clueless about contractions

mjbaby32711 · February 2011

I have no idea how to measure contractions, when to call the doctor, how far apart they are?? I am totally clueless...and i've tried to read about it but no one can really explain it to me in a way i understand..i feel silly for not even knowing. How am I going to know if i am going into laboR!?

diannica · February 2011

Trust me you will know once you go into labor and have measurable contractions. When you measure contractions you are really measuring 2 things: 1. How long the contraction lasted. From start to finish. 2. The time between the start of a contraction to the start of the next. For example, if you have a contraction that starts at 1:00pm and it lasts for 1 minutes and your next contraction starts at 1:05pm. You are having contractions 5 mins apart for 1 min long. Hope that helps.

lovesBup · February 2011

My OB says to come in when I'm no longer able to walk/talk through them, and when they are about 5 minutes apart go to in. I've been having them on and off for weeks now. Today they seem to be getting pretty strong/painful but they are still very sporadic. When you get a good strong one.. you'll know. And I know it's frustrating to hear 'you'll know' but when you get one- you will know it..they SUCK. It takes your breath away.

If you need to know specifics, call your OB. Ask them specifically 'when will I know if I need to come in'. I was told to come in when my contrax were hard to walk and talk through, or if my water broke.

mjbaby32711 · February 2011

Thank you! that does help a lot!! I will ask my OB for when she would want me to call in

khauke · February 2011

The bump has a handy timer too. You just have to push the button at the start of a contraction and push it again at the end and contractions are recorded for you.

ruchemist · February 2011

khauke:
The bump has a handy timer too. You just have to push the button at the start of a contraction and push it again at the end and contractions are recorded for you.

I've heard that "there's an app for that", but I don't have a smartphone or anything, so I don't know that for sure.

mcmarried · February 2011

to practice (i've had bh for weeks every few min) it's easier for me to tell the start and stop by palming my belly (like a basketball) once they start for real i doubt i'll have this problem

ALance416 · February 2011

ruchemist:
khauke:
The bump has a handy timer too. You just have to push the button at the start of a contraction and push it again at the end and contractions are recorded for you.
I've heard that "there's an app for that", but I don't have a smartphone or anything, so I don't know that for sure.

They do have an app for it - at least for the iPhone there is. It's free too. You can search for it under pregnancy bump at the iStore. It's also a push button. It comes with a lot of different items such as a journal, information about your week, a kick counter etc.

Hope that helps!

babyblues314 · February 2011

I was the same way. I thought I wasn't going to know when I was having contractions. I asked my Dr. and he said that I won't miss the signs. I still felt lost when he told me that. But, now that I am having contractions, everyone is right, you can't mistake them.

I know you said you don't have a smartphone, but for anyone else they also have a free contraction timer for androids.

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clueless about contractions

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