How long before your water breaks?

Question

My cousin is currently 38 weeks pregnant and started having contractions this morning but her water did not break yet. She went to the hospital and they told her she wasn't dilating yet. Can this be a false alarm or can she really be in labor and just have to wait?

Answer 1

If her contractions aren't causing her to dilate, then it's not real labor.  She could be experiencing false labor...which isn't any fun.  She needs to go to the hospital when she starts to have regular contractions that are increasing in frequency and intensity.  Generally with your first baby, the first stage of labor can take a long time and most women are encouraged to go to the hospital when they can no longer laugh or talk through a contraction.  As far as when her water will break...who knows?  It's different for all women and with all 4 of my babies it never once broke on it's own.  With my last, the midwife broke it right before he was delivered.  

Answer 2

Usually the water doesn't break until a woman is quite far along in labor.  (In fact, usually the doctor will break it, rather than waiting.  Allowed to do so naturally, the waters don't usually break until  it's about time to push.)

It probably was false labor, or pre-labor, or prodromal labor -- all of which are pretty much the same thing.  Given that she's only 38 weeks, she probably has some time left.  When her contractions are strong, (too strong to talk/walk through), regular, and coming every 3-5 minutes -- THAT'S when she needs to go to the hospital, whether or not her water has broken.

Answer 3

A lot of the time your membranes have to be artificially broken. I have 2 daughters and both time I had to have them broken. I was in Labor with the 1st for 40 hours before they broke them (hind waters did break, but that's a whole other story) and with my 2nd daughter they broke them after having contractions for 4 days. You can be in labor and even give birth with membranes intact. Called being born in the caul. I hope it's the real thing for your cousin and doesn't have to wait to much longer to see her baby.

Answer 4

I'm 38 weeks too and this has happened to me several times. Its probably a false alarm, but its good she got checked out. So many women describe labor as feeling different thats its hard for some people to know if they are in labor or not. I have thought 2-3 times I was in labor only to have them tell me the same thing they told your cousin. I hope she goes soon though because I'm sure if she feels like me, shes really tired of being pregnant!

Answer 5

Only about 15% of women have their waters break before labor contractions begin.

Mine didn't break until I was about 8 cm dilated.  Some babies are born still with the sac intact.

If she was in labor her contractions should be getting progressively stronger and closer together, and should be regular.

Answer 6

Some women just never break it and the doctor has to do it for them ;)

To know if she is in real labour, she'd have to take a bath and try to relax. If contractions are still there afterwards, time them from the begining of the contraction to the start of the next one. When this time is only 5 minutes, it's time to go to the hospital. "Real" ronctractions are regular, and they get closer and closer to each other.

I know how un-fun false contractions are... I've been having them too ;)

If you lose your water go directly to the hospital! :)

Congrats and good luck ;)