How do you know your contractions are a sign of labor and not something else? Only a trained doctor, midwife, or doula can tell you if your cervix is actually thinning and opening in preparation for the baby to be born. water breaking, appearing in a gush or a steady leakĬervical ripening or thinning is another sign, but you won’t be able to diagnose this symptom on your own.bloody or mucus discharge from the vagina.tightening, or feeling like the baby dropped in the pelvis.If you’re having contractions in a regular pattern - meaning they’re spaced about the same distance apart - and you have the following signs, you’re probably in labor:

What are the symptoms of labor? | Labor signsĬall your doctor or midwife if you’re having contractions, whether they’re coming regularly or irregularly spaced. Some women experience contractions on and off for a couple of days before labor finally begins. These generally don’t last very long and aren’t painful.Ĭontractions don’t always mean you’re in active labor, either.

They’re believed to help prepare your body for labor. You may also feel Braxton-Hicks contractions as early as the second trimester.īraxton-Hicks contractions are sometimes called practice contractions. These are known as preterm contractions, and may be a sign that you’re going into labor before your baby has fully developed. If you experience contractions earlier than 37 weeks, seek immediate medical attention. For a full-term baby, true labor contractions won’t start until your baby is at least 37 weeks.

Contraction timing