Chorevia

Day 260 of 280 · 37 weeks + 1 day

The signs of labor

Last reviewed · 3 min read · 4 sources · Plain-text version

Thirty-seven weeks and one day. Five signs that labor may be starting, and the rule for when to call. Today they go on one card on the fridge.

Size this week
about the length of a leek
Length this week
around 48.6 cm from head to heel
A couple in their twenties at a fridge, a woman with a full, low bump in a loose sweatshirt pinning up a handwritten card while her partner reads it over her shoulder, warm kitchen light.

Thirty-seven weeks and one day. Labor rarely starts the way it does in films. It's usually quieter, slower, and harder to be sure of. Today you learn the signs and the rule, so that "is this it?" has an answer.

Your baby

A single leek with its green top on a plain pale wooden table, soft window light.

Your baby is around 48.6cm from head to heel, about the length of a leek (NHS). Around now they're practising facial expressions such as frowning and smiling; the NHS notes these are random, not signs that the baby is sad or happy (NHS). You'll see the real ones soon enough.

Your body

The NHS lists five signs that labor may be starting: contractions or tightenings, a "show," backache, an urge to go to the toilet, and your waters breaking (NHS). You may get one, several, or all of them, in any order.

Telling real contractions from practice ones is the hard part. MedlinePlus says true labor contractions come regularly, about 5 to 10 minutes apart, last 30 to 70 seconds, get longer over time, keep going whatever you do, spread to the lower back and upper belly, and become strong enough that you can't talk or laugh through them (MedlinePlus). Braxton Hicks are usually short, irregular, and not painful (MedlinePlus).

A show is usually the mucus plug, a bloody or brownish discharge, and labor could start right away or still be days away (OWH). Early labor itself can be slow: NICHD says it can last up to 20 hours, especially for a first birth (NICHD).

Try today

  1. The labour-signs card

    Time: 10 minutes

    1. On a card, write the five signs: tightenings, a show, backache, an urge to go to the toilet, waters breaking (NHS).

    2. Under them, the call rule: regular, painful contractions every 5 to 10 minutes for 60 minutes, or contractions lasting 60 to 90 seconds (MedlinePlus).

    3. Then the call-now list: leaking fluid, fewer movements, or bleeding more than light spotting (MedlinePlus).

    4. Add the labor and delivery number from your reference card, and pin it to the fridge.

    Make it work:

    Write the call rule in big letters. At 2 a.m., in the middle of a contraction, nobody reads small print.

Watch for

  • Normal

    tightenings that come and go with no pattern.

    Call your provider

    right away for regular, painful contractions every 5 to 10 minutes for 60 minutes, or contractions lasting 60 to 90 seconds (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    a bloody or brownish streak of mucus, which can come days before labor (MedlinePlus).

    Call your provider

    right away for vaginal bleeding beyond light spotting (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    more discharge than usual (NHS).

    Call your provider

    right away if you might be leaking amniotic fluid, or if the baby is moving less (MedlinePlus).

  • Normal

    not being sure whether this is it.

    Call your provider

    anyway; MedlinePlus says to make contact "for any other reason if you are unsure what to do" (MedlinePlus).

For you

Calling and being told "not yet" is not a waste of anyone's time. The Office on Women's Health is clear that you should call when contractions become stronger at regular, shorter intervals, even if it's weeks before your due date (OWH).

If you're the partner: learn the call rule by heart, and be the one who times. And if the baby arrives, these notes hand over: the baby's day-by-day notes start at your first month.

Sources

This guide is general education that summarizes published research and guidance from groups like the American Academy of Pediatrics, the CDC, and the WHO. It isn’t medical advice, and every child develops on their own timeline. Your pediatrician knows your child; if something feels wrong, call them. In an emergency, call 911.

Get each day’s note the morning it applies

Add your due date to a free Chorevia household, and every morning until the birth the day's note arrives in the app and by email: what's forming, what your body is doing, one thing to try, what to watch for, and a word for you.

Create your household