8 SIGNS HOW TO KNOW I AM GOING INTO LABOUR

While you probably can’t wait to have your baby, to meet her and hold her in your arms, you might also be nervous about labour and delivery. Well, I was! And I think labour is probably the thing most first-time moms dread the most. You probably have a ton of questions. One important question is how do I know I am going into labour?

When I was 8 months pregnant with my first child I kept wondering: how will I know if I’m in labour?!

Sure, there are some early signs you might have heard about but it is hard to imagine, when you are having your first baby, how you will know. First of all, don’t panic, you definitely will know! But if you are like me, knowing that is not enough. So, I have made a list of definite things that happen that indicate labour has started.

It is also good to know that labour has started so you can take care of some last-minute things you want to get done before leaving to the hospital.

For my first child labour was induced but for my second baby it was really helpful being able to notice the signs so I could arrange childcare for my daughter. In the end, I didn’t need to because she was staying at her grand-parents place that day.

Let’s have a look at the list of symptoms:

How can I tell if I am going into labour soon?

1.    Nesting

This is the classic sign that very soon you will be meeting your baby. Even if for the last month you have just been feeling heavy and drained of energy by the lack of sleep, you will get this burst of energy to make sure the nursery is ready, the house is clean, to prepare food and organise.

For me, this happened the second time around but only after my water broke. I went full-on nesting mode and once the contractions had started, I really wasn’t able to sit down, the urge to get sh*t done was way too strong. My boyfriend was laughing but I just HAD TO change the bedsheets, to fold away the laundry and to make pasta for dinner.
I don’t remember the rest but I know I did more in two hours than I usually get done in two days.

2.    Baby is less active

Approaching the end of your pregnancy, your baby’s movements slow down or are less vigorous due to the lack of space in your uterus.

This can be a sign your baby is conserving energy because the beginning of labour is close.

(If you are not sure if the lack of movement is normal at any time of your pregnancy, please talk to a health care professional. They’ll give you peace of mind and make sure that nothing is wrong.)

3.    Lower back pain

Some mommies feel pain in their back when the contractions are starting. This can be due to the position of the baby in your uterus.
Other moms, like me, have had back pain throughout their whole pregnancy. This can be caused by the weight of your abdomen, the ligaments pulling on your back and pelvis or just by the additional weight you have put on during your pregnancy – I can tell you 22kg have a bad effect on your back and knees as well!

Anyway, if your back pain comes and goes or needs a lot of attention, you should time it to see if this happens in a pattern. It could be caused by contractions.

4.    You need to go to the toilet very often and very urgently

Due to your tiny bladder, you might have been experiencing very frequent urges to go to the toilet during your pregnancy. But when it becomes so urgent that you cannot make it to the toilet it might be your baby’s head that has moved down into your lower pelvis and that is pushing on your bladder.

Another sign that is brought to you by your crazy pregnancy hormones is frequent bowel movements. You might be having soft or loose stools or even diarrhoea and maybe even feel a bit nauseated.

I can tell you even if this is very sh*tty, it’s a good sign. It’s nature’s way of emptying your bowels before birth. At least you probably won’t poop on the delivery table!

5.    Irregular contractions

As you might know, the most common sign of labour is contractions.

Contractions, yeah, this is the thing I personally didn’t get.

I mean, how do you know you are having them?
How can you be sure not to miss them before it is too late?
What do they feel like?

Contractions mostly feel like very strong period type cramps or gas pains. So, when your stomach area goes very very tight you are having a contraction. In the beginning, they are weak. Then, they become stronger and stronger and more and more regular. A friend of mine has described it like having a belt around your back and belly and someone is regularly pulling on it, stronger and stronger as if trying to close it.

Labour contractions come regularly and last for at least 30 seconds. You can read HERE when you will need to go to the hospital.

6.    Mucous Plug or “show”

This is the mucous protection that keeps your cervix tightly closed. I have heard someone refer to it like the “wine bottle cork” of your cervix.

As your cervix begins to ripen and soften, you can loose small or large pieces of this plug.

With my first baby, I never saw the mucus plug but with my second I definitely saw the whole damn thing right before the water broke!
So, if you notice a long and thick snot-like mass in your underwear, it’s definitely the mucous plug.

Get ready to give birth within the next three days.

It might even be bloody, pinkish or brownish, in that case, let your midwife know and she can tell you if everything’s fine or if you should go to the hospital.

7.    Your water breaks

A friend of mine had to live this very movie-like scene where her water broke with a big “splash” in a public place, right after bringing her first child to kindergarten.
Mine broke while sitting on the toilet, I noticed that I couldn’t stop peeing until I understood that this was something entirely different.

Sometimes this will happen before the contractions have even started, sometimes it will happen after labour has already begun. Some babies are even born within an intact amniotic sac but this is very rare.

Anyway, you will not need to be rushed to the hospital like in the movies! Typically, labour will begin within 24 hours after your water has broken. After 24 hours you should go to the hospital to get antibiotics because there is an increased risk of infection for you and your baby.

How can I tell my water broke?

The colour of your amniotic fluid should be clear or slightly yellow/pink. If you are past your due date it can be brownish or greenish, which means that the water contains some meconium, baby’s first poo. In that case, you need to go to the hospital straight away because your baby might be in distress.

If you are not sure why you wet your undies, do the sniff test. I know it’s gross, but wee smells like wee (ammonia) and if the water smells somewhat sweet or like a wet chicken, it’s most likely that your water just broke. Prepare yourself to go to the hospital within the next 24 hours.

8.    Other signs

Other signs that your baby is coming soon can be your irritability and sleeping very badly.

But who doesn’t sleep badly at the end of their pregnancy?

Your baby might drop. This mostly happens with a first baby. For the next ones, the body will already be prepared and the baby won’t need to engage as early. Some moms can feel this, others don’t.

Your bladder might be more active and you can get relief from heartburn because your baby has dropped.

Increased blood pressure is another sign that labour is close. This is why your doctor or midwife always check your blood pressure first.

A dilated cervix is a sign that labour is near or has started already. Honestly, I think you better leave this check-up to the doctor but I have heard of moms who (after washing their hands) could feel how much the cervix was already dilated.

Whether you are nesting, having lower back pain, contractions or you keep running to the toilet, there are many different signs that you will be holding your baby in your arms soon. At the end of your pregnancy, you are probably listening closely to what your body is telling you and I am sure that you won’t miss the signs.

Let me reassure you, labour is hard, yes, and it is very scary for a first time mom but let me tell you what a good friend said to me: “I don’t want to have a third child but I would definitely love to go into that room again and feel what it feels like to have a baby. It’s a shame I won’t be living that again”. Well, she’s just had her third child…