Get ready for the birth as soon as the mother has signs that labor will start soon.
Signs that labor will start soon
There is no way to be sure when a woman’s labor will begin, but there are some
signs that it will start soon.
In the weeks before birth, the baby may drop lower, the mother may feel more
contractions, or the mother may just feel different. Other signs may happen only
a day or 2 before labor starts. The mother’s stool may change, or a little show
(bloody mucus) may come out of the vagina. Sometimes, the
bag of waters breaks.
The baby drops lower in the belly
Babies often drop lower in the mother’s belly about 2 weeks
before birth. But if a mother has had babies before, this baby
may not drop until labor begins.
Contractions get stronger or come more often
During labor the womb squeezes up and becomes hard. This is called a contraction
because the womb contracts, or tightens.
To understand how contractions
work, think about what happens
when you wring
water out of a
thick cloth.
It gets tight
and hard.
The womb contracts in the same
way during labor. You can see it
bunch up, like this:
Now it
is soft.
Now it
is hard!
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