My c section is due next week on Thursday. But this entire weekend since Friday morning at 3 am I've been feeling very different. In the last 48 hours I think I've slept 36 of them. My body feels like I've been hit by a train. I went to the hospital on Friday morning thinking I was in labor. No contractions. There was a lot of irrability but nothing more than that. I am only 30% effaced but not dialated. I keep feeling like I'm going to get my period. I get these horrible cramps that come from my back to the front down to my leg, but they don't last very long. I'll get them usually the first part of the day when I'm actually up. I've never slept this much before. Then all of a sudden this evening I get this burst of energy. I got all the beds cleaned floors are vacuumed and mopped rooms are dusted bathrooms are clean. All of these symptoms I've been having started Friday. Should I be considering that labor is any day now? Or am I truly exhausted which I can't imagine being exhausted. I'm a stay at home mom, yeah the kids keep me busy but no different than from before. So I wonder, if labor is on its way how have you moms felt before labor?
Those period cramps are contractions. Real or Braxton hicks.
That burst of energy is a bad sign if your csect is medically necessary (good sign if it's not). As in I'll lay money on between 3-5am tomorrow.
In hindsight, all of my contractions felt like menstrual cramps. Everyone kept saying, "you will know when you have real contractions. They will stop you in your tracks." Mine didn't. I remember feeling achy and like I was going to have a period. My water broke at home (both pregnancies) and that's when I knew I was in labor. My son (first pregnancy) came 10 days early and my daughter (scheduled c-section) came 2 weeks before it! You may be having a baby very soon! Good luck and God Bless!
A.
The day before my son was born I had all I could do to walk. It felt like a elephant was sitting on my hips. At 3am that night my water broke and at 5:49 my son was born. He was 3 weeks early. My daughter on the other hand was 8 days late and I never felt a thing. They had to induce me and nothing was happening, so 9 hours later I ended up with a c-section to get her out. Congrats!
In the 2 days before my water broke, I felt like I was getting my period. I had some cramps (felt like period cramps) in my lower belly a bit and a lot in my lower back. I felt EXHAUSTED too! Like I had run a marathon. I too cleaned my bedroom and washed the bedding and put it back on. I did all the laundry as well. My water broke at night and the contractions came almost instantly then. I went from being 80% effaced and 1 (maybe 2) cm dilated to water breaking out of nowhere. I was actually set up for an induction on a Friday and my water broke on a Wednesday. I got checked for the cramping on a Tuesday and had no change. I was surprised.
I felt like blech, I really did. I had the runs and felt crampy, like a period. Unlike you, I couldn't sleep well because I was so miserable. I went in and they checked me and said that I was contracting. My waters broke in the hospital so that didn't happen at home, and I never even saw a mucous plug (didn't know there WAS one until I read about it here, LOL!)
So count your blessing that you've been able to sleep, because you sure do need that. When you go in again, ask them to hook you up to a monitor and see if are having real contractions. You're too close to not do that.
Good luck, and let us know about your happy news!!
Dawn
Well I have to have c-sections too but with my first I went into labor. The day before I had cramps and light contractions for hours but nothing strong enough to make me run to the hospital. The next morning I woke up feeling fine. I was so bummed! My hubby wanted to cheer me up so we went out to dinner that night with friends (it was 10 days before my due date) then while at dinner Surprise! My water broke!! LOL. So you kinda sound similar to how I was. Cramps for a day or so and then feeling fine, that's when labor hit! So hopefully you'll make it to your c-section date but be ready, that baby might be coming now!
I felt absolutely nothing different the day before I went into labor.
I had no Braxton Hicks contractions - I was convinced I was going to go another week or so.
I was tired and holding water (swelled up legs/feet)
- it had been building the whole last month.
I woke up to use the bathroom at 3am Monday morning and lost my mucus plug.
I didn't think much about it and went back to sleep.
By 5am I began feeling some contractions.
My labor was 36 hrs long (I absolutely LOVED that epidural! I was in labor 19 hours beforehand and was getting exhausted) and we had our son at 5pm Tuesday afternoon vaginally - he was 9 lbs 1 1/2 oz and had a fantastic APGAR score.
And it was precisely on his estimated due date!
That doesn't happen that often.
Pregnancy doesn't go on forever, although it feels like it the whole last month.
Hang in there!
first I never went into labor. At my last week checkup my BP so so high they admitted me and induced me. I felt the pain of labor for 2 days and it didnt work, they sent me home. Same thing happened again 3 days later at a checkup, back to inducement for 2 days and that one worked. So never actually went into labor.
2nd. I was up all night with medium, regular cramping. The pain never got much over a menstrual cramp. All night I couldnt sleep I was restless and energetic. Finally fell asleep in the morning. Cramps, contractions, and pain gone. Put 1 year old in high chair for breakfast, sent my husband off to work with a kiss. Fed baby, picked up baby from chair, and GUSH water broke everywhere. STILL no pain no contractions. Went in to confirm, they said yes ok your water broke. Didnt have any pain more than a bad menstrual cramp. Didnt hurt or was regular till it was time to push and then OH MAN that hurt.
Third, I went to hospital 3 times with false and pre-term labor. Every time it quit and they sent me home. WAS SO FRUSTRATED and tired. 39th week I felt contractions all day, and refused to go in, for fear of being laughed at again. Tried to sleep was restless and energetic but this time I got a massive Migraine. Tried to sleep it off, nothing was working. Doing dishes and bent down, and threw up into the dishwasher because of the pain of my head ache. Think that pain was masking the pain of the contractions. I thought maybe it was my BP and went in for a BP check at the ER. The took a reading it was normal but didnt like my headache or color. So they did some monitoring, and sure enough I was in full blown labor and almost ready to deliver. They rushed me to the delivery rooms, didnt even get my shirt off, they were not ready yet nothing in the room, and I was writhing, it hurt. MOSTLY my head. SO they suggested the epi for the pain and head ache. I agreed but that was botched. 2 hours later after entering the ER I had my son :)
With my second, I didn't really think I was in labor. Called my husband and told him I was feeling kinda funny, having contractions here and there. Got into the truck and about half way to the hospital my contractions stopped. Asked him to go back, he said no so we went. When she checked me I was at 6 or 7 and past the hard labor. Had my daughter an hour later :)
With my first I woke up at about 6:00am with what felt like period cramps that progressivly got stronger so I figured it was labour and sure enough 20 long hours later my baby was born - I was 6 days late. Then with my second I was 4cms at my 40 week appt and felt NOTHING and 6 days later still feeling NOTHING the entire time I went to take a tinkle =) and had an insanely painful contraction and within 1 1/2hrs my 2nd was born
Good Luck and Congrats
