37 Weeks Pregnant with a Bad Case of Diarrhea

Hi Tiffani! I had diarrhea at around 37 weeks with my second pregnancy back in January. I was 3cm dilated and 75% effaced as well, so I too thought that I was having early signs of labor. I ended up being induced at 39 weeks per my request and had a healthy baby girl. When I talked to my Doctor she said the diarrhea could have been early labor or just a virus. It looks like mine was just a virus and it had no impact on the baby. Just try to stay hydrated. I drank a lot of water because everything I ate just came out. Anyway, if it is early labor, you are far enough along to have a healthy baby. Good luck to you!

Hi Tiffani, maybe this will help you! One thing you don't need at this point is diarrhea!! I do a type of energetic work called the Yuen Method (my instructor's website for a description of the work is at www.YuenMethod.com). We remove things that bother a person from their energy field, and amazingly the work can be done remotely. I just did approx 30 min of work to remove things that were bothering you. That will generally work to stop diarrhea. It may take an hour or two for your energy field to process those energy corrections. We work on the physcial, mental, emotional, psychological, psychic and spiritual levels. It's amazing work!! In this case the cause seemed to be many small things that were from all levels except the physical level! Mainly emotional and mental..and some subconscious fears that seemed to affect you. I know it sounds far out, but it can only help you. I am a certified practitioner of the method...studied it along with a friend who is an R.N. who used the method to help overcome a birth defect in her son. Good Luck with everything. J.

Hi Tiffany, usually the 'diarrhea' of labor is not on going and is not usually watery, just loose plus most often in conjunction with contractions. I think this is probably more likely to be a tummy bug/ upset/viral thing rather than early signs of labor. Your doctor is correct as long as you are not losing weight have no fever and your baby continues to be nice and active. If it does go on longer than 7 - 10 days I would want to send a stool sample to make sure it is not a parasitic infection something like Giardia, for example that does need antibiotics to clear it up.

Hope labor starts soon for you though, its tough when you have been expecting your baby since 36 weeks like last time! In fact a tummy bug could coincidentally start labor as well!

Keep eating easy digestable foods like in the BRAT Diet - Banannas, Rice, Apple Sauce and Toast & drink plenty of fluids. Finally, if it continues you may want to try a dose of Imodium and if it persists then get a sample sent to the lab.

Good luck.

Hi, Tiffany. I had diarrhea before giving birth, most likely because the baby was already positioned head down quite low and ready to come out. This puts pressure on your intestines, so I think it's natural that you can have either diarrhea or constipation. I was also having lots of contractions from 37 weeks on until 40 weeks when I gave birth, making me very nervous, which might have contributed to the diarrhea as well. Good luck! I wish you the best with your birthing process.

Hi Tiffani -

Yes - your body clears out that part of itself in preparation for labor - that is common - however more than a week seems a little long - unless things have not moved there very well for a while beforehand (constipation is also a hazard of pregnancy)- and also everyone is different -
I would not worry about it unless there are other symptoms - your body sounds like it is just getting ready for the birth transition!

Good luck with the new baby-!

Hi Tiffani,
The thought behind drinking Gatorade is correct (electrolytes), but the sugar in Gatorade makes diarrhea worse. You could try either Pedialyte (make sure it's very cold because it doesn't taste very good) or the Pedialyte ice pops. Also, (and I apologize if someone already mentioned this) have you tried the BRAT diet for a few days? It's basically ripe bananas (not green), plain rice, applesauce (but not apple juice), and dry toast (no butter, jam, etc.). The BRAT diet usually solidifies stools that are loose for whatever reason. Then, if your symptoms improve, slowly reintroduce other foods, leaving raw fruits and veggies, spicy foods, sugary foods, and fats for last. Just work through the progression of bland. It's not much fun, but it helps. Also, are you taking prenatal vitamins? The amount of iron in them can be very tough on the stomach. You could ask your OB if it's okay to switch to one w/out iron for the next couple of weeks. I wasn't able to use vitamins w/ iron at all when I was pregnant, and my OB just kept good track of my iron levels.

The good news, as you probably already now, is that you are already full-term. While docs use 40 weeks for your due date, they consider the baby to be full term by 37 weeks. I hope you feel better soon!

Hi, I think that can be true that you can have diarrhea before going into labor. Either way, you should drink tons of water because you don't want to have a baby now or in a few weeks being dehidrated. I would pack my bags because you just never know. Good Luck with your new baby....

I would definately be drinking gatorade... you don't want to go into labor dehydrated finding veins for iv's and such is Impossible when you're dehydrated... you don't need that...

Now I will tell you... at about 30 weeks... I got food poisoning... spent the night in the bathroom... called my Dr. in the morning who sent me to maternity... as Diarrhea is an indicator of labor... and he wanted me strapped to a monitor to make sure... and he even said one of his good friends who is an OBGYN... didn't know she was in labor... so, I would as to be monitored...

Good luck!

Like you our first son was born early....5 weeks, so I, too, was unfamiliar w/all the stuff that went on the last few weeks. But, w/my second pregnancy, I remember having diarrhea in the couple of weeks before birth. Just be sure you're getting plenty of fluids & staying hydrated. Also, like another mom suggested, the BRAT diet. Be sure to check in w/your OB as well to let them know how you're feeling so they can give you their medical opinion & what to do. Good luck!

You are right, diarrhea is one of the signs of labor. See if you are having any other symptoms, especially since you didn't go full term last time. You could just have a bug though.

http://www.webmd.com/baby/guide/true-false-labor

Don't just drink water it alone will not hydrate you, you also need the correct electrolyte balance. Also drink something like recharge or dilute Gatorade. I prefer recharge because it has no sugar in it.

I don't know what's caused it but I just hope you're drinking tons of fluids. Hope your delivery goes well and congratulations!

Try Smart Water....it's got electrolytes in it like Gatorade; but with NO SUGAR! It's awesome for hydration. Costco has a box of 12 for like 10 bucks. Or you can buy them for around 2 dollars a bottle pretty much anywhere.
Good luck mama!
S.