to those 2nd time around mom's..

HeidiE78 · November 2009

I have a question for you..How long did you wait when you went into labor to go to the hospital? I really dont want to run there and wait 10 hours in a labor room. Anyone have any suggestions? I know my sister in law was 8 centinmeters but i think she had the waited hours. Although it was pretty much an emergency c-section because she never had an ultrasound and the baby was breach when she got there. Very scary! I was thinking to wait at least 4 hours, is that reasonable. Then again i heard 2 people were in labor for 15 hours..ugg, i pray that isnt me..

madhatter2003 · November 2009

You don't want to know Stick out tongue

With DD I was in labor for over 100 hours, spent 22 in the hospital.

With DS I was in labor about 14 hours, spent 9 of that in the hospital. Looking back I could have waited with him, but DD was scared of seeing me in pain which was freaking me out, so we went in.

mamalae · November 2009

I go when my water breaks. You never know how fast things can happen!

nikalina · November 2009

It is really a personal choice. With my 1st I waited 15 hours before going in. I was in active labor at home for approx. 6 of those hours. My second I couldn't do it at home as long. DH wasn't at home to help me. He was out of town. DS3 I went in after a few hours.

madhatter2003 · November 2009

The 'rule' is to go when contractions are around 5 min apart, for 1 minute each, for about an hour...obviously it'll depend on where you live, what traffic is like, etc.

tmhutch · November 2009

I didn't really make that decision, the hospital did. When I realized I was in pretty good labor, I called the hospital and they said don't bother coming in until your contractions are about 5 minutes apart, and last a certain amount of time Because they just would have sent me home if I came in before that point. But, my water never broke on its own, so if it did, I might have gone it.

lilbit923 · November 2009

I wouldn't base someone else's birth experience on whether or not you should wait or go to the hospital. You should judge for yourself. Eah woman's pain tolerance is different. What I may think is no pain at all may be excruciating to you and vice versa. Also, don't overlook a sudden change in pain and think it's just a contraction. When I was in labor with my son I was so tired of having the nurses tell me I wasn't trying enough to push, my son was face down, etc. I could feel he wasn't face down and something wasn't right. I knew something was wrong. In for an emergency c-section we go after being in labor from the night before. The OB opens me up and sees my son is transverse (head in one hip, butt in the other) my body had tried all it could and wasn't able to do anything. So trust your gut instincts. If you feel you need to GO then do it.

You certainly won't hear anything from me if you labor is short/long. It is different for everyone.

jayelare · November 2009

i went within an hour of my water breaking. dd did not arrive for 16 hours later however her cord was wrapped around her neck and she needed constant monitoring so it was the best decision i could have made to go right there. my sil had her baby within 1 hour of her water breaking and literally 5 min after she walked into the hospital which resulted in a natural delivery of a breach baby... so i won't mess around with waiting at home but that's just me.

Mrs.BoomBoom · November 2009

I waited until I was in transition. When I was getting pissy, we got in the car. My labor was less than 4 hours so I wouldn't want to put a time limit on it.

JulieandBen · November 2009

madhatter2003:
The 'rule' is to go when contractions are around 5 min apart, for 1 minute each, for about an hour...obviously it'll depend on where you live, what traffic is like, etc.

Ditto this. If you live close to the hospital then it's different.

I was induced but was in labor for 15hrs before having a csection. I hit every.single.centimeter before not progressing past 8cm.

Everyone is different.

mom2binKC · November 2009

madhatter2003:

The 'rule' is to go when contractions are around 5 min apart, for 1 minute each, for about an hour...obviously it'll depend on where you live, what traffic is like, etc.

This. You really can't predetermine how long that will take. You could start having timeable contractions, and they could be 5 min apart within a few hours, or it could take a couple of days. I was having irregular contractions (sometimes 5 min apart, sometimes 20) for about 36 hours before I finally went to see my dr and he said I was 4 cm, and he'd admit me to L&D and break my water to get things moving.

If your water breaks, you should probably at least call your dr to see if they automatically want you to go to L&D. Otherwise, they usually won't admit you until you are having contractions 5 minutes apart, lasting 1 minute, for one hour. Like I said, that could be soon after labor starts, or days after.

CharlaineS · November 2009

When my water broke at 12pm. I had DS at 4:20pm!! So I definately would not wait.

SpartanGirl · November 2009

Well, with DD my water broke before contractions started. My hospital's policy is to admit you right away after your water breaks. I was there for 26 hours before DD was born.

With DS, I woke up having very strong contractions and went straight in. I was 8 cm and he was born less than 2 hours later.

Boizmom · November 2009

With my second I was in labor for 23 hours and pushed for 4 hours. I was induced though and I attribute being in labor so long because my body wasn't ready. This time I am not being induced...I've learned from two previous pregnancies/births what works for me and what doesn't. I plan on staying at home for a good while. How long though really depends on where I am at during Drs appointments and such. I am not anticipating this lil guy just shooting out...I am pretty sure I'll be in labor for a while since my body has never done it naturally before. I dunno though. I hope I'm right and I don't end up having him in the car or something. LOL.

moiissa · November 2009

With DS#2 I woke up between 3 and 6am a couple times with uncomfortable contractions, but could go right back to sleep. I woke up for good at 6:45am b/c when I peed there was a bloody show. Contractions were 10 minutes apart.I took a shower and got FI up. We dropped of DS#1 and were at the hospital at 8am. By this time my contrations were 3-5 minutes apart. I walked off the elevator on the L&D floor, had a contraction and my water broke. They checked me at 8:30am and I was 8cm.. I freaked out!! I thought I had A LOT more time. I was 10 cm at 9:15am, but waited to push b/c I wanted FI's mom to be there, but by 9:45 I couldn't wait anymore b/c the urge was WAY too strong. He was born at 10:03am. He came so much faster than I thought. I'm scared to wait this time.

StylishMom · November 2009

I was in labor for 23 hours (with help from pitocin). I waited about 14 hrs to go to the hospital. I guess when my tolerance for pain gave out..I headed in.

LittleMamaB · November 2009

I didn't go naturally with my first, but I went to the hospital with my second as soon as I knew I was in labor. I have fast labors, so no time to waste. If I would have waited four hours, I would have had him at home.

mcgee · November 2009

I was induced with DD, so I wasn't actually "in" labor when I showed up at the appointed time. It took a while to get me into a room, get an IV in, get all the appropriate forms filled out, etc., before they actually started the induction. I labored for 25 hours.

With DS, we had a homebirth. The midwife wanted us to call her 1) if my water broke, and/or 2) contractions were five minutes apart or less for close to an hour, and/or 3) I just felt like I really and truly needed her. My water broke at 2 am, and contractions were so close together that we called and asked her to come right away, since she was a good 45 minute drive away. DS was born less than 3 hours after my water broke.

melaniecl · November 2009

hmm, mine was relatively quick, I think. I was at the hospital by around 4is am. They had me hooked up to the monitor in triage for an hour. At that point, I was only dilated 2 cm, but was VERY uncomfortable with horrible contractions and was losing my mucus plug and started a slow leak. My doctor wanted me to walk around for an hour to see if I made any progress, which I did. By around 6 am, she checked me and I was 3 cm dilated (with her assistance---ouch! but it is their rules that you have to be 3 cm to stay)....At that point, they decided to admit me. I had to wait for the nurse to come and do the intake/insurance stuff, get a room ready for me, etc. Once I had a room, I had to have an IV/antibiotics because of group b strep. I think I got the epidural around 8. My doctor told me she was going to come back around 12. She didn't come back until about 1 and checked me and I was fully dilated (but relatively comfortable thanks to the epi), I had DS at 1:38. So even though I felt like my experience went pretty quickly, looking back it was still long! good luck!

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