34w 5d and already 80% effaced

hecubus330 · February 2016

I had my 34 week appointment today and doctor did a check and I am 1-2cm dilated and the baby is 80% effaced. He said the baby should be coming earlier than my due date (March 26th). I called my mom and told her to book an earlier flight. I was assuming baby would be late so I had originally planned for her to come out second week of April.

Have anyone else when they were FTMs have a similar dilation and effacement (is that the right word) this early but still went past their due date?

fwtx5815 · February 2016

hecubus330 said:

I had my 34 week appointment today and doctor did a check and I am 1-2cm dilated and the baby is 80% effaced. He said the baby should be coming earlier than my due date (March 26th). I called my mom and told her to book an earlier flight. I was assuming baby would be late so I had originally planned for her to come out second week of April.

Have anyone else when they were FTMs have a similar dilation and effacement (is that the right word) this early but still went past their due date?

It's actually the cervix that is effaced, not the baby. Effacement is when the cervix will soften/shorten/become thinner. The thing with this, is that it's fairly subjective. One doctor might estimate that you're 80% effaced, another may call it 50%. It's easier for them to be precise with dilation because they've practiced feeling what 1 cm, 2 cm, etc. feels like and it doesn't vary from woman to woman.

I had 2 appointments in a row where I was 1 cm and about 50% effaced before I made any more progress with dilation, so you just never know how quickly things will progress.

Were you hoping for your mom to be there right after baby is born? Or with a few weeks to yourself? My H's family is all out of town so I can relate to the troubles of trying to time things just right.

RiverWhispering · February 2016

Oh wow. You and I have the same due date and had our 34 week appointments at the same time. I too suspect that my baby will be late, but I'm having my mom fly in on the 19th of March and stay until the end of April. That way she's there for the birth in case little one comes a week early. If you planned for her to come out the second week of April then I'm guessing you wanted her to be there *after* the baby was born, yes?

I don't have any advice for you regarding the dilation and effacement this early, since I'm also a FTM. But I feel you when it comes to trying to time things and make flight plans when you have no idea what to expect. Good luck to you!! And cheers to March 26th!!

hecubus330 · February 2016

I want to have my mom there close to the baby's birth, but it doesn't necessarily have to be right when the baby's born. My husband's family lives out here so we will have help when we need it. My mom just didn't want to fly out and sit around for weeks waiting for baby to be born.

parenthood4 · February 2016

With my first, I was effaced at 34 weeks but not dilated. I wasn't checked again until 37 weeks and was 75% effaced and 2 cm, then 3cm a week later. They kept telling me I wouldn't make it to my next appointment, and I would waddle myself back in there the next week. He ended up being born 3 days before the due date. You could go early, or you could make it to the due date, there's no real way to know for sure. The one thing the doctor told me that held true was that since he was so low for so long and I was already dilated that it might go quickly, which it did (5.5 hours). So that's something to hope for!

kleigh30 · February 2016

With my first I was 50% effaced and 2 cm dilated at 36 weeks. By 39 weeks I was 80% effaced and 3 cm. I kept being told I would go into labor at anytime... I ended up being induced at 41 weeks 5 days because I never progressed further. Luckily all they did to "induce" me is break my waters and then he was born within 9 hours. What I'm trying to say is everyone is different but for me even though I was dilated early, baby still came late.

diablesse · February 2016

I skipped my internal this week because I feel like it's such a scam. They give you these numbers and in the end all it does is either:
1. Get your hopes up (potentially unnecessarily) or,
2. Disappoint you

With my last pregnancy, I was 1cm for weeks and at 37weeks they told me I'd likely go past my due date. I cried all the way home, then gave birth a few days later.

smushi · February 2016

It's all anecdotal. There's really no telling. Flights are always so hard to plan around babies.

kitteh81 · February 2016

I hate that doctors and medical professionals even make predictions about when baby will come, because it feels so much more final when an authority says it (as opposed to say, my mom, who tells me all the time that I will go early despite the fact that I have gone a week late with both girls.) Even though they're doctors, they still don't have a crystal ball.

CecilB93 · February 2016

kitteh81 said:

I hate that doctors and medical professionals even make predictions about when baby will come, because it feels so much more final when an authority says it (as opposed to say, my mom, who tells me all the time that I will go early despite the fact that I have gone a week late with both girls.) Even though they're doctors, they still don't have a crystal ball.

My MW seems to be superstitious when it comes to storms and full moons. She warned me that there's a full moon this coming week and I might experience more contractions. She said that last full moon as well and I haven't had any contractions at all this pregnancy. She hasn't given me any set predictions as far as when she thinks he'll come though, just predictions about how big she thinks he'll be.

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