My question is: Moms, how did you know when it was time to go to the hospital vs. false labor? I’m 38 weeks and keep thinking I’m going into labor but I don’t want to have my fiancé leave work or make arrangements with my kids for a false alarm… I definitely don’t want to wait too late either.
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Every 5 minute contractions or water breaks. The hospital will turn you away if you dont have those
I just had my baby a week ago, and kept asking the same question to my midwives and fellow mums. Bottom line is labor will start when it wants to start. And when it’s the real thing… oh boy you’ll know.
I used to have false labour pains a lot and I think ‘is this it’
When it was the real thing there was no mistaking it.
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If it’s your first. The false labour will likely be unpleasant but bearable. As the real one progresses, not so much:joy:
Just time your contractions. Real labor has consistent, times contractions (overall. Of course it’s not exact.) the hospital won’t admit you until your contractions are 5min apart or your water breaks, generally. You wan2 labor at home for the beginning anyway they won’t give you an epi until your far enough and it’s far more comfortable at home
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Walk drink water and change from laying to standing to sitting and see if they lighten or go away.
If you drink water and put your feet up and it starts to subside, it’s Braxton Hicks. During labor, you’re not able to talk during contractions and drinking water and putting your feet up won’t help stop anything.
You’ll definitely know the difference.
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With my 1st child, I went 2x w false labor…
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If you can walk and talk threw them then they are false labor. When you can’t walk or talk threw them… Then its the real deal!
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My husband said he didn’t care if he had to take me 10 times to the hospital and it was a false alarm 9 out of 10 times. Also, luckily for me, I did have false contractions prior to the day I went in to labor, but my water broke. And it’s not like a little water… It’s like a relitively slow soaking of your pants all the way down to your ankles. It could come out as a trickle, or random bursts of a fair amount but remember, **** it will NOT hurt you **** at all. You’ll want to put like 3 big towels in your car for when it happens though. It sucks getting your seat all wet. Lol
Oh you will know lol your belly will starts contraction more and more each time stronger and closer together and you can make them stop or slow down you can ease the pain but not stop the labor the best way to tell if it’s false labor take a walk of it gets worse and doesn’t stop it labor or if you take a bath and it slows or stops it’s false labor good luck it’s definitely something all never forget
I’ve had four babies and I can tell you this: if you have to ask, it’s probably not real. That being said, that was MY experience. There are a few signs that this may be the real deal you can look for:
- spotting. If you have an increase in vaginal discharge that is a bit bloody, that can be your mucus plug. The bit of blood is from rapid dilation.
- Diarrhea. This is a known sign, but it isn’t particularly common from what I understand. I only had it with one of my four kiddos.
- Intensity. Braxton hicks can be improved by drinking water and changing position, actual labor contractions tend to not be that way.
- Duration. Braxton hicks are of variable duration. They might last a few seconds or a minute or so. Actual labor contractions tend to be more uniform. Furthermore, Braxton hicks tend to stop and leave you wondering “what the heck”. Full-on labor doesn’t generally stop until you’ve had the baby.
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If you already have kids you will know but dont wait to long i had baby 2 in er and dad dident make it in time to watch but had healthy boy.
They said you’ll know real from fake by how long they last and how quickly they go away. So like, if it’s 10 minutes of on and off cramps… maybe not real labor. If it’s an hour of on and off cramps… maybe real labor. ALWAYS CALL YOUR DOCTOR IF YOU’RE SCARED OR HAVE QUESTIONS 
Real labor hurts and you’re in pain and you’ll WANT to go to the hospital- I mean, that’s how it was for me. And also, my contractions were literally 3mins apart
False labor will be contractions, but not bad. Real labor, you won’t be walking with your contractions. You won’t be talking much. You’ll be holding on to anything even for the beginning of it. 
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The week I went into labour I was having cramp like pains more like a period type cramp. The day I went into labour I went to the washroom every hour starting at 630 I couldn’t sleep the night before. My husband went to work at 630 by 730 or 8 I was talking to my mom about how I was feeling and needing to use the washroom every half HR at that point. Since I was told to get to the hospital the min I start contractions BC it was a half HR drive away, I was wondering. My mom calls me tells me to go cuz she had talked to a friend of hers who felt the same as I did. I sent my husband a text saying I may be in labour. Sure enough I had my son that night. I had started feeling the contractions at 8 every 15 mins then when I called my husband it was closer to 10 mins. I felt when they first started it was more like a period cramp pain (which I was confused BC I had that type for a couple weeks not every day but every once in a while and not as consistent) once it progresses tho it’s a lot more painful.
For me after urinating wipe if there’s slimy stuff there u ready.
I found when I thought I was I wasn’t, when I was it was obvious xx
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Once your water breaks ~
After 3 babies, I’ve figured out I have a “sway” I do when it’s go time. If you get to where you have to stop what you’re doing and just move your body, I’d say it’s time to go. With my last baby, my husband saw the sway with my first contraction and had already called myidwife before I knew what was going on. I gave birth 44 minutes later 
Time them…with my 1st I didn’t have unbearable contractions. My water broke at home and the labor and delivery nurse thought i was mistaking it for pee because i was walking and talking to her like nothing was happening
Oh. You’ll know. I had the same thinking. “How are you supposed to know”? But you do. Time the contractions and see if they’re getting closer together. I didnt go to the hospital until I was 3 minutes between each contraction, but I also had complications and I wasn’t dilating like I should so idk if that’s the best advice! Look up Braxton hicks and see if that’s what you’re experiencing. It’s scary feeling like you won’t know forsure, but you’ll definitely know. Your body will be going through a major transition.
If you are questioning go. Everyone is saying you will know. But that’s not always the case. I didnt realize I was having contractions and was going to wait until the morning when I had an appt with my doctor but a friend scolded me and told me to go. When I got to the hospital I was already 6cm dilated. And I wasnt in any pain it just felt weird
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It is completely possible to not know. If you are having contractions consistently at 5 minutes apart, your water breaks or there is decreased fetal movements go to hospital. If you aren’t sure call your doctor or the hospital to get advice from your medical team. Don’t be afraid to reach out to them for help. That’s what they are paid for.
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For me false labor just felt like the early stages of labor. Had false labor for 2 weeks. I could tell the real thing from the amount of pain I was in.
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I had contractions every 3 minutes for over two hours. When I went the first time I didn’t dilate more so they sent me home and as soon as I got home my water broke
Time your contractions. There is a few apps for it that’ll tell you if you’re in labor or not. Always accurate for me when I used it.
Actual contractions won’t stop if you drink water or change your position or putting your feet up it is hard to talk while having a contraction. They are constant and very sharp and they get stronger
It depends. I thought I had bad gas and Braxton Hicks. Ended up being 8cm dilated and fully effaced. 
For me Braxton hicks would continue for an hour or two then stop. Also, the muscle tightening was uncomfortable but didn’t hurt so much. Real labour is painful as the contractions are not just muscle tightening but your cervix being pulled open as well. Most women have literal hours, maybe even a whole day of real labour. Dont worry if you are only an hour or two in. At that point in labour the hospital is likely to just send you home anyways. They wont admit you until active labour which is 4-8 cm. Also, I could still walk and talk through Braxton Hicks. Real contractions reach a point where I could not take a step while having one, and conversation was not possible during a contraction. (Once labour was a few hours in)
I’ve had 2 children and honestly I still dont know, I felt tightening of contractions the same with both until I hit transition at 8 cm, that’s when I started feeling pain, and by then I was too late to leave because they were there within an hour. I was still able to walk around and talk without grimacing until I hit 9 cm, about 5 minutes before it was time to push.
Both babies had to have the doctor break my waters as well, so I couldn’t go off of that either.
Also both babies I went into preterm labor, had to have the labor stopped with a shot.
My first baby I got to the hospital and I was having contractions 1 minute apart, and didnt know it was that close.
It’s better to be safe than sorry. If you can go, go, and find out, then call your fiance. And dont listen to everyone that says " oh you will know" because you may not. Also dont listen to everyone who says you have to be in excruciating pain, because it isnt always that way.
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Not every has extremely bad contractions, I mostly had back labor and I have fibromyalgia so for me labor wasn’t bad, I slept through most of it. Time your contractions and you can call your clinic for advice on how to know when it’s time to go
I can’t give you the best advice bc like some I didn’t even know I was in labor! I had an appointment the next morning and low and behold they said I was having contractions and they broke my water. Then I felt them about an hour later.
Contractions being 3 to 1 minute apart and you cant tolerate the pain or get comfortable in any position. This happened with my 1st and I was 5cm dilated and gave birth 10 hours later
I had the same concern when I was pregnant…until I was in the hospital and had my first REAL contraction. The first thought that went through my head was something along the lines of oh my God what I thought were contractions a week ago were a walk in the park
I always thought people were being dramatic when they were having like bending over unable to breathe type of pain until that first real contraction hit and I was like yep, I get it now lol
That being said, time your contractions and always call your doctor, even if it’s ten times in the same day if you think it might be time.
Best of luck to you, it’s about to get real exciting mama! 
So I had braxton hicks from like 25 weeks on, their extremely inconsistent and if I would sit down and give myself a break they would normally go away. I was 40 weeks and 2 days when my labor actually started, all I had for labor was spotting and really bad cramping like hard to walk kind of cramping. I was also in labor for 26 hours before they broke my water, and 27 hours before they decided to do an emergency c-section.
my water broke at home but i thought i peed myself, don’t ask me
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I was unsure even with my 3rd but if you relax and lay down but they won’t stop and start getting really uncomfortable I would definitely go. Also time them, if there seem to be somewhat regular and length and time in between just make the call.
Water broke for my 2 pregnancies, but the pains b4 wasn’t anything like the labor pains
I didn’t get to hit real labor by myself with my first, but with my second it was during sex. I ended up needing to stop sex, I stayed curled up because my stomach hurt. After about an hour I started timing them and realized they came and went every 5 or so minutes. So at 1:30 in the morning I woke everyone up and drove to my aunts house for her to drive me to the hospital. 1, to me it sorta felt like if you’re super constipated and have cramps in your side, and 2. If you’ve ever had kidney stones and weren’t able to pass them was definitely how my labor felt.
Drink some water. If they go away it’s false if they get more intense it’s the real deal.
When the contractions are 5 minutes apart or less. I started having contractions the day before I had her. I remember going to the hospital and they hooked me up to see if they were contractions sure enough they were but no progress down there so they sent me home. Later that night they got stronger and super painful like I thought I was going to die but not close enough together so they said stay home. Finally the morning I had her my husband said we are going and by the time I got there I think I was 6cm dilated and they were 3 minutes apart
I started timing my contractions. That’s the only sign I had. My water didn’t break, I was able to walk, talk, and work through my contractions but I started timing them and they were coming every 2-4 minutes. They say the main difference between really contractions and Braxton Hicks is Braxton Hicks are not consistent they are just as painful but all over the place. Once your contractions are consistent and coming between every 3-5 minutes is when your recommended to head to the hospital.
I’ve had 3 kids. First 1 was classic. Water broke, contractions got close, went to the hospital. #2 water was slowly leaking for 3 weeks. Dr & hospital both denied it. As I was walking out of the hospital the last time before my daughter was born her father & I were talking about going to another hospital to get another opinion. That’s when a Dr came out of nowhere & sent me down for an AFI. That’s when we discovered my water was empty, baby was in a dry sack. I really wish we would’ve gone to another hospital. Anyway with #3 I was scheduled for induction 3 days later. Went to my scheduled OB, was sent to the hospital.
My point is there’s no clear way of knowing when the right time is. You have to go with your gut. If you think you’re in labor & can’t labor at home any longer go in. If they determine you’re not in labor & you feel you are go to another hospital.
You’ll know when your in labor, you don’t have to ask whenever it happens
My water broke… but the day before it did, I was just feeling extra uncomfortable, and was having mild cramps that felt like period cramps.
So you’ve been carrying another human inside of you for 9 months and you’re worried about inconveniencing someone else?! Haha haha I would go to the hospital every damn time and dare my fiancé to complain about it… go get yourself checked. Do you really want to have an unexpected natural home birth or birth that baby in the car?
Biggest key is consistency of them. False is usually random. Could be 10 min between, then 5, then 30 then be done. True labor is usually consistent with the time lessening between contractions the further you get
No one can really tell you whether they are real or not other than a doctor. Some people it’s not bad others it’s unbearable. If you think you are in labor go to a Dr. I had a friend who was only 30 weeks who had minor cramping and she was in labor and she almost lost her baby and herself had complications.
When I was having my son I used to get bad cramping towards the end, back pain, pelvic pains etc and i would think omg this is it. But oh my god when I actually went into labour and the pains started you’ll know the difference straight away, for me labour pains were a very intense lower back/pelvic pain (hate to sound disgusting but in my bum also 
) , and the pressure down there was massive. Theyd go away and come again waves, (contractions)
I don’t know how many false labor episode I had with my second baby. If you relax or sleep on your side it will go away. If it doesnt the baby is coming
When you feel like your about to take the biggest shit of your life
Everyone says trust me you’ll know, and its true. When you are begging the pain to stop blackout and willing to trade the first born for an epidural it’s real. You will know the real thing from false labor.
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Time them. How long each lasts , how long from the end of one till the beginning of the next one . Write it down. If they keep getting longer and closer Together you are in true labor.
Oh trust you will know
Why are you asking if you’ve got kids already?
Thanks for all the answers everyone! 
Start timing your contractions. If they are 5-1-1 (5 mins apart, lasting 1 min and go on for an hour) go to the hospital.
For my first child I was having contractions earlier in the day. Callee my midwife and they told me to drink water and lay on my left side and take a nap. If the contractions stopped they weren’t real. They ended up going away but later that evening my water broke.
This current pregnancy I have been having inconsistent contractions which sucks because I am so done with being pregnant.
Good luck, Mama!
If you’re having what you think is contractions and you can speak outloud through them, probably not real… I was told with my first to call ahead before going to the hospital because talking to them over the phone they can hear in your voice if you can talk through it or not… Also time the contractions… If they get bad enough that you have to stop what you’re doing and breathe through it, could be real… With my first I went into labour and didnt tell anyone… Just walked around the house timing the contractions, making sure my bags were packed properly and went to the toilet(#2) to avoid anything happening while giving birth lol… Once that were bad enough that I couldn’t talk during them I went to the hospital, 5 hrs later… I was in early labour but they made me go to bed… Pushed for hours and didnt have the baby til the next morning… If youre in a lot of pain… go to the hospital… but I dare say its just Braxton hicks
If your water breaks, u have to go to the hospitol, i had false labor but my water broke so they had to start my pain, it doesnt hurt to get check. Remember u get acheck on u pain every fives mins, then it will not quit it will get closer.
I had fals ones at 37weeks on the river fishing, my water broke at 39 felt nothing, rushed to hospital 2hrs away ( they didnt chek me) made me push even when i didnt feel like it was right, and when they did finally chek me the baby was in distress for 2hrs cus of it. So had ro do an emergancy c-sec. My second child was a misscarrage, and now i am 34 weeks and feeling cramps, although i have a planned C-Sec in march. ( not that this was any help) 
I went to the hospital with what felt like constipation with my first and they said I was in labor. With my second, I just thought I was having bad gas/stomach ache from the Mexican food I’d had that day. Accidentally had him at home in the middle of the living room. So yeah, I did not “just know”.
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I was the same way, I was scared I wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. But when I went into labor I KNEW.
I had Braxton hicks with all 5 of mine, but was also out on bedrest with most of them bc I have a favorable cervix and efface/dilate early. With my last, I woke up with what I though was Braxton hicks at exactly 36 weeks. I took a 4 mile walk, did some yardsaling, then decided they were getting stronger so I decided to go to the hospital (45mins away). I get there and was almost 8 cm then the contractions stopped. Gave me some pitocin, broke my water and voila my tiny baby Isa popped out. My contractions didn’t hurt the whole time it just felt like squeezing/pressure throughout my lower belly and lower back. Well, of course till they gave me pitocin…
My entire pregnancy from 24 weeks on I had Braxton hicks. When you hit real labor it feels more like pushing down in your vajeen. Like pressure. Also the consistency of your contractions in real labor they will get closer together, they’ll get more intense and the whole of your stomach will get hard not like cramping or Braxton hicks.
Unless you are in so much pain you can’t move or talk thro the pain it’s not real. I’ve had two kids and the pain associated with a contractions hurts like breaking a bone.
I didn’t even know I was in labor till I went to doctor and he told me go to the hospital i was in active labor my back just hurt really bad
Real labor makes you fall to the floor in pain. Lol. At least I did!!
With my daughter I had bad stomach pains and they kept getting worse worse till I couldn’t stand them i got my nan to drive me to the hospital and she was born 4 hrs later
with my son I was induced
3-5 min apart each lasting at least a minute for more than an hour or if your water brakes is what my doctor told me but I’d wait until the pain gets to intense to bare I’m having my 5th in one month and if you go in and your contractions aren’t consistent and at least 4-5 mins apart they’ll just send you back home and tell you to wait
If your water breaks go to the hospital.
If the pains are becoming longer and more intense, and the time between them is getting shorter and shorter. You need to go to the hospital.
If the pain is way worse than any cramp you have ever had , mean like takes your breath away, can’t stand up. Go to the hospital.
But it is always better to go to the hospital and it be a false alarm than to give birth not at the hospital.
I downloaded a contraction app. I waited until they were 2-3 minutes apart and lasting more than a minute. In my case it was roughly 12 hours after contractions started I went in and was 4cm. Good luck!!
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Go to your OB gyn Dr and they can let you know to be on the safe side in case you are having complications that to early to be in true labor not unless you are having complications good luck I’ll be praying for you and your baby
Calling your actual doctors office is usually the first step when it comes to any medical concerns rather than strangers on FB as the doctors are the ones that attended medical school and are personally aware of your medical situation 
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When the pain is consistant and does not stop .true labor will not go away . contractions will grow closer and stronger.it will feel like your giving birth to a gargoyle lol
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From my experience, false labor eases up eventually. Real labor intensifies.
And when it comes time to push, NOTHING will stop you.
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Sometimes it’s hard to tell. If you’re having contractions 3-5 mins apart and they’re strong and consistent then go.
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My first two I was induced and had no idea what labor started like. For number 3, The day after my due date, before my induction date, I woke up feeling like I was having cramps. Weren’t terribly painful but enough that I noticed. They happened every so often, but I had had a lot of false contractions before. I timed them and they were about 7 minutes apart, lasting 45 seconds each. My doctor always said to go to the hospital if they are under 10 minutes apart and last a minute or longer. So I got up and took a shower to see if they stopped, which my false labor did whenever I took a shower. They didn’t. By the time I got out of my 20 minute shower, they were enough to make me say, “Okay, this is the real thing.” 6 minutes apart and 60 seconds long. We told my mom (who was staying with our girls) and headed for the hospital. When I got there I was already 4 cm dilated and huuuurting. I woke up at 6:30, was at the hospital by 8, confirmed active labor by 8:30 and had my epidural by 9:30. My son was born at 2:30 pm after 2 pushes. He was by farrrrr my easiest!
Drink water or juice lay on ur side with a timer if they dont slow down or easy up its false labor if the grow closer together and get stronger then it’s TRUE labor is this ur 1st child
I downloaded an app to track my connections… it actually told me when I needed to go in!
Contractions getting closer and closer over several hours. Intensity gets stronger.
My Dr. said if you can sleep through the contractions, you’re not in labor lol.
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If a baby shows up…it was real. That help??? 
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Use a timer…when your contractions get to 3-minutes apart - GO!
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You end up with a baby in real labour 
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When people asked this question my response was you’ll definitely know. But with my 3rd, I had pressure and my stomach tightened but I felt no pain at all. So it does happen. If you’re unsure I’d go get it checked out. Usually tje cramping is so intense that you cant talk through it or do anything. You have to stop and just clench up when it happens.
Generally yeah there is no denying it, but you never know each delivery is different. With my first born it was the typical omg im dying this baby is coming! With my second, my water broke at 37 weeks and I didn’t have a single contraction until right before it was time to push. Listen to your mama instinct. If you feel you need to go in, then go in
With my first i knew 100% that he was coming, went to the hospital, was one centimeter not dialited enough and they sent me home, just for 3 hours later to have to go back, and give birth, so in our case even knowing exactly when still caused issues with us having to leave and come back and leave, my best advice if you will know, you should know (my water didn’t break by itself and I still knew, just putting that out there as a common sign is your water breaking) hope this helped. Sorry I don’t have much other advice
Itll be hard to tell I suppose. My waters broke with my eldest but my pain didn’t start till a good few hours after, they sent me home the first night and told me to come back in 24 hours, I went back and they told my mum and “sperm donner” that I wouldn’t be having the baby that night… he was born 4 hours later, if my mum didn’t argue to stay in would have given birth with no birthing partners. My pain didn’t get intense until I was near the pushing stage that even the midwife didn’t think I was gonna have the baby that night
I have to add for all u moms out there that dont cry until it’s over take that pain it does get better over the years but every time u reminis the separation of your bones widing hips the opening of the birth canal at this time you probably have a good too weeks then the contractions hit or water bag rips or they induce u , I recommend natural if u can take it I felt it was the most beautiful feeling you will ever have in my opinion
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I was told contractions have to be every 5 mins for 1 hour or if your water breaks. Also if the pain gets to overbearing. Make sure you time those conversations momma!
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You will definitely know. I had this fear with both my pregnancies that I wouldn’t know when I was in labor and I’d have the baby at the house or something but you DEFINITELY know when it’s time
Most times you will know but honestly I would start timing the cramping you are feeling and if they are consistently between 3-5 minutes apart regardless of intensity I would go to the hospital
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You definitely will know 
the pain will be unbearable 
The 5:1:1 rule helps!
I couldn’t. My contractions didn’t get consistent until I was pushing. I knew because I had some leakage and went in and the check and it was my water… and I didnt make any progress (contractions weren’t timetable etc) so they induced me.
The nurse was quite rude and actually was like “you’re not in labor ,I’m sure it’s not youre water, you’re contractions aren’t strong enough etc” when the dr confirmed it was my water she turned her attitude right around lol
When your ride show up taxi taxi lol or you want to kick some ass u got some major back pain! That god meomories of my past ! I just waiting for grandbabies…
When you have to breathe through the contractions or stop what you’re doing to get through it then you are in real labor.