Gonna be long, sorry but thank you in advance.

@sweetsap88, I can honestly say in my experience I’ve never heard a doctor say any of my patients dips were due to not eating. That being said they may teach things differently where you are in regards to fetal distress. It would depend on how far you live from the hospital? Usually once they are coming at intervals of 8-15 minutes apart, water breaks, or bleeding.

You guys, I thought all the info I got was great, and better safe than sorry. I talked to the doctor and told her that at 1.5 I didn't want to speed up labor if the baby and I are fine, and there's no medical need to do it. She told me if I was 3cm they were going to speed up the labor because they are "concerned about the mother's comfort." I told her not to worry about my comfort, I want to progress naturally. So the baby is fine and the contractions were only 2 for the time I was there. I'm still only 1.5 and 30% @mimixtmn

So if I'm 3 cm and the baby is fine and I am fine, would there be a need to speed up labor?

@sweetsap88, what’s making you go back to be monitored?

I'm going to the dr office to be monitored again. The thing that's really got me down is that she says if I go to the hospital, still having contractions they will medically intervene and make the labor progress even if the baby is not in distress, but I'm having contractions and 2.5-3 cm dilated

I would have went in that way baby could have been monitored more closely that’s what the hospital can do that your dr cant do in the office. That one dip in heart rate could have been a sign that baby isn’t doing as well as they could be. And just because you only know about the one dip doesn’t mean it was the only one

I was a day shy of 35 weeks. And they weren’t gonna stop labor either. But the IV was started for the strep B meds cuz I didn’t have a chance to take the test yet

@beakymcspence thanks hun 🤗 I'll do that

@sweetsap88, The only complication laying on your back would cause is to your own blood pressure. For baby to experience fetal distress related to your breathing you would need to have lowered oxygen levels, not just pressure due to breathing while laying on your back. Feeling like you can’t breath due to the weight of being on your back doesn’t actually mean your struggling to breath in a medical sense. You’d still be having proper oxygenation your just uncomfortable due to position. A dip in a baby’s heart rate never has to be consistent to be a concern, the concern is why it’s dipped. Keep an eye on your contractions if things progress and they become regular definitely head to the hospital 🙂

If it was just concern for the heart rate dip they would do a non stress test first. Otherwise, any intervention just because you’re having prelabor contractions would be illegal. They’re not allowed to intervene unless you’re 39 weeks or have a serious health condition. I’d say get another non stress test to check heart of baby, but decline any intervention otherwise.

ETA: I had real contractions with prodromal labor for WEEKS before giving birth. It wasn’t a reason to induce me.

@beakymcspence and thanks for the contraction info :) I really appreciate that

@beakymcspence I don't wanna seem like I keep making excuses, so forgive me if I come off that way. Now, the first monitoring I was flat on my back, laying flat makes it a little difficult to breathe for me, so the second monitoring I asked them to prop me up, so I was maybe at a 60 degree angle or more, my breathing was fine and the baby's heart beat was fine too, no drops. Would difficulty breathing, from your experience cause a dip? Also, keep in mind that the dip wasn't consistent, it was a drop and then it rose right back

@sweetsap88, I can honestly say in my experience I’ve never heard a doctor say any of my patients dips were due to not eating. That being said they may teach things differently where you are in regards to fetal distress. It would depend on how far you live from the hospital? Usually once they are coming at intervals of 8-15 minutes apart, water breaks, or bleeding.

@glencoco I really do want to labor at home :( I'm 37 weeks, this app is off for some reason. Does 37 weeks make a difference? She is my delivering doctor, she would have intervened medically so baby would be here by tomorrow.

@beakymcspence the doctor said the heart rate dipped low because I hadn't eaten. The second monitoring after eating at an hour later the heart rate was fine. I'm monitoring the contractions now and so far only 4 in the past hour, at different intervals. I'm going to continue to monitor them because the doctor thinks baby will be here by Friday. I'm feeling my stomach for tightness. How many in an hour or two should make me go to l&d?

I wouldn’t have went in. Even if you were contracting, they wouldn’t have done anything about it. You’re 36 weeks. Best to labor at home. You couldn’t be induced because you’re not 39 weeks and they wouldn’t stop it because you’re more than 35.

I work on the LD ward and many doctors will refuse you services here if you decline to follow their instructions. I see a few women that this happens to on a regular basis, and they are shifted to another doctor. That being said everyone has a right to decline, but you also must think what happens if something goes wrong. The reason your doctor likely wanted you to head to the hospital is you aren’t feeling your contractions and baby had a lowered heart rate, which could coincide with those contractions you don’t know your having. You could go home and continue to contract and have no idea that your babies heart rate could dip down again. My daughters heart rate dropped, and they sent me over to the hospital everything appeared fine and an hour later it dropped even lower. I would suggest following the suggestion but specifically request you don’t want the augmentation.

@kbbaybee16 I don't think I was hydrated, I think I drank too much too fast, so it just passed right through me and made my bladder fill up very quickly. How far along were you at the time? I'm far enough along that if I was dilating that quickly they'd go ahead and let labor happen, which at this point I have no problem with because I'd be early term, but still kinda full term. The baby is also measuring 6.6 lbs now

@mimixtmn I've always thought I had low pain tolerance, needles, shots, blood drawing still hurt at this stage of my life :( the contractions aren't even uncomfortable. I'm concerned also that if these are all the contractions I'm going to have, I'll not know when to go l&d

The doctor said if I went to the hospital they'd augment me to make the labor progress. So it seems they would intervene and not let it happen naturally. If I went in, and had the contractions but wasn't progressing and baby wasn't in distress, would it be wise to leave without giving birth?

I have high pain tolerance with my first I was having contractions I couldn’t feel and my dr admitted me I was in labor and I didn’t know. My second & third I barley made it to the hospital because my contractions were not painful I assumed they were Braxton Hicks.

Let me just say you should have gone in. I had contractions I couldn’t feel. Finally I noticed them but they still didn’t hurt. I went to L&D I got checked I was a 1. Got checked not even 45 mins later I was a 3-4. They admitted me all night and I got IV fluids. Stopped my contractions and my progress. I’ve also heard of women never having contractions that hurt. If you’re dehydrated it takes more than 30 ounces to hydrate you

I was told with my second son that if you lay on your side for an hour and contractions are still consistent at 5-6 mins apart to definitely go in because then you're close to active labor. I followed that directive and when i got to the hospital i was already 7cm.

@linsceb I was dehydrated for the first monitoring, because it was supposed to be a regular check up and I go back home. I live about 10 mins walking from the clinic if that much. So I showered and left out and was going to eat after I got back. But then i was there for an hour, 10.45-11.50. They sent me to eat, so I ate and drank a 16.9 oz water and 15 more ounces (I didn't know I was THAT thirsty), then I went back to be monitored. Baby's heart was fine but the contractions showed really strong. I'll do the water and laying on side. It's a little hard for me to monitor, because I only know the contractions are there if I touch my stomach. But I'll try that too. So even though they aren't painful, at what rate per hour should I go to l&d, would you happen to know?

@sweetsap88 yup, having to urinate can cause you to contract because of your bladder pushing on your uterus. You can try drinking more water too, if you're even the slightest bit dehydrated that can cause contractions too. I had 2 summer babies and even drinking 120+ oz of water a day my body still showed signs of dehydration and i would have braxton hicks like crazy any time i stood up.

If you can touch your stomach and feel the contractions, maybe keep track of them that way instead of gauging them pain wise, that might be a better indicator for you. If you drink water and lay on your side and they slow down then you're not in true labor just yet.

@kristielynn that's what I want too. The doctor says she doesn't foresee me being pregnant past this week's end, but if I don't go into labor, on Monday I'll go back for another check up

@linsceb ok. Thanks, I have an appointment on Monday for another check up. I was there for hours and hadn't dilated anymore. The second time I was being monitored, my bladder was uncomfortably full, would that have contributed to the contractions you think?

I had contractions for weeks before I delivered. I ended up delivering two and a half weeks early completely naturally no intervention. When I start having contractions, like yours, my midwives had me come in Daily for non-stress test. That was the best route for me. I knew I wanted an all natural labor and I didn't want any interventions. This helps to ensure baby was still healthy and allowed me to do things my way.

She might be concerned that you're having contractions that are causing dilation without feeling them. So, there could be a chance that you might not make it to the hospital in time once you do start feeling the contractions enough to make you decide to go.

My mother had stomach labor with my sister, after having back labor for me and my brother, the stomach labor felt like nothing in comparison. Her friend had to convince her to go to the hospital, my sister was born 20 minutes later and it would have been sooner if they hadn't needed to use the vacuum to get her head out. My mom was lucky she made it there in time because she could have been in trouble trying to deliver my sister at home with the fact her head got stuck.

I think you should play it safe and agree to just be monitored to see if you are, in fact, in labor. Who knows how far progressed you'll be before you actually feel the need to go in.

@bodybycheetos @lizology27_bb she made me feel as though there was no way I would be leaving the hospital without a baby. And she said she doesn't think the baby is going to stay in til the end of the week. The reason I didn't go was because they have the same machines, and the machine said baby is fine. I think her concern was the contractions, that I couldn't feel.

Just from my own experience not feeling contractions I probably would've went in to be seen. At the same time since you want to go naturally, you could've also declined them doing anything to make it go faster (although would they keep you there?)

I think I would have went to the hospital but would have been adamant about them allowing the labor to progress naturally. It sounds like she is just concern about baby and want to monitor you and baby more closely. If nothing progressed naturally, they would have simply sent you on your merry go way.