Ftm, I'm just curious, what did dilating feel like for you? I occasionally get a Sharp pain in my cervix. I am getting them more frequently now, every couple of days. I read that might be dilating, but I'm not sure. I haven't been checked yet, and since I know you can be dilated for weeks as a Ftm before going in to labor, I was just curious.
Re: dilating?
So the challenge to answering your question is that I (and perhaps the majority of women on the natural board) never got cervical checks till labor and this would never have known if a sensation was causing dilation or not. I had one cervical check by midwife...when I arrived at hospital. I was 10 cm. that said, it's not uncommon to have a variety of sensation down there as pregnancy goes along. I wouldn't think any of those really tells you anything. Also, dilation tells nothing as well...it esp. Tells nothing about how fr away labor is or how long it will last.
07.22.11
10.22.13
You can have tons of BH and not be dilated at all. This was the case with myself and DD1.
Or on the flip side, you can have no BH and dilate. I had no BH except maybe a little bit of non painful tightening that was only noticeable when I was lying down and was 2cm at 35.5. I had the baby a week later. No ctx prior to labor. I just jumped right into active labor.
My Ovulation Chart
Congrats on your LO!