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Contractions -- Really, what do they feel like?
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Anonymous
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I'm pregnant with #2 and was induced the first time so I don't really know what spontaneous contractions feel like.
FWIW, I'm 40 weeks pregnant and 5 centimeters dilated. My belly feels tight all the time and I feel like I'm having terrible cramps. I'm just achey all over my belly and crotch. My water hasn't broken - just a lot of discharge. I'm guessing, well hoping, it'll happen soon, but I have no idea what to expect. When I asked my doctor today all she said was "You'll know!" but that doesn't really help. I think I have a pretty high threshold for pain so I'm paranoid I'm going to have this baby at home or in our car on the way to the hospital. So, would someone please tell me what contractions really feel like? |
Anonymous
| I think you are having Braxton Hicks. It sounds like you are close. I had one induced and one without Pitocin and I thought that the Pitocin contractions were more intense and painful and had fewer breaks in between. Try to get some rest, my midwives recommended a half a glass of wind and a warm bath before bed just to get your body to relax. You will know that the contractions mean business when you need to get up and move during them and when they take so much of your attention that you can't speak during them. I have a high pain tolerance too but I also think you will know. Your water might not break until you are well into labor. I really don't think that many people labor that quickly, try not to worry. How effaced are you? Good luck and congrats on the baby to be! |
Anonymous
| I felt pressure--mild at the beginning, but as it got stronger I knew I was in actual labor. I wanted to labor at home (and did), but it just felt clear to me when I was no longer comfortable laboring at home and wanted to be at the hospital. Unless you're unusual, that same logic will get you to the hospital in plenty of time. (I had fast labors, but delivered where I wanted to both times.) |
Anonymous
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Thanks for both great responses!
I'm 80% effaced if that means anything. I hope it means I'm close. I'm so ready to get this baby out. The pain is bearable now, so I appreciate more explanation of what to expect. Thanks again! |
Anonymous
| You are so close, OP! In fact, you may already be in early labor. Good luck and best wishes!! |
Anonymous
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My doctor also told me "you'll know" but people had prepared me for it to be so painful, that I did NOT know it was labor until I was about 5 or 6 cm's dilated. For me, the pain was never intense. I also had a lot of back labor. My water had broken before I went into labor, so I obviously knew it was coming, but when I was 8 cm dilated i expected them to tell me i was 3 cm dilated.
Just watch for a pattern. When they start coming regularly, last a minute or more, and progress closer together, keep an eye on it. |
Anonymous
| It sounds like BH contractions to me--which I found totally different from labor. To me, once I got to 4cm (even at 41 weeks I was barely 1cm dilated, both kids--talk about Fort Knox....), the contractions kicked in and they gradually got more and more painful--to me, it feels like someone is sawing or cutting you open from the inside using a butter knife. This is the description I gave DH when I was about 8 cm and told him to write it down for me. |
Anonymous
| My experience with contractions wasn't at all what I expected. I never had completely definite start or stops to my contractions, which is what I had been expecting based on reading books and talking to my doctor (who told me not to come to the hospital until I couldn't talk through contractions). Basically I felt pretty crampy and uncomfortable on and off for about 12 hours and then I started to have these waves of more intense cramps and discomfort. However, the contractions never fell into a super regular pattern and I could always talk through them. My husband and I finally went to the hospital and on our way there I was worried that they were going to send us home because it didn't feel like "real labor" the way the books had described. Um, when I got to the hospital I was 9cm dilated. That got everyone's attention pretty quickly. So I guess everyone experiences contractions a lot differently. Mine were definitely not textbook. Now I'll know for next time. So my advice is if you're at all unsure, go to the hospital. |
Anonymous
| Mine felt like bad menstrual cramps - my abs also felt rock hard, like I was in the middle of a crunch. |
Anonymous
Same for me. Felt like the worst menstrual cramps of my life. The intensity would make me double over and I felt the need to be on my hands and knees. For what it is worth, my contractions came on pretty quickly, with very little break in between, so I couldn't follow the classic advice of "come in when they are a minute long and five minutes apart". They started out at only 3-4 minutes apart and got closer from there. I went to the hospital when they felt VERY strong and very regular. I arrived at 6cm and delivered 5 hours later. |
Anonymous
Me too! Mine were on top of one another, no breaks but it went super fast. Delivered less tan 2 hours after they broke my water and I arrived at 6 cm. |
Anonymous
I had the same experience - they felt like the absolute worst menstrual cramps. I went from one every half hour to one every 3 minutes in the course of 2 hours. When they were that close together, we went to the hospital. I was scheduled to have a c-section (my DD was breech) and by the time the Dr. arrived an hour and a half later, I was ready to push. Good luck, it sounds like you're going to have your baby soon! |
Anonymous
| WOW 15:12 that's pretty amazing. So did you delivery the breech baby? How was that? |
Anonymous
| Hoping to hear back from OP! Or is she at the hospital delivering now? |
Anonymous
Thanks all. OP here. Still no baby  I'm just waiting, waiting, waiting.
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