checking own cervix - just for those that are in to it!

[funkyfish586]

i know that some people dont agree with people doing this so im just looking for people who have or are going to do this.

With my son i was induced at 40+12 & he finally arrived after a horrible 2 day induction i was 100% closed, not effaced & no signs of him coming

i was speaking to my friend today worrying that this baby will be the same & be huge ( Euan was 9.5) i was saying i wish i lived in the states as they get internals lol & at least i could find out if anythings happening ( i know im only 36 weeks)

anyhoo she said that from 35 weeks she checked her cervix just to see if she was any closer, she always followed thorough hygine & never poked about just a quick in & out

Soooo i just had a go & i could feel like a squidgy lump about a fingers length up but i have no idea where the actual cervix would be or if im even feeling the right thing. I wont do it again until next week now but can anyone give me any pointers. I just want to see if anything has changed week to week x

 

[gorgeousmumof]

lol I tried this but can barely reach.. I felt sort of like a donut? that goes in? but no idea what that means!!

 

[princessellie]

id be too scared, apart from the fact that i wouldnt have a clue where to start

x

 

[pinkandfluffy]

Haven't a clue but I seem to recall from the days over on TTC that people would check their cervix as an indication of when they were likely to be fertile so there must be some tips somewhere?

 

[gorgeousmumof]

I just found this..

"Checking Your Own Cervix
How to Check Your Own Cervix- "it's not rocket science"

"I think it's a good and empowering thing for a woman to check her own cervix for dilation. This is not rocket science, and you hardly need a medical degree or years of training to do it. Your vagina is a lot like your nose- other people may do harm if they put fingers or instruments up there but you have a greater sensitivity and will not do yourself any harm.

"The best way to do it when hugely pregnant is to sit on the toilet with one foot on the floor and one up on the seat of the toilet. Put two fingers in and go back towards your bum. The cervix in a pregnant woman feels like your lips puckered up into a kiss. On a non-pregnant woman it feels like the end of your nose. When it is dilating, one finger slips intothe middle of the cervix easily (just like you could slide your finger into your mouth easily if you are puckered up for a kiss). As the dilation progresses the inside of that hole becomes more like a taught elastic band and by 5 cms dilated (5 fingerwidths) it is a perfect rubbery circle like one of those Mason jar rings that you use for canning, and about that thick.

"What's in the centre of that opening space is the membranes (bag of waters) that are covering the baby's head and feel like a latex balloon filled with water. If you push on them a bit you'll feel the baby's head like a hard ball (as in baseball). If the waters have released you'll feel the babe's head directly. "
https://prepforlabor.tripod.com/id14.html

 

[Cat lady]

Should you be able to feel your cervix with your fingers then? I thought sometimes it was too high for a mw to sweep so we wouldnt be able to feel it in normal pregnant position?
xxx

 

[princessellie]

maybe that means she can feel it but cant get fingers in to stretch?? maybe, i dont know but thats what i would think lol

x

 

[wannabubba#4]

Should you be able to feel your cervix with your fingers then? I thought sometimes it was too high for a mw to sweep so we wouldnt be able to feel it in normal pregnant position?
xxx

Depends what station its at hun -mine is at -2 and still slightly posterior today and the mw just managed to reach -with me a totally unnatural position and her with both knees up on the bed and pushing in HARD!! Would never reach that yourself lol
however this is my 4th baby and baby is only 1/5 engaged so therefore if its first baby -they tend to engage quicker - then your cervix is going to be more forward (anterior) and easier to reach.

xx

 

[funkyfish586]

thanks all, tbh i dont know what i was feeling lol either way no 'polo' like i was told to feel for. Ah well!! x

 

[tiggerlix]

i think it depends on how forward your cervix has become.when i had my sweep my midwife had it almost straight away and said i was sure favourable.I think it also has to be thin.so id say if you feel squidgy and feel soft its a good sign,if there is nothing to feel and it feels hard then its prosterier.
i tried to feel mine a few weeks ago with nothing to feel..it felt tight and hard,i then had a feel the monday night b4 my sweep and i felt a big difference,almost squidgy and very soft was more comfortable to do so.
all i know is that on the 2 occasions i felt mine it was certainly different.
turns out i was 2 cm and soft ect
xx

 

[tiggerlix]

just to add,m/w did say i was engaged and she felt the babies head..so wether that has anything to do with it.i was 3/5th now im 2/5 so baby had lowered
xx

 

[gorgeousmumof]

At my last check up at 36 weeks they said baby was 2/5 engaged. I can find my cervix but barely reach it and it feels closed I think? I cant get far enough to check ha ha.

So I am thinking I have a while to go yet, but who knows eh

 

[bbyno1]

i wanna check but dont think il know what im doing properly even with instructions lol x