More of a mini-rant than anything else.
Anyone lose their mucus plug before term and then felt like they were walking around doing hours-long Kegels afterward?
I'm 35 weeks, 5 days along, and I lost my mucus plug yesterday just before going for my "36-week" appointment with my midwife. I knew right away what it was, despite it being my first pregnancy. For the edification of first-time moms, it pretty much just looked like a big blob of clear snot with some white bits in it. I was pleasantly surprised that there was no blood.
When I told my midwife about it, she suggested that I do the Group B Strep swab that day instead of waiting until my 37-week appointment, just because losing the mucus plug before then could marginally increase the potential for infection. It was really uncomfortable do to the swabbing (my back was really stiff and it's getting generally harder to reach things down there). She also offered to do a vaginal exam to determine if I was dilated. After hemming and hawing for a few minutes, I decided to do it.
Holy hell, it was painful. I mean, my midwife doesn't have absurdly large hands or anything, but I felt like she was trying to poke through my navel, for god's sake. My husband and I haven't been able to have sex for quite a while because things have been so damned tight, but this was ridiculous. In the end she said I was about 50% effaced but not dilated at all. (My husband, who was sitting right next to me while this was going on, said I got "50 Trouper points" for doing it. Yay me.) Is it normal for it hurt that much? I mean, I was prepared for discomfort, but ow ow fuckety ow!!!
She did say that many women lose their mucus plug early and don't have babies for three weeks, some don't lose it and have a baby the next day. For my sake, she jokingly asked me to wait at least 9 days so that Jellyfish would at least be a term baby. She did also say, though, in her experience, that women who lose it earlier tend to deliver a little earlier, so she's expecting I'll probably deliver between 38-40 weeks rather then 40-42. Since then I feel like I've been tightening my PC muscles endlessly, like I'm afraid he's going to just fall out. I know realistically that he won't, but what can you do.
On the plus side, our little one is still head down despite what I perceive to be countless revolutions in the night, his back and bum off to the right, feet on the left, and heartbeat is perfect. He hates the Doppler, though, and kicks furiously when the midwife uses it, which my husband and I think is hilarious.