Water breaking stories

lgar916

Hello! I’m a first time mom who stays up late at night because she’s freaking out the closer she gets to the due date. Most of my freaking out is about my water breaking and all the different scenarios/situations I could be in when my water breaks and what to do. (Ex: what if my husband isn’t home, what if it breaks in public, etc...) So I would like to read some stories and how it was handled in order to ease my mind a little bit and help me be more prepared! 

[Deleted User]

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<div>Hello! I’m a first time mom who stays up late at night because she’s freaking out the closer she gets to the due date. Most of my freaking out is about my water breaking and all the different scenarios/situations I could be in when my water breaks and what to do. (Ex: what if my husband isn’t home, what if it breaks in public, etc...) So I would like to read some stories and how it was handled in order to ease my mind a little bit and help me be more prepared! 
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QFP

I wouldn't worry about it, in all honesty.  This article says it's the first sign of labour 10% of the time.  Our birth class instructor said only 5%.  L&D is not like in the movies!  Remember that.

Worst case, if it does break in public, you'll have a "cool story" to freak other FTMs out about.  But I personally go out of my way to try and avoid hearing too many anecdotal labour stories, because every labour is different, and I choose to believe ours will be awesome!  :D And I'd rather not hear someone else story and give myself something new to stress over.  Doesn't help anything.

https://www.livestrong.com/article/540069-why-does-water-break-for-some-pregnant-women-not-for-others

TBH, this would be a great question for our "Symptoms and Questions" thread.  If you care to intro, read the board, and get to know the ladies here, you will see that random posts are not usually how it's done here.

Welcome, and GL!

Wishilivedinflorida

You’re so nice @BusinessWife. 

Honestly, OP, water breaking should be the least of your worries. If it breaks, call your doc. If it’s in public, cool story bro, and call your doc. Just because your water breaks doesn’t mean a baby is coming out right after. It isn’t like the movies/TV make it out to be. I recommend taking a birthing class to ease your anxieties and get useful, accurate information to be prepared. And all the things @BusinessWife said. 

MandyMost

I learned from my birthing class last time that the water breaking first is very rare, like was posted above. If it does happen as a first sign it’s often not like a giant gush where you stand...it’s more like it’s just leaking out. Chances are you’ll notice your underwear or thighs a bit wet WELL before anything is obvious to anyone else. If you’re still irrationally concerned (nothing wrong with that, we all have our irrational concerns!) you could keep a towel in your car or a spare shirt to tie around your waist in your purse.

But what to do if your water breaks? If you’re Group-B Strep negative you should do absolutely nothing. I mean, call your doc and let them know if you want, but typically they won’t admit you to the hospital until you’re having regular contractions which could be hours and hours later. Wait and see what happens with your contractions, then take your time getting ready to go to the hospital. If you’re Group-B strep positive you’ll need to start an antibiotic after your water breaks so you should go into the hospital, but it’s still not an emergency. Unless your husband and the hospital are both far away you should have plenty of time.

JLyn821

My water broke with my first. I was asleep in bed. It woke me up. There was a little puddle under my butt. Thankfully, we have a waterproof mattress pad and our mattress was fine. After I woke up DH, he got me a towel and I went to the bathroom and put on a Depends. We called the doc and she said we should come to the hospital soon. That was it. I wore a Depends to the hospital so I didn’t have to worry about messing up the car. 

My water didnt break with my second until i asked them them to break it when I was 9+cm and I was ready to push. 

This go around, I’ll just keep some Depends on hand at home if it breaks. I’ll probably keep one with my purse, too. 

If you’re that worried about it breaking in public, wear a Depends or even just a pad. My cousin’s water broke as she and her H were  leaving a restaurant. No one else knew because she was wearing a pad. She went to the bathroom and switched it out for a new one before they drove home to pick up the hospital bag. 

It really isn’t as big of a deal as people/movies make it out to be. 

Asunshinek

Try not to worry about that. As the ladies have stated above, it is typically not like the movies. I would say most of the time, especially ftms, the water was broken by us on LandD. If not and the membranes were already ruptured, it was either motn or started as a slow leak and they were not sure if they had peed or water broke. Not saying it can't or won't happen in public with a puddle....but it is not likely and I can only remember maybe 1 story of that happening to a patient in public ending in a puddle...and she had started leaking prior with contractions and ruptured in the hall of hospital. 

stothi

My water broke at the hospital like 12 hours into labor when the doc broke it. My story is not interesting. Well, parts of it are, especially to me personally, but the water breaking part isn't.

Is this where I mention that one is waaaay more likely to full on pee their pants in public whilst pregnant, or afterwards, than to have their water break in a way people would notice? (Or OP are you asking more what do you do when you go into labor and just talking about water breaking as a sign of labor?)

nackie

@stothi is right that you’re way more likely to pee yourself in public at the end of pregnancy or right after.
The vast majority of people are already at the hospital by the time their water breaks. I don’t know a single mom for whom that was the first sign of labor. Mine was broken by the doctor around 10 hours into labor. Chances are you won’t have to worry about it. 

stothi

@nackie I actually do know one mom, but only one, who had the dramatic full water break, puddle on the floor happen. The funny/ironic/interesting part is that she had a scheduled c-section later that week so she was at the hair salon getting her hair looking good for pictures since she was planning hair and make-up and all that since she "knew" when baby was coming. Lol. Oops. Nope. Had to go straight into the doc with no hair and make-up after all. These darn babies who just don't know how to keep to a schedule!

Now stories about moms peeing in public, at home, at the doc or anywhere under the sun, those I know a lot of! So much pee, lol.

dexnie

I’m a FTM too and I recommend listening to The Birth Hour. It’s a podcast where women share their birth stories. I’ve probably listened to 100 at this point (started when TTC) and it helps calm my nerves and appreciate the spectrum of experiences women have when it comes to birth

scarletwillow

I've had 5 babies so far and only had my water break before contractions with my second baby. I was around 38-39 weeks and was noticing my underwear feeling wet one day. I started wearing pads and changing them. We were running errands that day, so we just went about our business because I assumed the contractions would begin at some point. They didn't all day! Finally after we got our son to bed, I called L and D and they had me come in. I had never had a huge gush, just lots of seeping. By the time we got to the hospital (still wasn't feeling contractions), they did a test and confirmed it was amniotic fluid. Long story short, they let me all around but my contractions still weren't picking up so they put me on pitocin. That may have been best, but I wasn't satisfied with how the whole thing was handled. Instead of discussing it with me, the OB put the order in and then went to bed. But my son was born about 6 hours after the pitocin. His birth was great otherwise. With my last 3 babies, the OB or midwife ended up breaking my water right before I pushed. 

melissasue777

mine actually broke on the toilet. I went to stand up and then i thought a little more pee came out. Then the rest of the day it was still leaking.. which i thought i was just peeing my pants.  It happened at 10 and I called the dr around 5.. and they said to come in.. sure enough they said my water had broke. I then had to be put on potocin (typcially when your water breaks they want you to deliver within 24 hours to reduce the risk of infection). I started on potocian round 7 and gave birth by 6am the next day. 

adirat

stothi said:

My water broke at the hospital like 12 hours into labor when the doc broke it. My story is not interesting. Well, parts of it are, especially to me personally, but the water breaking part isn't.

Is this where I mention that one is waaaay more likely to full on pee their pants in public whilst pregnant, or afterwards, than to have their water break in a way people would notice? (Or OP are you asking more what do you do when you go into labor and just talking about water breaking as a sign of labor?)

Check! I'm so much more worried about peeing my pants at work than my water breaking...

nackie

adirat said

Check! I'm so much more worried about peeing my pants at work than my water breaking...

Been there, done that. Do not recommend. 

Car0liiine

Mine broke when I was in L&D. A contraction started and I suddenly knew I had to vomit. I had no emesis basin so I tore off all the monitors and gown in my flight to the toilet and with the first heave - splash. I will say that part of that was pee too, I always pee when I vomit. At home I have to keep cups in all the bathrooms so I can sit on the toilet and vomit into the cup. Otherwise, puddles. 

pourmeanothermocktail

@Car0liiine First, I will say I'm sorry for the pee vomiting. Second though, I'm super impressed you can vomit into a cup. That wouldn't go well for me. 

jhjocelyn

Edited: one handed typing and bump issues. 

@Car0liiine I’m with @pourmeamocktail

My first thought was picturing peeing into a cup while puking into the toilet... I am not a skilled puker. *insert laughing emoji here because the bump is hating me*

ashh2018

@Car0liiine I think I remember you saying that and me being impressed by your vomit skills (LOL) months ago! I was super nervous about it at the beginning bc I always pee when I throw up and I was sure I’d be in the bathroom at work peeing myself every day of my pregnancy (I wasn’t!). I also remember another girl said that she managed to vomit between her legs into the bowl while she was peeing and I thought she should really win some sort of prize lol. 

lisac113

@Car0liiine I am also impressed with your puking skills!   One my best friends in college had the ability to puke in a cup.  We lived in a sorority house and shared a room. She slept on the top bunk and had a book shelf next to her bed.  I realized one day that when she had a rough night, she would put a cup on the shelf and use it as her puke cup.  It made me vomit just to think about it!

Car0liiine

Haha I am sadly kind of a pro at vomiting. I had a chronic cough for about 10 years that caused me to vomit a few times a week. That's also what started the demise of my pelvic floor and my stress incontinence.  
The cup thing is also super convenient for the car!

@ashh2018 I agree that vomiting through your legs deserves a prize!