Enter the first day of your last period (This is how most healthcare practitioners calculate your due date.)

• You note more Braxton Hicks contractions. More frequent and intense Braxton Hicks contractions can signal pre-labour. A general rule of thumb is when your contractions become increasingly longer, stronger, and closer together. They may be as far apart as every ten minutes or so in the beginning, but they won’t stop or ease up no matter what you do.
• You pass your mucus plug or notice a bloody show this is a good sign your body is preparing for labour.
• Your water breaks: Don’t worry about the Hollywood styled movie and panic you won’t get to the hospital in time, or will go into full blown labour straight away. It just means baby is coming, call the hospital to ask what you should do; they may suggest waiting, walking or coming in, each health care practitioner is different.
• While lightening isn’t a predictor of when labour will start, it is a sign that the baby is moving into position and getting ready for birth.

Your health care practitioner will give you guidelines about when you should get ready to come to the hospital or prepare for the birth.

Also remember that it is okay to go and get checked if you feel you are in labour or something isn’t right. Most first time mothers do this, rather be safe than sorry. Trust yourself and your instincts.

While lightening isn’t a predictor of when labour will start, it is a sign that the baby is moving into position and getting ready for birth.

Signs that lightening has happened are:

• Breathing becomes easier:At the end of pregnancy, the baby has grown so much and is pressing against the rib cage, making it difficult to breathe. When the baby has dropped from under the rib cage this gives relief from the pressure on the rib cage and allows for deeper breathing and for easier expansion of the rib cage.
• Frequent urination: Some woman have claimed to urinate more after the baby has dropped due to more pressure on the bladder.
• The space of the baby in the uterus: The positioning of your baby changes when it drops into the pelvis. The baby is positioning itself in a face down position and is getting ready. There will be a space between the breasts and the abdomen once the baby has dropped into the pelvis.
• Pressure on the bowels: When a baby has dropped into the pelvis and away from the rib cage, its head is now resting against the pelvic floor, adding extra pressure on the bowels.

Try our Due Date Calculator to see when your baby is due. Enter the first day of your last period (This is how most healthcare providers calculate your due date.)

It is done by obtaining DNA (usually a sample of blood) from the alleged parent/s of the child as well as the child.

To determine paternity while pregnant:
A DNA paternity test can be performed accurately before a child is born through amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling.

You could be experiencing a “false negative” test for the following reasons:

• You may have taken the test too early. While some woman who are lucky to have a regular 28 day cycle, others are not so lucky. You may have miscalculated when you are due and taken the test too early.
• You could have bought a home pregnancy test that is not sensitive enough, try again with a more sensitive test that can possibly predict pregnancy earlier.
• You may have not followed the directions clearly when taking the test.
• Irregular Cycles. For some women, being late now and then is part of their “normal” pattern. Other factors that can influence a missed period are increased stress, anxiety, or sleeplessness.

Here are a few suggestions:

• You need to wait about a week or more after your missed period to get reliable information from a home pregnancy test
• Go and see your GP to request a blood test to be done to rule out pregnancy. A blood test will show your hCG levels sooner than a home bought test.
• If still cramping and no period then you should seek assistance from your health care provider.