Contractions What Do They Feel Like
7 Replies
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I have had an incredibly easy and healthy pregnancy. I have never had one BH contraction and am now 41 weeks pregnant and due any day! My midwife checked me last week and said I was 60% efaced and 3cm dialated already. I have been exercising like crazy walking up and down hills and doing squats, taking warm ginger root baths and breathing meditation and have felt nothing at all! I started feeling slight cramp pressure in my lower abdomen today and it feels like my baby is punching me in the cervix sharply when it moves. But it is very mild cramp like feelings. Do contractions always have to feel distinct- starting from the back and moving around to the front? Thanks!
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I had back labor and my contractions started out in my back and worked away around to the front. To me it was like an intense pms cramp that starts out mild and gradually gets worse and then goes away........until the next one comes. It's like a belt tightening around your waist but slowly. You'll do fine. I had a great birth experience with no epi (I had no choice) and I can't wait to do it again. My main advice is DON"T FORGET TO BREATHE. It makes a world of difference! Good luck sweetie.
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Well, being that I just went through this for the first time myself on November 10th when my son was born, I wondered constantly what the contractions were going to feel like as well and could never quite get a good idea from anybody. Now that I went through it, I don't know that I can even describe it myself. I too had a very healthy and easy pregnancy and let me tell you, my contractions came without any warning whatsoever. But I do believe a lot of good walking helped a lot so good for you for moving around a lot! When my contractions came and got worse and worse, I they HURT!! I had a completely natural childbirth in the hospital at record speed. I went in at 11pm and had him at 2:26am, dialating from 4cm to 10cm in 15 minutes. He came out with ONE push. But as short as the labor was and easy as the labor was, it still hurt. I describe it when it first started as the front of my hips feeling like they were going to spread and break apart. I remember that hurting a lot. I didn't have the back pain the moved to the front like so many. I felt it in the front of my hips and the nurse said she never heard anybody describe that. The actual contractions, if you can stomach it without an epidural, I can best describe as feeling like a super intense hurting pain that lasts a few seconds and gets so intense you don't think you can take it any more. Didn't feel like a period cramp to me whatsoever and maybe felt more like a super duper intense charlie horse. Just when I thought I couldn't take the pain any more without an epidural and had broke down and asked for one, I was 10cm's and ready to push. That is a pretty awesome feeling. The strongest urge ever and just give it ALL you've got so you don't prolong it. The doctor couldn't believe it and said I pushed like I've had 5 kids already. Justin Alexander was my first!
...I wish you the BEST of luck...They're gonna come out of nowhere any moment now!!
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BH are NOTHING like the real thing. Trust me your arent missing out. imagine your period cramps times a million. Thats contractions. I dont rememeber them coming on slowly because my water broke, But i remember when they were really bad. my best advise it to take one at a time, and breath. When your having major contractions they come as quickly as they go. I dont remember where my contractions started, I just remember it bein all on the front of my tummy. Like mandee said, make sure to breathe, if you try to hold your breathe your just going to think about the pain.
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some felt like menstral cramps, when i could relax some would feel like the build up then let down of an orgasm without the climax, and others, when i got tired felt crazy i can't even descirbe it maybe like crushing or something. pushing was the best pain relief, it didn;t hurt at all it was just tough work but not uncomfortable, i only pushed 10min tho
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I think they are different for everyone...but I SO wanted to know what they felt like- but then I wanted it to stop! lol! But it felt like a severe cramp...it wasn't that bad, but then when your body wears down (for me 6 hours of it) they hurt WAY more! But I just kept saying to my husband and nurses if I could just get up and 'run it off' I would feel SO much better! lol!
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Does your abdomen get hard during a contraction like it does with the Braxton Hicks??
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When I had my first little girl I never felt BH contractions. I remember I was helping my mom vacuum and I told her I keep getting these period type cramps regularly. She called the hospital and they said to time them or course and also to measure their intensity. Said if they were hard like your chin or nose then they were weak, but if they were as hard as forehead they were strong(I think the intesity measurement was because when we did catch them and timed them they were two mins apart already.)
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