QuestionI just went to the doctor on monday and my due date is august 13. this is my first pregnancy. she checked me and told me that i was 1.5 centimeters dialated and my cervix was 75% thinned. she also told me that my cervix has thinned out very fast. my family thinks that i will go into labor before the week is up. how close does this mean that i am to labor. also does it mean i can go into labor since my cervix is already almost 100% thinned but i am only 1.5 centimeters dialated.
AnswerHello Jennifer,
Doctors, along with everyone else, have no way of knowing when you will deliver. Some women stay dialated for weeks, others show no signs of dialation at all and go into labor.
Most first pregnancies deliver late, meaning they go past the due date. This happens most of the time, but not all of the time.
Right now it's just basically a waiting game. I'm sure that's not what you want to hear, and I wish I could tell you something better. With you being dialated and effaced, it does mean that your body is preparing for labor, but there isn't a specific time.
Instead of going by those type of measurements, the best things to look for are:
- the baby "dropping" (You'll know it because it will feel like he or she is going to fall out of you.)
- bloody show/loss of the mucus plug
- increase in Braxton-Hicks contractions
- Pressure "down there"
- Contractions that don't stop by resting or drinking water
To tell you the truth, I believe I read somewhere that it's the baby who causes contractions to begin. When the baby's lungs are developed, a chemical message is sent to the brain to tell your body to cause labor to start.
Some ways to help you go into labor include nipple stimulation (which can cause horrible contractions and isn't a good idea unless advised by a doctor, walking (which is great...just don't wear yourself out), and I think there are other ways but these are the two most common.
Congratualtions of your pregnancy. I wish for you a healthy baby! :) I know you're ready to get this baby out...I know I was! :) Take care, and if I didn't answer your question or if you have another question, write me back! :)
~Andrea
