32 weeks - preterm labour experiences?

[SayCoolNowSayWhiptheReindeer]

Hi, not sure if I should post this in Pregnancy as well....

I'm 32 weeks exactly, and been having very strong BH since about 24/25 weeks. In the last week I've had stronger contractions that feel like the real thing (already have DD - 2yrs so I remember what they feel like!) but not regularly enough to get my midwife concerned. I also lost my plug on Monday. I'm having lower back pain on and off, and intense pressure on my pelvis - sometimes it feels like his head is pushing out!

Am I just being a bit paranoid? I don't want to waste time if I am, but just wondering if anyone else has gone into labour at about this time with similar symptoms?

Thanks.

[PPT]

Iirc (it's been a while so not 100% sure) if you've lost your plug they'd want to see you due to risk of infection.

[SayCoolNowSayWhip]

That's what I thought, but midwife said over the phone that she wasn't worried about it at all. Having Googled around (I know, always dangerous) there isn't a risk of infection unless waters have broken.

[Moominsarescary]

Ds3 was born at 32 weeks after my waters broke at 31, so a different situation to yours.

I had bh for weeks before hand, which they weren't concerned about. When labour started all I felt were period type pains. Luckily I was in hospital due to him laying transverse because I was 5 cm dialated when they checked me ( id slept through 2 hours of it!)

I would say if your concerned at any point phone the labour suite, they RFID say to me this time if I had regular bh or pain to ring them

[Moominsarescary]

RFID? Not sure what that is! Should be they did

[SayCoolNowSayWhip]

Wow that must have been scary, Moomins. I'm not really getting period pains, it's just my back that hurts and the BHs. He's also incredibly active, a real wriggle pants, which doesn't help.

[Beveridge]

I posted on the other thread, I was in total denial up to 6cm that I couldn't possible be in labour as it wasn't nearly sore enough...Get checked out.

[featherbag]

Get checked! I had my DS at 32 weeks and up until about an hour before he was actually born I had no pain anywhere but my back! Insist on a VE too - the Monitoring didn't show any sign of contractions with me until I was at the pushing stage. The staff relied on this, kept saying I was definitely not in labour, and by the time anyone thought to check, "just in case", he was almost crowning!

[Mmmchampagne]

Definitely get checked. I had a similar experience to you with DS2 - regular contractions from 26 weeks, positive fibronectin test and steroids for his lungs and a week's hospital stay at 29 weeks. Two bouts of ten hours worth of regular and quite uncomfortable contractions that subsequently subsided. I was 1-2cm dilated and 3/5 engaged at 32 weeks and hospitalised five times in all between 26 weeks and birth with threatened preterm labour. Not a nice experience!

I took things very easy and went into hospital to get checked every time I was worried as my first labour was 5 1/2 hours all up so it was expected the second would be quick.

In the end he was born at 40+4 (by that time I was going a little bit crazy!) and the whole labour was just over an hour, happened so fast we had to call an ambulance and he was born at home.

All well in the end but I would definitely say get checked out, i was under specialist care and they were adamant the baby needed to be born in hospital if he came early and given second labours tend to be faster you just never know. Always better to have peace of mind!

[minipie]

Get checked. I gave birth at 34 weeks and my contractions were irregular right up to the pushing stage. MW thought they couldn't be effective contractions (due to being irregular) until she found I was 6cm dilated.

[Poppet45]

How are you OP? What you're experiencing sounds quite like my second labour with DD who turned up at 27+3 weeks so please do get checked out. I lost my plug the night before and then got random niggles which I thought must have been BHs (I never had any with DC1) for 12+ hours or so. We went in to get checked they were about to discharge me with a uti but did an internal saw my waters bulge and spotted my daughters headful of hair. She was born five hours later. Labour with ds hurt loads with dd i got to the pushing stage with just a copy of Hello magazine... so different. I've since been told that while bhs go all up the bump early labour stays low and real contractions worsen when u move while BHs go away.