What exactly do contractions feel like?

Re: What exactly do contractions feel like?

• klkonwi member

  April 2015

  Contractions are a hardening/tightening generally felt best at the very top of your uterus. They last from 50-120 seconds long. You count from the start of one contraction to the start of another and that's how many minutes apart they are.

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• klkonwi member

  April 2015

  U may feel pressure but you shouldn't have actual vaginal pain.....

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• klkonwi member

  April 2015

  Also if they are true labor contractions it is hard to talk or walk through them. I.E. Have to stop and wait/ catch your breath before the next one comes.

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• kbbtah member

  April 2015

  Thanks @klkonwi I was wondering too. Sometimes I feel crazy spasms and wondered if those were mini contractions preparing for the big day. We are getting closer!!!

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• karaelaine1991 member

  April 2015

  MrsWilson830 said:

  Is there a good way to describe what they feel like? I've had sharp pains on one side of my stomach or the other. Or pains down in my hoohaa but i am a FTM idk what to expect. And when the doctor asked in Wednesday if I've had any I said I didn't know. I didn't think so and she looked surprised.. I'm 34 weeks.. Is it like severe menstrual cramping? Is it pain down in your vag or in your tummy or all over?

  The vaginal pain might be lightning crotch. Not fun! But not a contraction. Thanks for the description, @klkonwi !

  
  

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• Sammy K member

  April 2015

  One -sided pain is probably round ligament pain. Contractions are definitely not one sided. Tightening is a good description of Braxton Hicks. Labor contractions are harder to describe. I went straight into active labor with my first and those contractions are impossible to miss.

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• MamaBish member

  April 2015

  To me, they felt like really bad period cramps that didn't last very long. Active labor contractions were actual writhing pain that would not be mistaken for anything else.

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• [Deleted User] member

  April 2015

  The user and all related content has been deleted.

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• stomazin member

  April 2015

  They have a great app that I downloaded for when the time comes to keep track of contractions and timing them. It's just a contraction timer app. Every time one begins and ends you hit a button and it records the length of each one. I'm hoping it will come in handy as I am also a FTM and can use all the help I can get.

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• ngaines27 member

  April 2015

  MrsWilson830 said:

  Okay thanks everyone! I feel tightening- quite frequently actually but they never hurt I can just tell it feels tight and then if I touch my belly it's really hard. But never hurts..
  
  Thanks!! We're getting closer!

  That's Braxton Hicks!!

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• taboullio84 member

  April 2015

  Pain in your back / stomach . tightening. I will agree that actual labor pains you won't be able to talk through... You will be trying to figure out how to breathe. Lol

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• Nikelizabeth member

  April 2015

  What you've descibed in the comments are Braxton hicks! Real contractions are like that with the tightening but you won't be able to walk or talk! You won't miss the real deal!

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• Redlipz member

  April 2015

  Braxton hicks are just tightening and are just uncomfortable but not painful(most of the time). Real contractions start off as period like cramps and wrap around your whole belly and usually hit a peak where they are most painful and then start to release. Also with Braxton's, 2/3 of your tummy will be hard and with real contractions, your whole tummy will be hard and it feels like it wraps all around your tummy and back.

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• jessieR358 member

  April 2015

  Good idea about the app! Just downloaded one.

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• cehn member

  April 2015

  Labor contractions have always started as bad period cramps for me. Each contraction builds to a peak and then eases off. Then you get a rest between contractions and then you can feel the cramping starting to build again. If they follow a pattern and only get closer together rather than farther apart they are true labor contractions. If they are more irregular and even get farther apart they are Braxton hicks.

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• rolson8947 member

  April 2015 edited April 2015

  I remember I asked my mom what they felt like and asked her if I would know if I was having contractions and she said, "oh trust me, you will know if you are having contractions and are in labor." hahaha, so I just imagine it to be a hundred times worse than menstrual cramps and so far I haven't experienced any of that. I have some aches and discomfort, but I'm pretty certain it's just been round ligament pain.

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• vflor87 member

  April 2015

  Sounds like round ligament pain. I agree with everyone else about labor contractions. I can't even think of a way to describe them other than to say that there's a reason why people remind you to breathe through them! Your body knows what to do when labor starts but mentally you're in your own world.
  
  I did it naturally the first time. Don't think I said more than 2 words after my water broke until I held my son. Walking & talking? Nope.

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