I was in labor on again off again for about 2 days. I would be getting contractions for a few hours and then they would stop until the next day. My water did not break so there was no concern. The night I went into labor, my contractions were about 15 minutes apart that had been happening for a few hours again that evening, like it had the previous evening. But this night, I was able to fall asleep at around 10:30 and woke up near 1:00 a.m. to my water breaking and my contractions about 7 to 8 minutes apart. Over the next few hours my contractions grew closer together by about a minute each hour, roughly. They were becoming stronger and longer in time, as you would expect. What I did not expect was that by about 5:00 a.m. they were only 3 minutes apart at least a minute long. I was very surprised that about every hour they had moved closer together by a good minute and by the next hour they had grown closer by another minute. It seemed odd to me that I had gone from 7/8 minutes down to 3 minutes apart in such a short time. Especially, it being my first pregnancy, how I was expecting it to be more drawn out. At that point I had called my midwife and she also thought that it seemed pretty quick and wanted me to stay home to do some more laboring because she didn't want me to get to the hospital too early and stall out a little. I was really nervous because they were intense, long, very close together. They had exceeded the criteria that everybody tells you you should be going to the hospital when experiencing and they had been going this way for at least an hour and getting closer together. I ended up going to the hospital and sitting in triage for 3 hours because there was an emergency that came in right around the same time I did. Of course, my labor did slow down because of the shock of it all, I think. The environment was not what it was supposed to be and was really stressful until I was able to get into my room. After all was said and done I was 4 to 5 cm dilated when I had gone to the hospital. I know this is a long story and I appreciate you taking the time to read it. My midwife ended up suggesting pitocin because my water had already broken and I did not protest. My son was born at 4:30 p.m. So my question is, how usual is it for women to experience contractions very close together, high intensity for long stretches of time, meeting the requirements of usually needing to go to the hospital but at a seemingly early time in labor? I'm pregnant with my second child and they say that birth goes quicker with your second child. Neither of my pregnancies have had any complications in any way. I'm a little worried that if my contractions end up being the same, or similar in pattern as with my first labor and delivery, I worry that I won't know when to go to the hospital because I felt like I was really pushing it with the recommendation. Meaning, I was still staying home 2-3 hours past the recommended 5-1-1 guideline and I still ended up going to the hospital early. What if I go into labor and the baby comes sooner than I expect because I stayed home too long because my contractions were misleading, like they were the first time. I hope that all makes sense. I know everybody is unique and nothing is written in stone and recommendations are just a guideline. I told my husband that we need to make sure to be prepared for an accidental home birth because I'm nervous that I will be ready to put while still being at home!
Hi Erica, I like the simplicity of the contraction timer that is part of the Daddy Up app. Let me know if you have any other questions as you prepare! Alice
What contraction timer have you used? I'd love to hear!
I was in labor on again off again for about 2 days. I would be getting contractions for a few hours and then they would stop until the next day. My water did not break so there was no concern. The night I went into labor, my contractions were about 15 minutes apart that had been happening for a few hours again that evening, like it had the previous evening. But this night, I was able to fall asleep at around 10:30 and woke up near 1:00 a.m. to my water breaking and my contractions about 7 to 8 minutes apart. Over the next few hours my contractions grew closer together by about a minute each hour, roughly. They were becoming stronger and longer in time, as you would expect. What I did not expect was that by about 5:00 a.m. they were only 3 minutes apart at least a minute long. I was very surprised that about every hour they had moved closer together by a good minute and by the next hour they had grown closer by another minute. It seemed odd to me that I had gone from 7/8 minutes down to 3 minutes apart in such a short time. Especially, it being my first pregnancy, how I was expecting it to be more drawn out. At that point I had called my midwife and she also thought that it seemed pretty quick and wanted me to stay home to do some more laboring because she didn't want me to get to the hospital too early and stall out a little. I was really nervous because they were intense, long, very close together. They had exceeded the criteria that everybody tells you you should be going to the hospital when experiencing and they had been going this way for at least an hour and getting closer together. I ended up going to the hospital and sitting in triage for 3 hours because there was an emergency that came in right around the same time I did. Of course, my labor did slow down because of the shock of it all, I think. The environment was not what it was supposed to be and was really stressful until I was able to get into my room. After all was said and done I was 4 to 5 cm dilated when I had gone to the hospital. I know this is a long story and I appreciate you taking the time to read it. My midwife ended up suggesting pitocin because my water had already broken and I did not protest. My son was born at 4:30 p.m. So my question is, how usual is it for women to experience contractions very close together, high intensity for long stretches of time, meeting the requirements of usually needing to go to the hospital but at a seemingly early time in labor? I'm pregnant with my second child and they say that birth goes quicker with your second child. Neither of my pregnancies have had any complications in any way. I'm a little worried that if my contractions end up being the same, or similar in pattern as with my first labor and delivery, I worry that I won't know when to go to the hospital because I felt like I was really pushing it with the recommendation. Meaning, I was still staying home 2-3 hours past the recommended 5-1-1 guideline and I still ended up going to the hospital early. What if I go into labor and the baby comes sooner than I expect because I stayed home too long because my contractions were misleading, like they were the first time. I hope that all makes sense. I know everybody is unique and nothing is written in stone and recommendations are just a guideline. I told my husband that we need to make sure to be prepared for an accidental home birth because I'm nervous that I will be ready to put while still being at home!
Full term! Seems pretty decent :) ny partner and i have been watching your videos. Super helpful!
That's so great to hear! Best of luck on your journey. 😀
Super helpful reminder!
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Thanks!!
-Birthing Partner
Absolutely! 👊
Where are the links to the contraction timing app in the description?
My apologies! apps.apple.com/us/app/contraction-timer-time-labor/id933501579
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hey my name is Erica and I'm about to have my first baby girl what's a good app to time my contractions and I'm only 2 weeks away
Hi Erica, I like the simplicity of the contraction timer that is part of the Daddy Up app. Let me know if you have any other questions as you prepare! Alice