Evening,
I hope one of you can help me. I had a stretch and sweep this morning prior to being booked in to be inducd on Saturday, and the m/w warned me that it can cause bleeding and period-like pains. She examined me and found I was nearly 2cm dilated already (!) without me having even noticed anything (apart from some slightly sharper BH).

All afternoon I've been having some period-like pains, which are just like super-strong BH but with a bit of tightening round the front which then moves into my bum. The pain is not dissimilar to the one you get just before a bout of the runs (TMI!! sorry). However, they are not very strong, and I can carry on talking normally through them, and don't have to sit down or use any 'techniques'. Previous BH have not been painful at all, they just feel uncomfortable like when your muscles tense up when doing a sit-up!

Is it wishfull thinking to assume this could be the start of labour, or do you think it could be because of the sweep? I know that slow/latent labour is suppose to slowly sneak up on you, but I would like to be prepared just in case!! Women say 'you will just know when you are in labour'; is that a nice way of saying that you'll know you're in labour when it becomes agony?!

Thanks
Caroline xxxx

With me my labor started with cramps and turned into cramps (like period cramps) at regular intervals and got closer and closer together but mine felt like cramps at first with some tightening. I didn't need any help or breathing etc... until I they broke my water. I was laughing and talking through them no problem up until then

I slept through the first part of labor because the contractions were really mild. They kinda of felt like light period cramps, but they were for sure 5 minutes apart. I got to L&D at 1am and was 1-2 cm dilated, went to sleep about 2am because there was nothing left to do. I slept until 5:45am, had 3 contractions by 6:00am. NONE of my contractions showed on the monitor all through the time I was sleeping so the nurse assumed they would be sending me home. I told her that I know I had just felt 3, so she had the doctor come and check my cervix and low and behold I was 6cm dilated. Honestly they did not get really painful until after they broke my water, which was right after they found out I had already made it to 6cm.