When at labor contractions do you need to go to the maternity hospital?

It is believed that the issue of timely dispatch to the maternity hospital worries only women in the first birth. They have no relevant experience, and therefore the sensations of the beginning labor activity for them is a mystery. But in practice, the question of when to give up everything and urgently go to the maternity hospital, worries those who give birth a second time, and even during subsequent births. This article will talk about when it's time to go to the hospital, how long to wait, so as not to risk your health and the condition of the child.

Contractions (contractions or spasms of the uterus) before childbirth are of two types - true, which occur on the background of the expansion and opening of the cervix, and false (or training), which are not directly related to the expansion of the neck. Training cuts for births for the first time may well begin already in the middle of the term of carrying a baby, whereas for those who give birth again, they usually start almost before the true ones, after 35 weeks of gestation. A few days before the onset of labor (and at first birth, sometimes even a few weeks), preparatory contractions begin, which are called precursors.

If false uterine contractions during pregnancy are in no way interconnected with the uterine muscles and only episodic stresses of the smooth muscles of the uterus appear, then precursor contractions have a good reason. The cervix begins to prepare for childbirth - it softens, smoothes out, because it has to open up in labor by 10-12 centimeters. The process of preparing for the onset of labor a woman by and large can not feel. Its hormones are changing, the concentration of progesterone, which was responsible for carrying the baby throughout the entire period, decreases, the production of estrogen and oxytocin increases. In the cells of the uterine tissue begins to accumulate a special protein - actomyosin.

At the physical level, the muscles of the uterus can sometimes strain, which will be felt as a sudden tension of the abdomen. Such contractions do not have a periodicity, a certain rhythm. The fact that the birth began, a woman can guess precisely by the cyclical nature of what is happening. The contractions are felt as smacks, which start from the back and end with the lower and middle part of the abdomen. First impressions may even go unnoticed, especially during a second or third pregnancy. But gradually the contractions intensify, the moments of tension become longer, and the period of rest and relaxation between them shortens.

Initial contractions occur at intervals of about once every 30 minutes. This gap may be large, but less - is unlikely. The duration of the spasm at the very beginning of labor is about 15-20 seconds.

Owners of modern smartphones can come to the aid in determining the essence of what is happening, applications that are specifically designed for such cases. They are free and exist under the general title "Counter of contractions."The principle of their action is that the woman starts the application when strange sensations appear, and then simply presses the button with each repetition of the spasm.

The application analyzes the repeatability, periodicity and gives a verdict whether the opening of the uterus has already begun or not yet. Also, the application can be signaled about the time when it is time to go to the obstetric institution. The minus of the program is that it cannot take into account the individual characteristics of the pregnant woman, which is why mistakes are not excluded.

The latent period of labor contractions usually lasts the longest, therefore, when detecting the first contractions, one should not panic and grab the telephone in order to immediately call an Ambulance. Too early arrival at the maternity hospital, if there are no complications of pregnancy, can have a negative effect on the psychological state of the parturient woman, because waiting is worse than reality.

The tissues of the reproductive organs in women who give birth for the first time are narrow, stiff, the uterine muscles are less plastic, and the cervix is ​​revealed much more slowly. If full-fledged regular contractions have begun, it may take up to 14-18 hours before the baby is expelled from the uterus, and therefore there is nowhere to be in a hurry. In the hospital should go when the interval between cramps is 5-10 minutes. Such a period of time means that the opening of the uterus does not exceed 3 centimeters and the active stage of contractions, when medical assistance may be required, has not yet arrived.

Thus, a woman has time to take a shower, have lunch, check whether all the necessary things have been put in a bag for the maternity hospital, call relatives and report that the birth has already begun. Some have time to sleep a little, if they manage to fall asleep, although the majority of excitement rolls over. From the first bouts of a first-time woman, it is highly desirable to recall everything that she was taught in her classes at a consultation or clinic where she was registered.

During the second birth, the phase of hidden latent spasms of the uterus is shorter, and the pain may be less pronounced, and therefore women often do not perceive the rare and weak contractions that have begun, as generic. By the time when the spasms are strong enough and become pronounced recognizable appearance, it can take quite a long time. In the maternity hospital should go at a time when the contractions begin to repeat every quarter of an hour.

Why so early? Because all stages of childbirth in giving birth re-flow faster. The common mistake of women lies in the fact that they sit at home and wait patiently when, as in the first birth, the interval between contractions will be 5 minutes to go to the obstetric institution. As a result, by the time the woman arrives at the maternity hospital, the uterus is completely open and the attempts begin. Sometimes it is not possible to take a pregnant woman to the maternity hospital at all - the baby begins to be born earlier.

There will be much less time for fees at the multidisciplinary one. It is best to collect the bag and the necessary documents for registration in the maternity hospital in advance. But a woman will have time to take a shower and make a couple of phone calls. It is also important to breathe correctly from the first contractions so that the overall muscle tone remains relaxed and there is enough oxygen in the body. This will help avoid rapid fatigue, will make labor less painful.

Between the second and third genera, the difference may be small. It is not excluded that each stage of labor activity will proceed somewhat faster than it was the second time. And therefore you need to be extremely attentive to your feelings. It is recommended to arrive at the maternity hospital when regular contractions occur with a frequency of 1 contraction per 15 minutes.

Regardless of the number of pregnancies and births that preceded the current pregnancy, regardless of the gestational age, the presence or absence of labor contractions, You should go to the maternity hospital immediately, without waiting an hour, if:

• water has departed (in full or in part);
• the fight began, but does not end (a long spasm and very painful);
• spotting appeared (of any intensity, hue, quantity, with and without pain).

No matter how childbirth begins, a woman should definitely monitor her condition before arriving at the maternity hospital, note all the changes so that when she goes to the maternity hospital, she should inform the doctor, making it easier for him to diagnose the condition. What you need to pay special attention to:

• on the nature of the discharge - intensity, color, smell;
• on the localization of pain (where it hurts and with what intensity);
• on fetal movement (from the moment the fights started, they became stronger, weaker, disappeared altogether);
• on the color of amniotic fluid (especially if they are dark, green, brown, brown);
• for additional mother symptoms (it becomes cloudy in the eyes, objects become poorly distinguishable, the heart beats strongly, the head aches strongly, vomiting appears, etc.).

A competent and accurate description of sensations should include the time of onset of symptoms. All this will help the doctor quickly understand whether there are complications of labor, whether there are grounds for emergency delivery by cesarean section. On examination, upon arrival at the maternity hospital, the doctor will assess the degree of cervical dilatation, the strength of contractions and the condition of the fetus.

In addition to a large list of necessary things for the hospital (including things for the child), a woman should definitely check for the presence of what is needed first before sending to the maternity hospital. All the rest, for example, children's clothes, relatives can bring later. The following items and documents are of paramount importance:

• woman's passport;
• medical insurance policy;
• SNILS;
• an exchange card (with which the woman went through the whole pregnancy to see a doctor);
• birth certificate (issued on the 30th week of pregnancy at the time of maternity leave in the antenatal clinic);
• mobile phone and charger (for fast communication with relatives);
• rubber slippers;
• bathrobe;
• nightgown;
• sanitary pads for pregnant women;
• towel for the body (in the waiting room, the woman will be required to take a shower).

In the ambulance carriage there are doctors and everything you need for first aid in case of emergency. Personal vehicles do not have such capabilities, and childbirth is a rather unpredictable process.

About when it is time to go to the hospital, see the next video.