Community› The Bump Message Boards› 3rd Trimester
3rd Trimester
New Discussion

FTM confused about contractions

snickersforeveryonesnickersforeveryone member
in 3rd Trimester

As a FTM, I'm not sure how I'm supposed to know when I'm having any kind of contraction (even BH) as opposed to the cramps I get from the baby growing.   My SIL said that her contractions felt like menstrual cramps at first, which is what I've been feeling all through my pregnancy and attributed to baby's growth, so I'm all kinds of confused.

Not worried at all that I'm having them (or I'd call my doc) but I am wondering what contractions felt like to you if you've had them.  I'm interested in knowing what BH feel like too, though I know the general "not regular, not really painful" guidelines. Mostly, I'm very curious about how people know it's labor without their water breaking!

(I scrolled and went through a couple of pages to see if this question was answered already, but if I missed it and this has been answered, could someone post the link?)

Image and video hosting by TinyPicImage and video hosting by TinyPic


Lilypie Pregnancy tickers
Report Reply to Post

Re: FTM confused about contractions

  • EveryusernameistakenEveryusernameistaken member

    The big thing I notice with BH is that my uterus gets rock hard.  Sometimes they're crampy and uncomfortable, sometimes not, but if I touch my tummy I can feel that it's round and hard all over (not just where baby is) like a little basketball when I'm having contractions.

    Hope that helps :)

    ETA..sorry, I though you were just asking about BH...I should have read more carefully :)


     

    Report Reply
  • Loading the player...
  • madhatter2003madhatter2003

    BH just sort of felt like period cramps...my stomach would get tight. The baby moving would trigger some, or walking too much, etc.  Basically just not regular, not as strong as real contractions.

    My real contractions felt like someone was giving me a bear hug and squeezing everything in and down towards my vagina. It sort of wrapped around me and took my breath away...I was surprised at how much of a 'whole body' experience contractions were...not just abs but in my back, not being able to breathe deeply, etc.

    My two PCOS miracles! Lilypie Kids Birthday tickersLilypie Kids Birthday tickers
    Report Reply
  • hoping4stickyhoping4sticky member

    Don't worry I've done this before, and I'm still not sure I will be able to tell when my contractions start. With my first my water broke and when they hooked me up I was contracting and 3cm, I had no clue. I could definitely feel contractions as I progressed further. They do feel like period cramps - the same cramps that shed your uterine lining push out the baby, but they just hurt a lot worse. It was also much more of a wrapped around pain. And it is really weird when you are between contractions and it doesn't hurt anymore.

     BH - the only way I can tell I am having them is to feel the difference in my stomach, it gets rock hard. I don't really remember having any BH during my first pregnancy though, but I have them a lot this time, which I hear is common.

    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • cmurphy09cmurphy09 member
    I've heard true contractions are LIKE menstrual cramps but incredibly intense in comparison. I asked my Dr. about this earlier & he said it varies from woman to woman. sometimes it feels like it rolls from your back forward but not always
    image Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker <a href="http://www.thenest.com/?utm_source=ticker&utm_medium=HTML&utm_campaign=tickers" title="Home D
    Report Reply
  • lisa5nylisa5ny member

    For me, real contractions felt like horrible gas pain. You know how stomach pains feel when you have diahrrea? Like that, getting progressively worse. You can't talk or move when you have one. 

    BH feel like what everyone else has said above.  

    Lilypie Third Birthday tickers Lilypie First Birthday tickers
    Report Reply
  • jennyann28jennyann28 member
    I have this problem too. I get NSTs 2x per week, and the monitors show I'm contracting, but I don't always feel them. My "real" big ones don't feel like cramps at all. They feel like a blood-pressure cuff, but on your belly not arm. My stomach gets harder, but never "rock hard", even with contractions that are off the chart.
    Warning No formatter is installed for the format bbhtml
    Report Reply
  • mrs+harlowmrs+harlow member

    I never felt my BH. I would just reach down or sit down and my stomach would be rock hard then release.

    On the day I went into labor I woke up to my bloody show...which was accompanied by menstrual like cramping. The cramping built in frequency/pressure/pain/duration over the day. There was NO DOUBT that I was in labor. When it comes you will know.

    My water was broken by my doctor nearly 30 hours into my labor. Good luck!

    Image and video hosting by TinyPic Image and video hosting by TinyPic Image and video hosting by TinyPic Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
    Report Reply
  • ktpaladinoktpaladino member
    I never had any BH as far as I know. I started having mild period cramps in the middle of the night around week 31. One night I woke up with intense pain in my rectum about 1 week before I delivered. My water broke while in bed at 2:00 am and contractions started shortly after. For me, the pain started all in my back and rectum. It wasn't until I was at the hospital and at 3 cm when my contractions became more like seriously intense period cramping. One thing is for sure, it is unlike anything you have ever felt before- there will be no doubt when the time comes!

    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker

     

     

    Baby Birthday Ticker Ticker
    Report Reply
  • pnf112208pnf112208
    I felt my first 'real' contraction at 11pm.  I stopped dead in my tracks, said "Whoa, that was different!  I think I had my first contraction."  By 1 am, I was working through them on my own while my husband slept.  By 5 am I was screaming for DH because I wasn't able to time them myself.  (I could not focus enough to even boot up a computer, let alone press a button when the contraction hit.)  I had back labor, so there wasn't much I could do to relieve the pain.  It helped some to have direct pressure on my back/hips at the height of a contraction.  It was a very intense pain as she pressed her head against my spine.  I can't descibe it adequately, but you just KNOW.  I never had menstrual type pains-- I expected pain in the front, and would have preferred that, as I have been handling some level of pain there monthly for the last 23 years. 
    Lilypie Third Birthday tickers BabyFruit Ticker image image
    Report Reply
This discussion has been closed.
Choose Another Board
Search Boards
"
"