Know the signs of labor
Although television and cinema often depict the onset of labor through visuals of a woman grasping her stomach and yelling out in pain, or the surprising gush of her broken water, these situations are seldom the reality. Instead, signs of labor in late pregnancy are more subtle, and often begin weeks before the baby is actually born. The following steps will assist you in identifying these subtle signs of labor during the third trimester of pregnancy.
Instructions
1. Experience a sense of "lightening," or the feeling that the baby has dropped in position. Lightening can occur anytime in the weeks to days before the day labor begins. Notice whether your center of gravity has changed, as it will during lightening. Determine if there is some relief of pressure on your diaphragm and, at the same time, some increased pressure on your bladder or more trips to the bathroom.
2. Ask your doctor about the thinning, or ripening, of your cervix during one of your routine pelvic exams in the third trimester. The softening of the cervix, or effacement, will occur as it prepares for birth, thinning from an inch or more of thickness to paper thin. Ask your doctor how thin it has become, or percent effaced, during your exam; 100 percent is complete effacement.
3. Ask your doctor to also check the dilation, or opening, of your cervix. Dilation occurs gradually and is measured in 0 to 10 centimeters: At 10 centimeters the baby can be born. Expect dilation to begin (1 to 3 centimeters) during the last weeks of the third trimester, with the remaining dilation to occur on the day labor begins.
4. Look for any pink or blood-tinged stringy mucus or thick discharge; this is the loss of the mucus plug. The mucus plug blocks the cervical opening during pregnancy and prevents bacteria from entering the uterus. As the cervix thins and relaxes, however, the mucus plug can be discharged. Expect labor to begin soon, from minutes away to a week away, should you notice that the mucus plug has been discharged.
5. Experience a trickle or gush of warm fluid; this is the breaking of waters. The amniotic sac that has cushioned the baby has ruptured its membranes, releasing the amniotic fluid. Expect ruptured membranes and breaking water to be a definitive sign that labor is to begin within hours and prepare for the hospital: if more than 24 have elapsed with no onset of labor, your doctor will intervene to induce labor.
6. Take notice of any unexplained digestive disturbances, such as diarrhea or nausea. Digestive disturbances during late pregnancy are often a response to increased hormone levels of prostaglandin, which occurs at the onset of labor.
7. Notice any unexpected feelings of energy, anxiousness or restlessness to do something. Such spurts of energy are known as nesting behavior. Anticipate this sudden, overwhelming need to clean, organize and arrange, which often occurs in the final weeks to days before the onset of labor.
8. Notice if you are having any consistent back pain, cramping (high abdomen) or painful contractions. True labor pain radiates throughout the high abdomen and lower back (false labor pains are concentrated in the lower abdomen and groin areas). Measure the frequency of contractions by timing from the beginning of one to the beginning of the next one. Measure the duration of each contraction as well. True labor contractions will last 15 to 30 seconds, progressing to longer durations and develop into a regular pattern. Contractions also indicate the beginning of labor.
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