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3rd Trimester
::hangs head in shame:: I have one of "those" questions
you know, the ones that are so stupid they make you shake your head in disbelief that the person asking is even capable of procreating. Well, here it goes
If you have progressed (aka, dilated, effaced) did you have any indication this was happening? As in, contractions, spotting, loss of mucous plug, twinges, pains, something, anything?
I have my 38 week appt today and I am nervous that I again will be at 0. I've mainly had BH contractions and no other "symptoms" of activity other than baby kicks and squirms.
I feel like if you are progressing, you probably have some indication on your own that it's happening. No?
And DISCLAIMER TO THOSE THAT DON'T KNOW:
I wouldn't normally care about things like dilation/effacement, except i am trying for a VBAC, and my ability to do that solely depends on whether or not I dilate. Otherwise I wouldnt' care.
This discussion has been closed.
Re: ::hangs head in shame:: I have one of "those" questions
Not really. I had a little?crampiness over the weekend, but it wasn't anything major. ?No spotting, no MP loss-age (LOL).?
I did have?contrax like night.. so now I wonder if I'm more than a 2.. but I have to wait until next Tues to find out.. unless they pick up today!?
What's your official due date Bonz?
I think is an excellent question. My OB is anti-internals until 38+ weeks (which is probably better for my anxious self but still) She says she is only checking at 38 weeks to make sure the baby is head down and "progress" is not really an indicator of when you will go into labor so she doesn't bother. It's a killer not knowing at all.
If it makes you feel any better, I was thinking about asking this next. We can sit in shame together.
I haven't felt anything yet that made me think I might be progressing. Not so much as the first BH. But I'm interested to hear what everyone else has to say. I was induced with DD and would really like to go into labor naturally with this LO.
Best of luck to you!
I learned at childbirth class: after the first pregnancy, dilation/effacement often happens immediately before going into labor. You may not have any progress ahead of time. With the first pregnancy, it's quite possible that dilation/effacement will occur weeks ahead of time.
Maybe you'll progress rapidly once your labor begins. Best of luck!
I get BH, but other than that...nope. In all four of my pregnancies I have never once lost a MP and don't have spotting till I am in labor.
Good luck today!
Bonzer, I don't know how true this is *across the board,* but my MW and my CB instructor have both mentioned that women on their second + pregnancies seem to have less progress before they actually go into labor and don't really "drop" before they go into labor - and they've both said that in their experience, these things tend to even be more apparent in VBAC candidates - though they couldn't articulate a reason why that might be true - other than some kind of possible "safety" mechanism preventing preterm birth. So, even if you hear a big fat ZERO today at your appointment, I say dont lose hope that VBAC is lost to you.
How late will your OB let you go?
Aw
I just wanted to see how?close you are to me, lol 
I like this! Thanks for posting that. It makes me feel better about my measly little 1
?
At 34 weeks I asked my OB about this. I told her that I had not been having many BH, but I had a few (not many) of the kind that feel like menstrual cramps. I also told her that the cramps were followed by vaginal pains and twinges. I asked her if it was posisble that I was feeling myself efface or dilate. She said that is is possible to feel that, so she did an internal. Sure enough I was 75% effaced and 1cm dilated.
So, my OB said that it is possible to feel it.
Your due date is a day after mine... aww. I kind of wondered when it was.
I'm anxious to see what my internal tomorrow shows. I had one two weeks ago and nothing was going on in there.
With DS, at my 38-week appointment I was 2cm, 50%, and had a 'bulging bag of water.' I had absolutely zero physical indications that my cervix was trying to get the show on the road.
I never made my 39-week appointment.
I've heard this exact thing from my doctors as well!
Me: 37
DH: 36
Married: 08-25-07
DS: 11-20-09
Name change alert: Formerly Lisswastaken
At my appointment last week, my cervix was soft and that was it. But the day after my appointment, I started having pressure and the weirdest pain right where my right leg meets my vag. So, something's definitely happening. But I haven't lost my MP or have had any BH's so far.
As a pp said, I believe with your second pregnancy, you don't drop ahead of time and that it would happen right when you go into labor. So maybe you won't have too many signs.
I just got back from my 38 wk appt. After three weeks in a row of fingertip dilation and 30-40% effaced, this week Ii'm 1.5cm dilated and 40-50% effaced. There wasn't really any indication of change, just the standard BH contrax I've been feeling since 33-34 weeks.
DH thinks it was the long walk we took last night that did it.
For what it's worth, this is my experiance so far:
I had a full days worth of contractions last Tuesday. Enough to be very noticeable and uncomfy, and even make me stop what I was doing a few times during them, but not really timeable and not enough to make me feel like *this was it*.
Then at my check up that Thursday I was really suprised when the Dr. said I was at 2 cm and 50% effaced. I can't help but think it was that day of contractions that did it.
I haven't had any more contractions this week other than random BH. My next check up is tomorrow, and I'm really looking forward to seeing if anything else has happend in there.
Last week, I had a great deal of painful twinges going on in there, and when I went to the doctor I was 2 cm/50% effaced. After my first internal, I lost my mucous plug within a few hours. I haven't had too much pain in there since, and today, I had made zero progress since last week, and was in fact told that 2 cm was being considered "generous" (two different OBs did my internals).
I know how much you've been hoping for a VBAC (due to my lurking), so I hope it starts for you. My SIL just had a baby last weekend, she had only dilated to 1cm, and wound up delivering less than 48 hours after that, so it seems that it can happen very quickly. Good luck to you!
Everyone is different, some have lots of signs and others have ooops, my water broke, and an hour later the baby is born. I do remember some signs that both myself and all my friends experienced--the intense urge to clean.
With my first child, the Dr. said I had 6 wks to go. Two days later, I woke up with the cleaning bug, and actually got down on hands and knees and washed and waxed my huge kitchen floor. I got my bag ready to go. A few hours later my water broke, and by the time I got to the Dr. I was already 6 cm.
With my son, I had BH for 6 weeks. My grandma and the nurse told me that if you can fall asleep during the contractions, then it's not the real thing. Finally, one night I couldn't sleep, my water broke in the morning, and I was on my way to the hospital.
Oh, and all my friends and I had flu like symptoms-mainly the runs and nausea. The Dr. said it is nature's way of cleaning out your body in preparation for the birth.
So, you will probably have some sort of indication that labor is about to begin. Just relax and let nature take it's course, being tense only makes things worse. Good luck and here's to a happy, healthy lil one soon!