"contractions" in early labor??

[Anonymous]

So I'm 80% effaced and 1-2 cm dilated but don't feel like I've had "contractions" per se. I've felt crampy, but no worse than menstrual cramps. Lost my mucus plug yesterday and am still just feeling mild cramps off and on.

From everything I've read about labor and early labor, it seems like I should be having "contractions" every 15-20 minutes. So does this mean I am not in early labor, and rather just sort of crampy and getting ready?

Has anyone gone through early labor in this way, feeling mostly normal but just sort of crampy and then - bam - you're 4 cm dilated and in active labor?

Thanks!! First-time mom just trying to figure it all out...

[Anonymous]

That "feeling crampy off and on" is contractions! At least it was for me. I had no idea until my water broke (but I still wasn't have "regular" contractions) and we started pitocin. I never thought my contractions would feel just like very painful menstral cramps because the Braxton-Hicks contractions felt so different from what I actually experienced during labor. All the weeks I told my OB "no, I'm not having contractions, just cramps" I actually was contracting. Now at the end of my second pregnancy I have a much different view of "cramps".

[Anonymous]

OP here...but how are you supposed to "time" them? They just sort of feel like ever-present, but mild, menstrual cramps. There's no way to tell when one stops and one ends.

I assume at some point they will get stronger and more pronounced and then I will be abel to time them and know when this is real?

[Anonymous]

If you feel it front to back and then perhaps push down on your groin, they are contractions not B-H's....

In early labor, my contractions came every 45 seconds, first very light like cramps, and then intensified within 8 hours. I was in active labor for 3 short hours with the contractions STILL 45 seconds apart and very short. I never had the 15-20 minute spread or other rise and falls like I hear about in class!!

Most of labor and delivery does not go "by the book"! The best thing to do is call your OB or midwife frequently and let them know what's going on... if you have any doubt, ask your OB or midwife to meet you at the hospital for a "reality check"

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here...but how are you supposed to "time" them? They just sort of feel like ever-present, but mild, menstrual cramps. There's no way to tell when one stops and one ends.

I assume at some point they will get stronger and more pronounced and then I will be abel to time them and know when this is real?

Early labor can go on for a long time. It is starting, but could be a long process - weeks even (I had cramps for a couple of months before my second was born). You will know when you need to start timing them - you won't be able to do anything when they happen - it will be more painful and get increasingly painful. And then it will be over and you'll have a beautiful baby! Good luck!!