Labor Will Let You Know: Tips for Early Labor | 148

I'm here to help you. You take the guesswork out of childbirth so you can make the choices that are right for you and your baby. Quick note, this podcast is for educational purposes only and does not replace your medical advice. Check out our full disclaimer at the bottom of the show notes.

So don't worry, we're going to clear it up in the most laid back Trish way possible. Labor will absolutely, without a doubt, declare itself. So grab a snack, get comfy, and let's dive in. Okay, let's start with the truth bomb. If you're sitting there wondering, am I in labor? You're probably not. That's, that's the truth.

You start googling, texting your doula, maybe even waking up your partner. Only for things to fizzle out by the morning. Does that sound familiar to any of you guys? That's what we call false labor, padromal labor. Padromal labor is more like false labor that you keep on knocking at your door every night or every day at the same time.

That's just your body warming up for the main event. Now, we do teach our students some things to get yourself out of padromal into real labor inside of the classes, but trust me when it's the real deal. You will know. Labor doesn't just softly knock and run away. It throws a party and makes sure that you're there.

Because once labor takes over, there is no ignoring it. So save your energy for when it really hits. Counts think of labor like that over the top character in a movie that just is so annoying It is going to burst through the door. Like here I am world when you're in labor. You will know it Let me say that again When you're in labor where you need to pay attention and you have to start making a plan You will know it because what I teach my mamas inside the membership and in the birth courses Is to ignore it If you don't need to pay attention, if you still need to wonder, get it out of your mind, okay?

If you give birth at home or in the car, you're a super fast, uneventful. full birth that you're going to be like, holy shit. Okay, for my type A mamas out there, here's a quick little cheat sheet. What to know about those contractions, real contractions, you cannot change the course of them. So if you're having, you know, regular, what you feel is regular contractions, and then you go outside for a walk and they go away.

Those aren't the ones you need to pay attention to. Or let's say you're having real regular contractions. You get in the shower, they go away. Not the ones real contractions are going to get stronger, longer, and closer. So SLC, stronger, longer, closer. Now your water breaks. That is a sign that labor is coming, right?

So bright red, lot of it, call the doctor, head to the hospital. Brown and murky, call the doctor. You might not have to go, but they probably will send you, but you don't have to rush as fast as the bright red. Your water should be a clearish pinkish period. Okay. We're not going to talk all about that. Some other signs that labor is near and dear is back pain, pressure, or, you know, you might even have some nausea and vomiting, but the only definitive sign is actually that your cervix is changing and your cervix changing is because of the pain.

You don't have to obsess. You don't have to overthink. Trust your body. When you start to get into those panic thoughts, I want you to remind yourself, I am powerful. I am capable. I've got this. You are so freaking strong. And just like you didn't have to start the heartbeating, You don't have to worry about the labor because the labor will be your best buddy, shows up, your weightlifting partner, your contractions will come alongside you, and you will rock it.

So we get there and there's this group of older ladies, little old ladies and they look at both of us and they're like, you guys are about to have them babies. And they tell us that we need to drink castor oil. We're like, what? You know? Granted, my oldest is probably your age, and there wasn't internet or social media, so we had no idea about that.

It was like drinking straight up baby oil. I still, if I pour oil into my water for pasta, I I feel like vomiting because it reminds me of the toilet when I was having the castor oil coming up and out of me out of every area. So, I, we go to the pharmacy, we buy the castor oil, we go home and around 3 o'clock, maybe a little earlier because she had to go pick up her daughters from school.

We sit down, chug the casserole like both of us about to vomit. It was like 3, 3 30 and my sister heads to go get her kids from school. This was her last baby. This was my first baby. And within an hour and a half, I am having explosive diarrhea. And By six o'clock in the evening, I'm like, I think this is the real deal.

My ex husband comes home He's like what the hell is happening? I'm like, I'm Cooking these. I'm going to cook these. So I'm cooking all of it, right? I take one bite of the mushroom and vomit everywhere. And so I want to say around nine, we head to the hospital and I call my mom and I said, Mom, we're going to stay at your house till I'm, you know, actually ready to go to the hospital.

By the time we get to my mom's, I was like, just go to the hospital. I get to the hospital. I'm like five centimeters dilated and this baby is coming. I had him at 1 30 AM. So. Casserole works that that's that. But my, my big tip for you was not that. I don't know how I ended up telling you that whole story, but here are my distraction tips for early labor, cook something it's like, it worked for me because I had to focus on that and kneading dough, like all of that.

You could even cook something that would be healthy for labor, like some kind of like protein bars or like, you know, something, whatever you want, but that's a perfect time to channel your inner Martha Stewart. The other thing would be like, have a binge watching marathon, like have a show ready for your labor, one that like you're so Super excited to watch and that will be your labor bend show or maybe even a movie that you've been dying to see.

Another thing would be to go for a walk, do some curb walking, do the mile circuit, you know, whatever you can do. I know with Hunter baby number two, I used to go to target because it was. Late, it was mid August in Florida. It was hotter than hell. So everyone at Target knew me and was like, time is a time, but just stay close to home or the hospital and make sure you have your phone handy.

Dancing. Dancing is a hugely beneficial labor thing to do, so crank up your favorite playlist, get your hips going, have fun, laugh. It not only distracts you, but it also encourages that baby to get into optimal positioning. Which, by the way, if you don't know, and I'll link in the show notes, we have a 7 handy pocket guide for positioning to get the baby in optimal positioning before labor starts and during labor.

I put twinkle lights in my bathroom and music on and had the most beautiful labor experience at home. But the big thing is I want you laboring at home as long as possible, so don't freak out. If you've joined one of our birth classes, add the labor bats. Signal. That is a one on one, DM conversation with me and my doulas where we can help you stay home longer.

It goes from 36 weeks to 8 weeks postpartum. It's only available to students. You have to join one of our signature birth classes so that you can add it on. Here's the thing about labor. It might tiptoe in or it might make a grand entrance, but either way.

You don't have to be in control of everything. I'm type A. I know it. Okay. If you guys are interested in watching a free workshop that we have running, go to labor nurse mama. com forward slash faster. And I'm going to break down the secrets that you need to know about your birth experience. Okay. You guys have an amazing afternoon.

As always, we will see you again next Friday. Bye. Bye for now.

Hey mama, I hope you enjoyed this episode of the birth experience with labor nurse mama. As always, please leave a review. Let us know what we're doing well and what you want to hear more of and I will see you again next Friday. Bye for now.