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May 2016 Moms
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Planning the labor scenarios...

sarahjo842sarahjo842 member
in May 2016 Moms

So of course hitting 30 weeks I'm losing sleep wondering how and where I will go into labor. If I go into labor at home, easy peasy, my husband can just drive me and we don't live far from the hospital. BUT since I spend much more time at work than at home, I feel like the odds are higher that I'll go into labor at work. My job is on the opposite side of town from the hospital, so when I go to the doctor it takes me a good 30 minutes to get there. My husband works in the same direction as the hospital and is only 10 minutes from there. SO...if he has to come and get me, he'll have to drive 20 minutes and then back track the other direction for 30. So all in all, I could be in labor for an hour before I get to the hospital. I am just wondering how naïve it is of me to think that I could drive myself at least to my husband's work? It's stop and go traffic so it's not like I'd be racing down the interstate and I'd have time to stop and breath at each red light. As a FTM, I have to admit I'm totally clueless about what my capabilities will be like once I start having contractions.

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Re: Planning the labor scenarios...

  • kbrands7kbrands7 member
    Once you're in active labor, I would not recommend driving. There's a decent/moderate chance that you'll have time between early contractions and more active contractions to realize that you're in labor and take action-- or even if your water breaks, there is sometimes a lag between that and more forceful contractions. It's fairly unpredictable though, so I personally wouldn't try to count on it.

    I work 30-40 minutes from my hospital and from DH's work. If I go into labor while still at work, he'll be coming to get me and my dad and brother will likely come up to fetch the extra car. Unless you have extraordinarily quick labor, being in labor for an hour before getting to the hospital is not really going to be an issue. Driving could be.
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  • MsIanMsIan member
    Assuming I'm not on bed rest for the next 10 weeks, I'm probably going to be at work too. I'm going to make someone drive me to the hospital (it's about 20 minutes away on a good day) and have my fiancé meet me there. When my mom flies in, she can take a cab from the airport to my car (about 5 minutes) and drive my car the rest of the way to the hospital. 
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  • dsmith211dsmith211 member
    My midwife said once in labor (even early - guess they're just extra cautious) she would recommend not driving anywhere yourself. Thankfully I'm in the situation where DH and I actually work at the same place so we're pretty much always together during the week, but if I happened to go into labor while out and about they would apparently like me to have someone come pick me up.
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  • Lusitano8Lusitano8 member
    I think it's more common than not that labor progresses slowly. Most women don't go into active labor right away. Unlike the movies where they stop everything and rush to the hospital. 

    You might start having some contractions that are not yet long enough or close enough together to go to the hospital. If this happened while at your work you would likely have plenty of time for your DH to pick you up. (You might go home if your contractions are not close together) Ask your OB when you should go to L&D.

    Your water could break and it might be a few hours until you start getting regular contractions.  In this case you probably wouldn't go to the hospital right away. You would still wait until you have timetable contractions or it's been 24 hours since your water broke. 
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  • kami09kami09 member
    ^ totally agree with the going home statement.  I'd much rather labor at home than at the hospital.  If I were you,  I'd get him to pick me up,  take me home,  THEN go to the hospital when contractions are closer together. 
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  • nerdymama15nerdymama15 member
    I'm kind of hoping of being induced early (I"m NOT asking my doctor to do it, but there is a chance due to medical reasons that it could happen) or being induced after the EDD.  I don't want to be home and go into labor.  My husband works thirty minutes away from the house (his work is near the hospital).  I work from home.  So if it happened it would take him over 30 minutes to get here, and then 30 minutes to get to the hospital.  If it does happen to have to start at home, then I hope it is when he is here or on a weekend.


    First Pregnancy
    • BFP: 01/25/2015
    • EDD: 09/28/2015
    • Incomplete MC: 02/28/2015

    Second Pregnancy

    • BFP: 09/11/2015
    • EDD: 05/25/2016
    Baby Born
    04/15/2016



    PGAL
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  • helleebelleehelleebellee member
    I will be alone if I go into labor on my own.  The dh will be out of state, so I'll end up driving myself.  I'll just have to time it right. The hospital is a 45 minute drive.  I'm kind of leaning towards induction because 1, I will be alone if it's not planned, at 2, I'm on blood thinners and would like them out of my system for 24 before going in to labor. It's just all a toss up on what will happen so I have to be prepared for all scenarios.  
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  • Knottie64278661Knottie64278661 member
    If any ladies are shooting for a natural child birth it is highly suggested you spend most of your labor at home and find distractions for yourself. I'm taking a class now and they really emphasize waiting until the last minute to come to the hospital unless there are other serious circumstances. If you go to the hospital too early there are more chances of you not ending up with a natural labor.

    My work is 15 minutes from the hospital and my home is 30 minutes from work and 15 mins to the hospital. If I go into labor at work, I'm having DH pick me up and we're going home to wait it out till my contractions are 5 mins apart.
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  • MercielMerciel member
    Is it unrealistic to expect that I'll be able to walk to the hospital? It's like a 10-minute walk from our condo, 15 minutes if I'm going real slow or in inclement weather (so assuming that I walk slower while in labor, 15 minutes sounds reasonable). Under anything approximating normal circumstances I'd feel like an idiot asking my husband to drive me a grand total of six blocks, but I have no idea what to expect when the day comes.
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  • AmmyBelleAmmyBelle member
    Merciel said:
    Is it unrealistic to expect that I'll be able to walk to the hospital? It's like a 10-minute walk from our condo, 15 minutes if I'm going real slow or in inclement weather (so assuming that I walk slower while in labor, 15 minutes sounds reasonable). Under anything approximating normal circumstances I'd feel like an idiot asking my husband to drive me a grand total of six blocks, but I have no idea what to expect when the day comes.
    This. I love 7 blocks and a street over from my hospital, and it's Southern California (i.e. inclement weather is hardly ever a concern) - do you think I could just walk?
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  • KelleAlwardKelleAlward member
    When I went into labor it took over an hour to get to the hospital. It only sucked because I was in pain, but I was still in pain at the hospital too. I had another 16 hours of labor to go, so one hour to get there made no difference at all. Also, once there I was only dilated 3 cm and they didn't want to check me in until I was at 4. They asked me to walk around to keep things progressing. I couldn't even walk down the hallway. I wouldn't count on being able to walk to the hospital, though you may be able to, you may also be in too much pain to walk like I was.
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  • mello13mello13 member
    AmmyBelle said:
    Merciel said:
    Is it unrealistic to expect that I'll be able to walk to the hospital? It's like a 10-minute walk from our condo, 15 minutes if I'm going real slow or in inclement weather (so assuming that I walk slower while in labor, 15 minutes sounds reasonable). Under anything approximating normal circumstances I'd feel like an idiot asking my husband to drive me a grand total of six blocks, but I have no idea what to expect when the day comes.
    This. I love 7 blocks and a street over from my hospital, and it's Southern California (i.e. inclement weather is hardly ever a concern) - do you think I could just walk?
    Even if you can walk there, it might make more sense to drive. First, you'll be more comfortable, won't have to grab the side of a building while waiting for a contraction to pass, etc. Secondly, you will need the car for the trip home. Ever step will feel like a thousand miles, and they likely won't release you with a car seat anyway.

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  • mello13mello13 member

    zanaerob1 said:
    Lusitano8 said:
    I think it's more common than not that labor progresses slowly. Most women don't go into active labor right away. Unlike the movies where they stop everything and rush to the hospital. 

    You might start having some contractions that are not yet long enough or close enough together to go to the hospital. If this happened while at your work you would likely have plenty of time for your DH to pick you up. (You might go home if your contractions are not close together) Ask your OB when you should go to L&D.

    Your water could break and it might be a few hours until you start getting regular contractions.  In this case you probably wouldn't go to the hospital right away. You would still wait until you have timetable contractions or it's been 24 hours since your water broke. 
    This is correct about waiting for contractions - they recommend waiting until the contractions are 5 minutes apart or too painful to manage.

    However if your water breaks you need to go into the hospital straight away to be monitored. There's a much higher risk of complications if your water breaks first. Please don't wait at home for 24 hours with broken waters. 
    ^ This absolutely. Water breaking (which may not happen, the doctor had to break my waters) is not something to mess around with. Get to the hospital/birthing center straight away. After 24 hours they typically take the baby out because they risk suffocation/infection/etc. DO NOT wait 24 before going.

    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
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  • lalala2004lalala2004 member
    zanaerob1 said:
    Lusitano8 said:
    I think it's more common than not that labor progresses slowly. Most women don't go into active labor right away. Unlike the movies where they stop everything and rush to the hospital. 

    You might start having some contractions that are not yet long enough or close enough together to go to the hospital. If this happened while at your work you would likely have plenty of time for your DH to pick you up. (You might go home if your contractions are not close together) Ask your OB when you should go to L&D.

    Your water could break and it might be a few hours until you start getting regular contractions.  In this case you probably wouldn't go to the hospital right away. You would still wait until you have timetable contractions or it's been 24 hours since your water broke. 
    This is correct about waiting for contractions - they recommend waiting until the contractions are 5 minutes apart or too painful to manage.

    However if your water breaks you need to go into the hospital straight away to be monitored. There's a much higher risk of complications if your water breaks first. Please don't wait at home for 24 hours with broken waters. 
    Definitely, do NOT wait to go to the hospital if your water breaks! If there is not enough fluid left, it can be really bad for the baby, and you would need to be monitored at that point.

    Also, if your water does break before going to the hospital, I doubt you could easily/realistically walk to the hospital, those who are asking....
    *Siggy Warning*
    Lilypie Second Birthday tickers

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  • LadySamLadyLadySamLady member
    edited March 2016
    We are New Yorkers without a car and will be taking an uber to the hospital. I'm honestly more worried about getting there too early and being sent home. My goal is to labor at home until contractions are 5 mins apart (maybe 6 in case uber takes a while to arrive), unless of course my water breaks. 

    Edited because it posted before I was done!
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  • Bltbear82Bltbear82 member
    @LadySamLady exactly what you described happened to me. I later learned that if your contractions continue at the same pacing in various positions then head to the hospital. I had contractions from 7pm-5am and they were regular so we went in, but once I was up and moving around they were less frequent. My water broke 5 hours after we left the hospital. 

    And once your water breaks you're not going to want to walk. Getting out of my apartment and to the street took like 10 minutes because I had to stop for every contraction. 

    Also, pro tip: bring something to sit on for the uber if your water breaks before you leave, I'm packing a garbage bag in my hospital bag. 
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  • JoMunsonJoMunson member
    Our birth class did a great lesson where they had us play a dice game to create a labor scenario. Of course, my ideal labor is going to happen in the very early morning so I got some sleep but I get to watch the sun rise. In the scenario I went into labor at 3pm, which is when my husband will be in sessions with his clients and can't answer the phone. To me that would be the most stressful- but thankfully I can call other family to come and keep me calm while we wait for DH. 
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  • proudparent2bproudparent2b member
    Based on what we learned in my birthing class, the early stage of labor takes around 12 hours, so I would think that it shouldn't be too much of an issue to get to the hospital.  The big thing at my hospital is that they'll send you home if you aren't far enough along in your contractions.  It's an hour round trip to my hospital and I'd hate to get stuck spending 1 1/2 + hours in the car having contractions because I was over eager to get there.
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  • avidkeoavidkeo member
    proudparent2b said:
    Based on what we learned in my birthing class, the early stage of labor takes around 12 hours, so I would think that it shouldn't be too much of an issue to get to the hospital.  The big thing at my hospital is that they'll send you home if you aren't far enough along in your contractions.  It's an hour round trip to my hospital and I'd hate to get stuck spending 1 1/2 + hours in the car having contractions because I was over eager to get there.
    I have a 2hr drive to my hospital. joy of joys. But I get to go to the local place first (20 mins) where they will assess me and let me know if I should go or not. Bonus, if I'm too far along, I get to stay local. Not ideal (I'm VBAC and can't deliver local because of increased risk of uterine rupture) but tempting...
    Angel baby June 2013, DD born 22 April 2014, BFP 10 Sept 2015 - Due 22 May 2016
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