What would you say if someone asked you? ***pregnant ladies strongly discouraged from opening this!

lovethatcolosun · September 2015

I saw this funny article on pop sugar moms, so I was curious, what did contractions feel like for you?

https://www.popsugar.com/moms/Real-Women-Explain-How-Contractions-Feel-38427652

mishmardhiono · September 2015

I had a lot of fun with my contractions because of the gas.. To people that asked I told them it honestly felt like the onset of LSD ( the one stupid time I took it) But then I had a cesarean so I really can't comment on full blown contractions cow they were bad enough without gas

virginiaunicorn11 · September 2015

At 8 cm, I felt like I was on another planet, being tortured. I would say it was an out of body experience, but I definitely felt the body! I did not feel present in the room though.

The first 80% was almost fun, when they were one at a time, only lasting 60 seconds, and DH was counting off 15 second increments for me. I really felt like I was riding pain waves, and could picture myself surfing on them.

Thankfully I no longer remember the pain so well. The first month, I had very vivid memories of exactly how (horrible) it felt. I was the idiot thinking I could "open like a rose" without fear or medicine. Next time, give me all the epidurals the moment I reach 39 weeks!

addingon · September 2015

It's scary that I almost can't remember in detail enough to give a description. This is how people are tricked into doing it all again

I'd say it was like the most painful constriction wave imaginable. What I remember most vividly was that anytime one occurred my only thought to DH and the nurse was: DO. NOT. SPEAK. I felt like I was going to lose my mind if I heard a single sound.

rklinge0 · September 2015

I am probably weird but honestly I could do contractions again. The pain was no where near as unbearable as I was told. I did have braxton hicks for half of my pregnancy and some pretty good practice contractions for the last 2 months.
Now the pushing part I will never forget. Worst pain of my life.

aresee · September 2015

I just remember feeling like I could not possibly stay still. I was slightly reclined in bed, and every time one hit, I had to sit up and really wanted to roll over on my hands and knees, but my IV made that tricky. I'm praying that if I have another, I don't have to be induced, because I HATED having my movement even a little restricted.

addingon · September 2015

@aresee I agree 100%! I was also induced and felt like I could have dealt with the pain so much better if I could move. I just wanted to move!!

dancegurl1118 · September 2015

The back labor contractions were bad, but doable. The sciatic pain? That's on another planet of bad. There was physically no relief and no break. Her stupid head was just sitting in such a crap spot. I would compare that to someone stabbing my outer thighs repeatedly.

I don't forget the sciatic pain. The contraction pain I kind of forget. I think that's why I'm still so traumatized, because the pain is so clear in my head. For a few weeks after, the nerve was still inflamed and I would get residual sciatic pain that almost made me panic because I was so scared it would be like when I was in labor.

I'm really terrified to be pregnant again because of the sciatic pain in labor, and the fact that I know an epidural fully working isn't an option with my scoliosis.

aj1327 · September 2015

I had back labor and, like others have sai, could not sit still. It felt like what I imagine being ripped apart would feel like. My contractions started aggressively and were close together. I thought it was a total false alarm. I'll never forget DH saying, "We need to go to the hospital." Meanwhile I'm rocking back and forth on my hands and knees insisting that this wasn't the real deal. Hahahaha.

mishmardhiono · September 2015

What about not being warned about lightening crotch? Holy cow now that hurt. I wish they sold gas in chemists just for this during your pregnancy. Ah that hurt.

I remember asking on here if a contraction could be worse than a leg cramp. At that time I could never imagine a contraction could surpass a leg cramp like people said. My pathetic 4cm dialated induced labor contractions made my leg cramp feel like a tickle...

YouAreMySunshine15 · September 2015

It hurt so bad I literally couldn't move! She was scraping along my spine. I was curled up in the fetal position clutching the side of the bed the whole time and shaking uncontrollably.

Funny thing is... I'd do it again.

bethanne09 · September 2015

I was induced, but they let me get up and move. Never made it past 5 cm, but I don't think it was that bad. Kind of like I knew it was hurting and awful and all of that, but my brain was disconnected. I only got pain medicine twice in the over 24 hours I was in labor and I think that was mostly because I was so stressed by the end that I got discouraged.

I'd do it again, too. The few days after the csec were waayyy worse.

KaLikeAWind · September 2015

I was induced. The contractions weren't that bad until I'd been on the pitocin for about 3 hours (they started it slow). I remember once I started to feel them in earnest (but before they got really painful, they were just uncomfortablely painful) thinking I could feel the contractions 'bloom'. They would begin and then expand. And once they began to hurt in earnest, the 'bloom' felt like a bomb going off. The mental image I had every time one began to start and expanded was that of a mushroom cloud blowing up and then hitting my insides and the explosion being contained so it had no choice but to fold back over and feed on itself... Gods bless the anesthesiologist. Bless him and keep him safe and well and happy.

Edited, damn my phone

aresee · September 2015

I was able to move around when I was induced--I spent some time on a yoga ball and even got in the tub at one point--but having the IV and the monitors on my belly made moving around as much as I wanted to cumbersome. Bearable, but I would have been so much happier (ha!) if I didn't have to plan every move so much.

Sammy K · September 2015

Ha! I don't even know if I should reply. I am not one of the lucky ones who forgets how bad it was. Then again, I was diagnosed with PTSD from delivering DS.

With DS, there was no gradual build up. It was like a switch flipped and suddenly it felt like someone with giant hands was squeezing my entire abdomen and trying to eviscerate me from the inside. Blinding pain. I couldn't walk or talk and was fully dilated when we made it to the hospital. Total time in labor was 1:45. But the contractions weren't even the worst part. I'll skip the rest.

With LO, my epidural was in and fully effective before starting the pitocin (I was walking around at 4 cm). Those contractions felt like really bad period cramps that started under my rib cage and went down to my pubic bone. Painful, but the epidural took the edge off so they were manageable. And I didn't feel the pushing part this time, which was good. Total time from start of pit to delivery was 2:30.

dancegurl1118 · September 2015

@mellymar laughing so hard at your anesthesiologist blessing

aresee · September 2015

@Sammy K WOW! From first real contractions to delivery was about 3 hr 45 minutes for me, and I thought that was fast!

lovethatcolosun · September 2015

I would compare it to a giant vice squeezing your insides while holding a 10# bowling ball inside just above your pubic bone. Right before I was set to push I experienced the worst pain of my life. It was pressure, burning, take your breathe away, dry heaving, mind numbing pain. The nurse and DH spent a good three minutes talking me down and releasing the tension so the pain could flow through me. I even had an epidural. I'm guessing I probably would have just passed out if I was doing it naturally. I would do it all over just to receive the blessing(s) that I have.

virginiaunicorn11 · September 2015

Thank GOODNESS I didn't see this thread before I delivered. It is scaring the bejeebus out of me reading these. And then I'm like, oh wait, it's ok, you already did it and came out alive (though DH said he was crying when the baby arrived mostly because he wasn't sure I was "going to be ok"!!).

We should have a warning on the first post on here that pregnant FTMs shouldn't read this!!!

queequeg09256 · September 2015

Ok so to be fair I was induced with contractions every 2-10 minutes for 71 hours, intense contractions for 30 hours when the broke my water. I also had my epidural fail because I had it too early. Luckily this experience happens super rarely or so I'm told... when I got to 10cm with no meds working I would pass out during the contractions to wake 30 seconds later screaming... fun times eventually after me saying over and over how much pain I was in and saying this is what time you gave me the epidural they figured it out. My kid is awesome so would I do it all over again to have the same happy healthy kid. You bet. Am I jumping to have another hell no

ChardeeMacDennis · September 2015

Not reading, not reading... I am that person who doesn't want to go over tests when they're done and I don't want to talk about labor either. I'd rather talk about that post-labor sandwich I had this time. Ohhhh yeah, I could go into lots of detail about that.

mlindzz · September 2015

No drugs. Pushing a baby out of your vagina felt exactly like you were pushing a baby.. out of your vagina.

A very big big baby, out of a very small space.

But afterwards, I felt like a boss

A boss that was hit by a truck, but a boss. God is great!

hudson202 · September 2015

I was induced and ended up with piggyback contractions. Basically I would have one, it would peak and then start to fade, and then my body was "nope, let's keep going" and start climbing again. So I gave that about 10 mins before I got an epidural. Then the epidural began to wear off, so I got another one. So if someone asked me what a contraction felt like, I would say it feels like epidural. Lots and lots of epidural.

lindsladle15 · September 2015

virginiaunicorn11 said:
Thank GOODNESS I didn't see this thread before I delivered. It is scaring the bejeebus out of me reading these. And then I'm like, oh wait, it's ok, you already did it and came out alive (though DH said he was crying when the baby arrived mostly because he wasn't sure I was "going to be ok"!!).

We should have a warning on the first post on here that pregnant FTMs shouldn't read this!!!

Haha! Oh, DH... I think we should have a thread where they write about the experience!
Not sure what my DH would say, but I'm sure my first labor was way worse on him than it was on me (and it was pretty bad for me!)...he was a total rookie with no knowledge of what would happen. I had at least done reading, talked to other moms, etc....but him, oh, poor him. I tried to prepare him some, but he didn't listen much.

LaurenAnn0405 · September 2015

I was induced. The nurses kept coming in and asking me if I felt the contractions but I didn't, not for a long time. She showed me on the monitor where it recorded contractions and even though there were some pretty big ones, I didn't feel any until after the doctor broke my water. Then, as soon as they started getting bad I called for the epidural. Since this is my second kid I can honestly say that I would do it all over again because the reward is definitely worth the pain. Plus that part where they say the pain disappears when they lay your baby in your arms, totally true for me! But yes, pregnant people should not read this until after they've had their baby!

janat1717 · September 2015

I am a freak that loved my labor. Being at home was pretty incredible. Then again I read the midwife's write up one month later and was like "I laid on my side for 45 min??? I thought I walked and stood the whole time?" I think I've blocked the worst bits but remember some of the big O's. Thank you oxytocin

rklinge0 · September 2015

@LaurenAnn0405 are you sure that the contractions weren't reading stronger than they were. Mine did and I had to get a uterus catheter that helped them ring true. I was also the 1 in 10 whose water breaks and is not in active labor.

klkonwi · September 2015

Contractions with my water broke felt like what I think actually going to hell would feel like. The contractions before the membrane rupture were easy.

KaLikeAWind · September 2015

That's so interesting that some of you are reporting how much worse they got after your water broke. They broke my water around noon, but we didn't even start pitocin drip until about 5pm, and it was somewhere around 8pm when I asked for the 'take the edge off' meds and an hour after that when I asked for the epidural. I also hadn't been feeling contractions (at all), even tho the monitor said I was having them, until maybe 6pm, and they were noticeable but not too bad. Then uncomfortable but not too bad. Then painful but not too bad. Then painful and I asked for my edge off meds and shit just got real from there.

I really would like a thread talking the DH's perspectives. That would be an interesting read.

Also, as I was reading this DH and I were watching that show ridiculousness, and they were showing people fainting and screaming at getting tattooed. And all I could think of was - next time I get a tattoo, I'm golden.

Edited cause again, my phone sucks

7425cait · September 2015

I made it 8 hrs naturally, but then they had me lying in the bed in order to monitor LO. That ruined me. When I could walk it felt like strong cramps. Then something hit and they were so close together and so much more painful that I couldn't catch my breath. It felt like someone was dragging sharp finger nails down my uterus. Once I got the epidural, I took a nap. No lie lol. The pushing was tough and definitely felt the ring of fire, but it wasn't as bad as the later contractions.

ETA my water broke before contractions began.

mvargas12 · September 2015

I was induced and felt like three contractions (if they were even contractions) Hooray for epidurals!

MaliKaela · September 2015

I couldn't feel contractions until my doctor broke my water. And then shit got real FAST. The first few were ok, they hurt but I was like, ok I can do this. Then all of a sudden it was like Wham! Unbelievable pain. I was on Pitocin and the contractions were right on top of each other. I couldn't get a break before another one hit. I had the epidural about 45 minutes later. I remember thinking to myself that the pain was inexplicable and it was just all consuming. Even today I know that I can't accurately remember the pain.

I'm with @mellymar I kept telling the anesthesiologist that he was wonderful, and how much people must love him. And also, specifically that, "you are like the opposite of a dentist." Meaning that people (not me personally) always dislike dentists, but people must just adore him. He told me I was high on endorphins. Haha!

Contraction pain. It sucks. Lol

HoosOnFirst · September 2015

rklinge0 said:
@LaurenAnn0405 are you sure that the contractions weren't reading stronger than they were. Mine did and I had to get a uterus catheter that helped them ring true. I was also the 1 in 10 whose water breaks and is not in active labor.

That was me too! Water broke and I never went into labor! I was induced like 9 hours later.

janat1717 · September 2015

My water broke first too. We got contractions going later that night by making out... True story. My doula said to try so we did and they came on quick!! Definitely the best part of the birth experience for the hubby

upandbelow · September 2015

When my water broke I didn't have any contractions. I actually showered, shaved my legs, painted my toenails and dried and braided my hair before heading to the hospital (a girls gotta look good!

). At the hospital they started pitocin and in a couple of hours I had back labour and contractions piggybacking on one another - DH would try and count them out the give me a sense of relief and he ended up stopping because there was no relief, just contraction after contraction. To me this felt like my body would grow rigid as my abdomen tried to rip apart. Here enters the anesthesiologist. The epidural relaxed me and in an hour I was feeling uncomfortable pressure (almost painful). Weirdly enough, the worst part about the whole labour expeirience for me wasn't the pain, but was my water breaking...that just made me *feel* gross and dirty.

ETA: realized I didn't really answer the question

ksimo6 · September 2015

It felt like a huge two footed kick before my water broke. I was in target and kept doubling over the cart every 5-7 minutes. I didn't realize they were contractions. Then I got home and my water broke... And I realized they were contractions and not big kicks. They didn't get much worse before I had my csection.

mypower610 · September 2015

At 3:40AM I was 7 mins apart. It was immediate for me. Midwife told me to come in since DC rush hour starts early. She met me there. By 7:30AM I was 3 mins apart & in pain! It felt like she had a knife inside & was jabbing, at the same time I felt like I had to shit. Ended up having a c-section bc my body wasn't responding to her trying to come. My blood pressure was too high & not going down, & her heart rate dropped.
I do have to say kidney stones are right up there too. At least with the contractions there was a relief in between (sometimes) but there is no relief with a kidney stone (at least for me there wasn't).

NH627 · September 2015

I've been keeping a weekly journal since TTC. I went back to see what I wrote about labor:
"There were defintely more pushes and contractions that anyone anticipated. My pain level was going up and up and I was exhausted. I remember knowing that she finally stopped moving back and was crowning. It was a weird satisfactory feeling along with very painful. When she was finally born it was so relieving!"
I was in labor 8 hours total and slept for a couple of those hours. I took a shower and dried my hair while waiting for DH to get home from work. I was 9 cm dilated by the time I got to the hospital. No option for an epidural like I hoped! They broke my water and pushing started right away. The contractions were more painful if I wasn't pushing. LO was also sunny side up and was stuck in one spot for a looong time. If I had an epidural, it would've been a cesarean birth.
I honestly thought being pregnant was worse than my labor, but who knows what will happen next time!

HayesRN13 · September 2015

too much to type, I'll sum it up as I wondered how I was still alive with the amount of pain I was in, and there were times I wish I wasn't.. I had to be on my hands and knees that was the only way I could stay alive.. I crawled on hands and knees into L&D like Brittany spears in her videos (but not sexy more like the exorcist) DH looked terrified .. And don't get me started in pushing ...

mlindzz · September 2015

My water broke while I was in the shower, so I didn't even realize it. Until afterwards when I think about it, the timeline makes perfect sense. 4am I woke up with cramps, so I hopped in the shower hoping the water would help, then about 20 mins after my shower the real contractions started, fast. It wasn't until then I knew it was baby day. Two minutes apart before arriving at the hospital. Was 9 3/4 when I arrived. Baby was both at 7:21am.

aliciaspinnet · September 2015

I had back labour which sucked. Kinda felt like my sacrum was going to burst open. At its worst I was finding it hard to change position at all. The midwives kept telling me that I wasn't in active labour so I couldn't have any pain relief and wouldn't check me for 12 hours - when they finally did a VE I was 7cm! They gave me gas then which didn't really help the pain, just made me dissociate from it abut I got the epidural after that which I loved. It didn't fully work on the right side of my stomach so I still had some pain but since it took away the back/sacral pain it was a massive improvement! Pushing actually felt good, there was no "ring of fire" due to the epidural and it relieved the stomach pain.

I must admit that it's hard to remember exactly what the pain was like. I know it was a bit like period pain, but much worse and more in my back. I'm a bit nervous for when my period returns in case it triggers some memories.

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What would you say if someone asked you? ***pregnant ladies strongly discouraged from opening this!

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