i know this is a dumb question but how do you know when your in labor ? and when to go to the?

Question

hospital how does it work how many centimeters do you need to be are you suppoise to wait untill your water breaks and how come in sex ed they never told you about delivering the placenta after giveing birth? i just now heard about delivering the after birth and im 20 is that sad or what exspeacially since im like 6 months pregnate!:) how does it all work? how did it go down, when you gave birth moms give me some clue on what im getting myself into please :) thanx for your time!

Answer 1

Don't wait until your water breaks....only about 1 in 5 women's water breaks on thier own. When you start to feel contractions, about 10-15 minutes apart

Answer 2

Your labour starts with contractions which feel almost the same as those if you have to go to the toilet. They are regular and the interval decreases and the intensity increases as your labour progresses.

You should go to hospital as soon as you are reasonably certain that you have contractions, not just a tummy upset. Ideally phone the hospital first so they expect you, tell them how quickly you will arrive and what the time is between contractions.

Any time after contractions start your waters could break. That is a sign that your baby is in position for the birth.

Usually you would start to dilate soon afterwards but you don't wait for dilation. By the time you start to dilate tyou should already be at the hospital and probably on a monitor for the baby's heart.

An average time for labour is probably 12 to 24 hours. First babies usually take longer than subsequent babies.

Some people hurt a lot, some only a little. The doctors or midwives will give pethadin gas to ease the pain but it doesn't really work much. If you are very scared of the pain you can ask for an epidural which is injected to stop all feeling and all pain below the waist.

It is quite usual for the doctor to open you a bit to make the baby come out more easily and they stitch you afterwards. In this case you may be sore for a week afterwards.

Cesarean births are easier but most mothers and doctors feel that natural birth is better.

Answer 3

You're not sad, cause I wasn't fully aware of the whole placenta thing either(although when I delivered mine,grossly enough it splattered blood on the doc). Something I heard and is a very good indicator to go by is if you are having contractions and you can't speak during the contractions-then its probably time to go to the docs. If you've ever had cramps, they feel like that just a zillion times worse. Some woman will be at 3 cm for several weeks...your doctor will be checking you every week or so to see how far along you are....and if your water breaks(gushing fluids out of your who-ha is the indicator) or you think it did(my just had a tear and i kept leaking little bits of water here and there that progressively hot worst)you gotta go in, cause if you water is broke for too long, you or the baby can get an infection. There's so much more, just email me for any more Q's...I hope this helps!

Answer 4

Contractions are the first sign that you are in labor. When they are at least five minutes apart and regular you should call you doctor. The water does not always break on its own. I have to have my water sack broken when I was in labor with both my children. Of course if you water does break then call the doctor ASAP! The baby will need to be delivered with 24 hours of the water sack braking in order to avoid a dangerous infection. As for the placenta, you probably wont notice delivering it after having the baby so I would not worry too much about it.

Answer 5

I had a lower backache, and such crampy feelings that I left work early one afternoon, and called in the next day. I also had bleeding as a sign of labor. The day I called in to work, I was still all crampy, and then that evening I had some water break. Like a lot of people said, it doesn't always do it on it's own. I was surprised to find out that I only had a "high leak", and that the doctor had to break it the rest of the way. But the initial amount I had at home was definitely the deciding factor in going to the hospital.

Answer 6

I think you should be doing some research on the net, or at the library!! That is how I know most stuff about my pregnancy. I have a book that is called "your week by week pregnancy" It is awesome.
But to answer a few of your questions... I didnt know about the after birth either until my ma-in law told me. Also, everybody keeps telling me that "you will know when you are in labor" I suppose so, considering it hurts, i guess. I hate that answer. THey say your contractions will be like 5-10 minutes apart. O yea, and you are suppose to be 4 cm dialted to be in active labor! And one more thing. I do know for a fact that not everybody's water breaks.
If you have any other questions, feel free to e-mail me, I can tell you stuff my book says. lol.

Answer 7

Every doctor/hospital is different. I was told to go to the hospital if my contractions were coming every 5 minutes and had been doing so for an hour. Or if your water broke you needed to be at the hospital within the hour.

Yes, I knew about delivering the placenta.

Have you taken a Lamaze class? Most Lamaze classes also discuss exactly what happens during childbirth and when to go to the hospital, etc.

Always, if you have questions ask your doctor.

Answer 8

Sweetie- I'm working on baby #3 and to tell you the truth it is different for everyone. With baby number one I had no clue I was in labor. I had been having Braxton Hicks contractions since I was 6 months along and I had no pain with my contractions until I was 8 cm dilated. Had my mother not told me I was in labor I would have never known. I can't tell you how many other mothers I know who had similar experiences. My cousin was in the bathroom trying to move her bowels because she felt pressure like she had to go. My aunt almost died yelling at her to stop before she pushed the baby into the toilet!

With baby #2 I tried to listen to my doctor and wait until my contractions were 5 minutes apart. Problem with that was the contractions started suddenly and I only had three contractions at 5 minutes apart. 15 min from contraction #1 I was 3 minutes apart, 60 min from then I was a 1 minute apart. 3 hours from the first contraction my son was born.

I can tell you not to wait for your water to break- mine never has. What I can say conclusively is: Expect the unexpected!

Answer 9

The contractions need to be a certain amount apart before going to the hospital, if you go to soon, they will send you home.

A childbirth class will teach you all of that or at least the good ones will. You might want to consider http://www.bradleybirth.com they really teach you alot.
Cost a little bit of money, I think $200 or $250. I think the hospital has a class too, but I have no idea what they teach or if it cost anything.

I never know about the placenta either, don't know why they never tell you about that stuff in school.

Here is another site that has alot of links to other sites
http://www.babysitedirectory.com

Answer 10

I strongly suggest you take a class. There's much to learn, not to mention the possibility of asking questions and sharing your experiences with other parents to be. Your doctor or hospital should be able to point you in the right direction.

To know more about signs of labour, go to
http://www.storknet.com/cubbies/childbirth/labor.htm

One of the overall best web sites I found for information about the pregnancy is
www.pregnancyguideonline.com