laying in bed having menstral type cramps (painful, but not terrible) and BAM, my water broke.

ETA: With that pregnancy, I had menstral type cramps off and on for weeks before my water broke. This time, I've hardly had any pain at all. Though, I have had painless BH contractions where my belly hardens, but even that has mostly stopped over the past couple weeks or so.


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## Galatea

With #3, I had no prodromal or warning. My water started leaking a bit at 11 pm and I was in labor 4 hours later.


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## St. Margaret

I was mayyyybe 1 inch at some near to last appt, and I had NO early signs, just woke up in the night to pee, saw the beginnings of plug loss, and felt so crampy I couldn't get comfy or sleep easily. I had easy labor during the day, more intense in the afternoon (but not bad) and had DD before 8pm. All told, maybe 18 hours from start to finish. Oh, and it was maybe 1-2 days after my EDD!


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## lmbjer

With DD I had zero warning other than I was one day "late." I woke up in the am with light AF style cramps, took a bath to relax, within 1 hour they were five minutes apart and 1 minute long. In all my labor was 3 hours.

With DS I had the traditional showing a few days before and then the AF style cramps came either 1 or 2 days later the morning that he was born.

No BH with either baby, no water breaking in early labor, nothing. So needless to say I take AF style cramps very seriously!


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## MegBoz

NO SIGNS at all! Was 41W4D & decided to get my membranes swept. (First VE I'd had.)

I had not had ONE BH ctrx! I was starting to worry my uterus didn't work!









Turns out, I was 3cm, went to 4 as she went around to do the stripping. She didn't give me a % effaced #, just said, "It's a perfect cervix. I think this will do the trick, I don't think you even have to worry about coming back to get membranes stripped again." (I had asked.)

Sure enough, ctrx started 2 hours later, 1st stage was over less than 5 hours after that! After resisting the urge to push for 30 min to make it to the hospital (







1st baby, I never imagined 1st stage would go that quick!) Took 45 min to push out DS after we arrived. Awesome, great experience.


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## tanyalynn

I didn't have prodromal labor or really any signs anything was going on til: with #1 my waters broke, and #2 contractions started and didn't stop (paused a bit but didn't stop) til I had a baby in my arms. I'd had BH for months with #1 but they didn't increase in frequency or intensity before my water broke.

With #1, my cervix was closed, maybe barely effaced, baby was still pretty high according to my midwife at the beginning of labor (after water broke, before contractions). For #2 we didn't check til I'd been having contractions a while but based on that check, it's likely I didn't have any significant effacement or dilation before contractions started.

Labor #1 was very average for a 1st child, I think 11 hrs-ish, #2 was long due to poor positioning which wasn't at all surprising given the hip pain I'd had which had significantly limited my mobility late in that pregnancy (so it didn't come out of the blue, is what I'm going for).


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## Wendy HS

In my first labor my water broke at 3am in morning at 38 weeks, very light contractions followed for a few hours and when at the hospital they started threatening a C-section if I didn't get labor going. So I walked very fast up and down the halls and did nipple stimulation, that definetly got them going!!!! Had DS 27 hours after water broke. 2nd labor water broke again at 3am and at 37 weeks, and labor started the same, light contractions, but they increased quicker and harder without doing anything. DD was born after about 14 hours. Now pregnant with 3rd and I am almost to 38 weeks. I've had one night of I guess BH contractions where they were uncomfortable enough I couldn't sleep, but I knew they weren't doing anything much. So I kept laying in bed wishing they would go away so I could sleep. Every few days I've had some cramping, but it goes away without much prompting. I've been spoiled with my water breaking and having them both earlier than my due date, and no contractions until then. This time my due date was moved up an entire month from Oct 22nd to Sept 22nd due to ultrasound size and fundal measurements. I am measuring the same as my other two pregnancies so they are proubalby right, but it drives me nuts to think I could go until Oct 22nd!!!! If you are expecting it, it is easier to deal with, but having a month to wonder, when is it going to be........is torture. ha ha


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## Peony

I have woken up with my 3 children in labor one morning, no signs before. I don't do VEs so no idea what was going on before hand and I have BH throughout the entire pg.


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## Just1More

My last one, other than being 41 weeks exactly, had no signs before. I had some bh, but I always have bh, so it didn't hit my radar at all. When I woke up with a digestive upset, and kept feeling bh, I was curious. I checked and was only MAYBE 75% effaced, and zero dilated. She was born 5.5 hours later. And I still didn't think I was in labor for the first 3 of that!


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## Banana731

Both. I didn't do vag exams in pregnancy. But I didn't have anything until my first crampy ctx, mucus plug out, and then it was a full day of annoying early labor before and then my body got to buisness. dd1 ended in a c/s after only a few hours of active labor, but dd2 was 18 hrs of active labor until she was born. My water broke as she came out.

But it's true, all labors are different


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## caedmyn

I didn't have any VEs, but I had no signs of impending labor with my 2nd (did with my first though).


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## treeoflife3

the night before, I wasn't expecting labor for a while longer... I was expecting to go much further past my EDD than I did haha.

However, I woke up having contractions. In fact, I woke up once, thought I was having some constipation issues, tried to poop, failed, it passed and I went back to sleep. Woke up again and realized after considering trying the toilet again that nope... I'm just in labor now!

I tried to sleep more after that but I was too excited. I ate some jello that my mommy made me for whenver I DID go into labor (she was hoping it would happen ASAP and got a bit too excited preparing) instead


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## gravida

The day I had ds I had no cramps, BH, nothing. We had done induction acupuncture and tons of walking that day too. I had nothing at all until about 10 minutes after DH got home when I had a stop you in your tracks contraction. 7 minutes later another one that had e on my knees. 6 hours later he was born.


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## L J

Twice I have gone into labor with no signs at all.

DS1, 41w6d, lost my mucous plug, had first contraction about 5 minutes later, he was in arms less than 6 hours from losing my plug.

DS2, 35w4d, had what I thought were BH contractions start at 11pm, they weren't regular, figured out around 1am it was the real thing, he was born at 2:30am.


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## Mama Lo

I would say that with my dd I didn't have any warning signs. After work one day, my husband and I had sex, then when to the gym and walked 2 miles. I was having mild contractions(thought they were bh), but I chalked it up to the evenings activities. They continued through the evening, finally annoying enough that I went to bed, they were light enough I was able to sleep thru them for about 2 hours. So at 12am is finally when I had to get back out of bed and start dealing with 'labor. DD was born at 9am. Before having sex and walking I wasn't having contractions, I was never checked or checked myself so I have no idea if I was dialated or effaced. I still don't know when I lost my plug







.
So, no signs until contractions, and my water didn't break until broken. After I sat at 9cm for 4 hrs at the hospital, Once they broke my water baby was born 45 minutes later


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## Joyster

With my third my BH contrax had tapered off a week or two before labour. I then got up to use the washroom in the morning and next thing I knew, I was in labour.

My first two started with my water breaking, but this guy just decided to come really quickly with little warning.


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## Wittyone

1st baby, 41+1 I consented to my first VE and was long, closed, VERY posterior. My water broke at midnight that night, contractions started about 30 minutes later and he was born the following evening. Absolutely no lead up, had gone for a 4 mile hike the day before and truly felt I might be pregnant for days or weeks more - I felt fine!


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## donutmolly

With DD1, I had 2 days of prodromal labor, so imagine my surprise when I went straight into regular active labor with DD2, on my EDD, with no signs whatsoever beforehand.


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## GuildJenn

I did lose my mucus plug with both pregnancies, but both of mine have been atypical. With my first went into the hospital 45 minutes after my 'first' contraction and was almost 7 cm. That first contraction I was convinced I had a bladder infection until I had two more contractions within about 7 minutes. Everyone was like "you've done so well to get to 7 cm at home!" And I was like "I woke up about an hour ago."

My second I was having "Braxton-Hicks" while out shopping. When we got home I was really bored and annoyed with my husband for working. So I started timing the BH for fun and found they were happening every 3 minutes. I called the after hours nurse and chatted through them and she said come down and get checked out, so we went down about an hour later. I almost didn't bother taking a bag along.

They hooked me up to a monitor and saw there were WEE TINY contractions and the OB was going to send me home when she got the bright idea of having the student doctor do an internal for practice, which was fine with me 'cause I wanted the info. I was over 5 cm dilated and the membrane sac was bulging (which confused the student doctor entirely). I had my son about an hour later.

I'm kind of glad I was not in the car going home at the time.









So yes it does happen. I don't think it's totally typical.

Having said all that I'll probably have a 48 hr labour with this one or something.


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## Sharlla

i get bloody show a few hours before going into labor. from first contaction to delivery to birth its around 4 hours
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## GoGoGirl

Quote:


Originally Posted by *Ambivalent Dreams* 
Anyone go into labor without anything leading up to it? What was it like? Did you just suddenly start having contractions? Did your water break? How long was your labor?

I didn't have anything at all leading up to labor. No braxton hicks contractions, no mucus plug, no cleaning out, really nothing.

I woke up with contractions at 8 am when I was 40+5, and DD was born at 7 am the next morning. The contractions were regular from the beginning--they started out 5 minutes apart.

My water broke some time during my 6 hour (UGH) transition. I was in the pool already. I don't really remember it, or if it changed how labor felt. I was pretty deep into laborland by that point.









ETA: I didn't have any cervical checks before (or during) labor, so I don't know what my cervix was like before that first contraction.


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## Mosaic

DD2 was like that: from first sign of labor to baby in hands was 12.5 hours! I got up for my nightly ~4:30am potty break and noticed some spotting, then went back to sleep after noticing birthing waves were 9 minutes apart. Went to work, didn't get much done, came home at 1:30, and DD was born at 5:05pm!


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## butterflies

I had days of prodromal labor and horrible back pain w/ my 1st. Then a day of rest and went into labor.
With #2, I had zero signs- other than the same BH I'd been having for weeks. I went to 41.5 weeks, ate a big yummy meal on Superbowl Sunday (think chili, brisket, etc), took a nice nap during halftime and woke up in labor.








Never saw a mucus plug or any kind of show in either birth. And my water didn't break until I was ready to push with both.


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## bella99

Yup.

The days leading up to my daughter's birth, I had a few BH contractions every night, but nothing even remotely painful and not more than a couple at a time.

Then when I was 38w6d, still with no signs of labor, I had sex...20 minutes later my contractions started and about a half hour after that, I realized my water broke.

My daughter was born at 39 weeks, 9 hours after my first contraction.


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## OkiMom

With my first I was checked like 2-3 days prior to labor and was told no way I was going in labor anytime soon. I wasn't dilated, effaced or anything. The midwife told me that she thought I would go at least 2 weeks post due date. That was Friday, had her on Monday.

Second I didn't have any contractions but I was dialated to 4 when checked a week before I had her. Maybe thats why she came so fast, I was already half there.


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## laughymama




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## AFWife

On April 14th I had an OB appt at 8am. They did a cervical check and told me, "See you next week. You're not dilated AT ALL." That day I was exhausted (someone told me you get a burst of energy before labor?) and felt no "signs" at all.

At midnight my water broke. My son was born 7 hours later. I was 38 weeks to the day...


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## camprunner

From the birth story of my first baby

Quote:

On Wednesday October 9th, I went to see my midwife. I had been seeing blood for two days. I was a finger tip dialated and told that I would KNOW if I was in labor. So obviously the discomfort that felt like my cervix was stretching like a rubber band was just a normal part of pregnancy. She did say she was almost positive I would go into labor that weekend.

At 4:30 AM on Thursday, October 10th, I woke up to the discomfort again. This time the discomfort was 8-10 minutes apart and peaking after 30 seconds. Once I got out of bed at 6:00 AM, they stopped. I didn't feel them for the rest of the day. I even went for a walk that afternoon. We had a friend over for dinner that night. I was telling her that dh and I were planning on going to my Mom's house that weekend because I was sure the baby would be late. Ofcourse, I was having those discomforts again and they were again peaking at 30 seconds.

Around 10:30-10:45 PM , I was working on pulling some stitches out of the sling I made for the baby. During one of those discomforts, I felt a pop and some wetness and I knew that my water had broken.
*She was about 7 hours from my water breaking.*
From the birth story of my second

Quote:

Wednesday morning, November 30, 2005 at 2am I felt like I had to pee so I got up and went to the bathroom. I felt like I had to pee again 12 min. later. I started to get suspicious when I had to pee again 11 min. later.
*She was born 8 hours and 12 minutes after the first contraction.*
As you can see, there was much less warning about impending labor with my second baby.


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