Ask A Nurse
Birth Plans
Birth Stories
Bookstore
Boy or Girl
Cesareans
Chat Room
Complications
Doulas
Educators
Episiotomy
FAQs
Feeding Baby
Fertility
Finding a Class
Health
Interactive
Labor
Message Board
Monitoring
Newborns
Postcards
Postpartum
Pregnancy
Reviews/Awards
Search
VBAC
Week by Week

Ask A Nurse
Questions and Answers

Q. I think my water may have broken but I am not sure. I got up from bed, the bed was not wet, I put on some gray boxer shorts, had breakfast, went to go take a shower and my boxer shorts were wet. I did not feel the urge to go to the bathroom or anything. I was surprised to see the wet mark. It does not smell like anything, and the coloring looks fairly clear. So I put on another pair of gray boxers and now I have another smaller wet spot. What is going on? Thanks.

A. The easiest way to tell if your water has broken is to put on a clean maxi pad and lay down for about thirty minutes. Then stand up, if you notice a small puddle then you probably have ruptured membranes. Because the water will collect in the vagina and leak out only when you stand up. Remember that urine and amniotic fluid (water) smell very different, and look different, urine is yellow and amniotic fluid is usually a straw or clear color, or in rare instances green or brown.

While it's a popular myth that many people begin labor with their water breaking, actually only about 12% of women will begin labor this way. 75% of the time your water will not break until after 9 centimeters. Good luck!

Cyndi Klausing, RN, ACCE, has been a childbirth educator and breastfeeding counselor for over 18 years. She currently works as a newborn nursery nurse and is the mother of four sons.

Cyndi will answer your questions on fertility, pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and babies. Her advice does not take the place of your practitioner. Personal answers will not always be possible.