How do you know they are contractions?

Question

I'm over 40wks pregnant and wondering how i will know if i'm having contractions? (i'm not feeling anything at the moment - but want to know how i will know).

I've been experiencing painful cramps over the last few weeks (like period pain only worse) - are these what braxton hicks/contractions feel like? Or is it something totally different? Sometimes my stomach will become tense like a cramp along my lower abdomen then untense again but often times i don't know whether this is my body or maybe the baby moving into an akward position.

Will i know they are contractions when i feel them?

My doc says that everyone experiences different things - but that doesn't help describe to me what contractions feel like.

I've read a whole heap of pregnancy books but alot of information isn't very descriptive - i know i must sound like an idiot but i just can't figure it out!!

Answer 1

Contractions start out not painful at all. Your stomach gradually begins to tighten from the back to the front. As they become stronger, they become painful, but not sharp. Picture a wave in the ocean. As it begins, it is small, but gradually builds taller and taller until it reaches a peak and then comes back down. Contractions are similar. The begin with a tightening and gradually get stronger and stronger until they reach a peak of pain and tightness, and then gradually go back down. They will usually come in regular intervals. Typically when they last for 1-2 minutes and are around 5 minutes apart (you count from the beginning of one to the beginning of the next), it is time to call your doctor.

Answer 2

for me i had the same thing and yes they are contractions. braxton hicks you won't get the tightening of the belly. they also say that if you lie down contractions don't go away. Trust me you'll know when you are labor. Just make sure that when you do get the cramping feeling, time them. When you go into labor your contractions will get closer and more intense. But by the sound of it you will be having a new baby any day now. Congrats!!!!

Answer 3

From my experience Braxton Hicks are not painful. I felt the contraction but there was no pain.

True labor pains will be contractions with pain. Similar to period cramps but more intense.

Good Luck!

Answer 4

braxton hicks contractions should not be painful. Real labor pains start out usually painless then progressively get harder. Time the contractions and see if they are consistant. With my first child my midwife told me to drink a quart of water take a Tylenol PM and soak in the bathtub (at the time i thought she was crazy) and if the pains went away then it wasn't the real thing, but if they kept coming then to come on to the hospital. If you are concerned call your dr. and ask them.Best Of Luck!

Answer 5

I was not overdue but wondered the same thing when I had a lot of Braxton Hicks. For me when actual labor started it was very sharp pains, not like a period cramp. My oldest sister had severe back pain and it was actually labor.

Answer 6

i went through the same thing. they could be mild contraction, i was in mild labor for days. nothing to be worried about it was only uncomfortable. when you can watch a clock and know when the next one is coming it is the really thing. the closer the contractions get the closer you are to having the baby. good luck!!!

Answer 7

I always wondered this with my first pregnancy. All I can say is that for me I knew when I finally had a real one. It sent me to me knees. But everyone is different.

Answer 8

every time u feel like the baby's coming go to the hospital/doctor.