2007-03-17 19:54:20 · 8 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pregnancy & Parenting ➔ Pregnancy
Real contractions don't go away when you get up and move around.
2007-03-18 05:22:30 · answer #1 · answered by Donnertagskind 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Known as false labor, Braxton-Hicks contractions may be the first contractions you feel during pregnancy. They can start anywhere from the 20th week on. If you put a hand on your abdomen during a contraction, you can sometimes feel your abdominal muscles tighten and release, becoming hard, then softening again. This is different from feeling the baby move, which you may notice a little before 20 weeks.
For some women, these contractions are painless, while other women experience a short but sharp burst of pain. Think of them as warm-up exercises for your uterus. They are your body's way of getting ready for labor.
Sometime towards the middle of your pregnancy (or even earlier), you may notice the muscles of your uterus tightening for anywhere from 30 to 60 seconds. Not all women feel these random, usually painless contractions, which get their name from John Braxton Hicks, an English doctor who first described them in 1872.
Doctors and midwives believe that Braxton Hicks contractions are part of your body getting ready for labour, and that they get the processes of effacement and dilation going in preparation for delivery. (This is called 'ripening'.) "
2007-03-18 15:17:53 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Not a whole lot, except that the baby won't come from Braxton Hicks. Braxton Hicks may begin the dilation of the cervix, though.
2007-03-18 02:58:08 · answer #3 · answered by Susan M 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The Braxton Hicks will not increase in strength and most generally do not get closer together. They are more sporatic. They can help get your cervix going toward labor though and can give you a small taste of what labor is going to be like.
2007-03-18 03:01:50 · answer #4 · answered by motherducky1975 1 · 1⤊ 0⤋
after braxton hicks you still go home pregnant, but after real contractions you go home with a baby!! LOL
sorry, i had to do it!! i'm in a laughing mood!! anyway, braxton hicks feel like real contractions, but they aren't consistent. meaning that they are very irregular and don't progress into harder/longer lasting contractions. if you feel any contractions, time them. if they are getting closer together and stronger (in pain) then it may be time to go. when they get about 5 minutes apart and last about a minute long, go to the hospital cause it's BABY TIME!
CONGRATS!!
2007-03-18 03:01:24 · answer #5 · answered by impossiblemama 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
real contractions dont go away, and they are regular. and bracks hicks arent regular so you may get one now and then 30 minutes then 45 minutes later, also if u move around or go to the bathroom they stop. when i was in labor i had contractions every 5-7 minutes and when i peed they didnt go away and when i changed positions they also didnt go away. good luck
2007-03-18 03:02:15 · answer #6 · answered by oneandonlyness 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
braxton hicks: small disconfort.
real labor: you will know!
the diff. is labor and delivery
2007-03-18 03:23:49 · answer #7 · answered by afreeca812 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you will soon know the difference they will get closer and more regular
2007-03-18 12:35:11 · answer #8 · answered by californiamistyblue 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋