Braxton Hicks - What Do They Feel Like?

I didn't experience any BH contractions with my first - or if I did they were so mild I didn't notice them. Now with my 2nd though I get them all the time. It feels like my belly just tightens up for a few seconds and then relaxes. Not painful at all - just annoying! I usually find I get them more if I'm super busy and running around a lot.

My doctor said that very few woman actual get these to any extent. I did not have them but was told they feel like labor pains but generally a lot milder.
If I were you I would not even think about having any Braxton Hicks contraction because there is a very good chance you will not have any.

They can hurt or be a little uncomfortable or not. Basically what to expect is that you have a tightening or hard spot on your belly - it kind of feels like the baby is sticking his butt out against your belly. It can be hard to catch your breath but it only lasts for a short time (15 - 30 seconds). As you get closer to your due date they happen more frequently and can be productive causing you to start dilating. No worries though because you can be dilated to 2-3 for weeks before actual labor takes place. There's definitely a difference though when it's the real deal the contractions last longer, become closer together and are stronger in intensity.

I had braxton hicks w/ both of my pregnancies. (Later w/ my first and earlier w/ my second). It's the wierdest feeling. It kind of feels like your stomach gets really tight and hard for a few seconds and then relaxes. Both pregnancies, the B.H. would make me sit there and wonder "Is this it?". But when it's the real thing, you'll know. (I used to hate when people told me that!...lol).

B.H. will usually go away if you get up and move around (I know, easier said than done) or sometimes if you drink lots of water. My doctor had told me that B.H. can be brought on if you're dehydrated.

The biggest thing is that if they don't go away or they seem to be at regular intervals, call your doctor.

GOOD LUCK! and be sure to enjoy that new little bundle of joy!

Congratulations on your first K....... It is right around the corner. I am a mom of a 3 year old son Jack and a 6 month old daughter Averie, and with both pregnancies, I had Braxton Hicks from my 17th week on. You will be able to tell exactly what they are. You will feel your entire Uterus, or even one side get extremely tight, like a basketball. They aren't painful, just uncomfortable. They can last well over 1 or 2 minutes and then your uterus will soften. The thing with BH is they are extremely inconsistent - they don't have a rhythym like labor contractions. They could happen once throughout the day, or 50 but they can't be timed in a pattern. You will know those versus real labor. I was so worried I wouldn't know the difference when I was pregnant with Jack but Whoa!! You will. Real labor contractions will harden the uterus but will be painful and not just localized in your uterus. You will have pain/pressure in your lower back, groin, etc. They hurt and they can be timed... I hope this helps..Good luck to you and again, congratulations mommy!

Congratulations on your soon to be here baby... I had a lot of Braxton hicks contractions and to me it felt like my stomach would get really tight and let up and then really tight again.. it didn't hurt, it was just weird. Good luck on your delivery.

They really feel like a tightening of the abdomen. If you touch your stomach during one it actually feels harder. Sometimes they hurt, sometimes it's just more of a pressure or a feeling of extreme gravity pulling at your stomach. I didn't notice any with my first two years ago. I'm now 39 weeks and have them almost constantly. Drives me nuts! Good luck with the rest of your pregnancy!!

Your whole belly gets rock hard but it doesn't hurt, if you're walking you will probably feel like you have to pee! You may or may not get them, it wouldn't be normal if you had them now, you can't miss it when it happens!

HI K... first congrats.. you are getting close! I had BH through for the last several months of my pregnancy. Mine felt like the baby was pushing himself out and that you could feel his butt pushing against you. It felt like a tight ball to feel it. They didn't really hurt, but towards the end they got pretty uncomfortable. I was getting them every hour or so from 36 weeks on.. if you haven't had them, you will know if you get them.. it is just a very odd, but not painful sensation. You should also be able to see your abdomen getting really tight on one side. Good luck!

and don't you love that they say they feel like menstrual cramps? I had NEVER had a cramp with my period until AFTER the birth of my kids so that helped not at all.

It's like a squeezing in the BONES of your pelvis. That's the best I can describe it like. Labor pains feel the same way, just your whole pelvis region being squeezed to the bones, like it's twisting in there.

Braxton Hicks can also be a sign of dehydration. As we cramp when we exercise if we are dehydrated, this is often the case with BH. If I got more than 4 per hour, my healthcare provider told me to drink a liter of water and rest with my feet elevated, it stopped them, I drank more water and never had them again.

Good Luck!
J. W. MPH
Maternal and Child Health Educator
Chicago Examiner Family Health Expert
http://www.examiner.com/x-7158-Chicago-Family-Health-Exam...

Hi K. - I'm 33 weeks and have been having BHs since week 29. This is my second pregnancy; during my first pregnancy I had them too but I thought it was my baby's big ole butt shoving against some part of my body *laugh*. Little did I know that they were BH. The BHs are normal - it's like "practice" for your uterus before the big day.

My BHs feel like they are a hard ball, slightly swelling and tight. They are uncomfortable and sometimes painful but not painful like regular contractions can be (just like the previous poster, I too would get annoyed when people would say "you'll know when you're having a real contraction!", but then once I experienced real contractions, um yeah, the difference was pretty clear!). I find sometimes that my BHs take my breath away and it feels like sometimes my bladder is being pressed.

The difference between BHs and regular contractions is the pattern and regularity. Usually the BHs don't last very long and when it is over, wait about 5-10 minutes or so to see if you get the sensation again. You may have a few BHs within an hour, but there isn't much of a 'pattern' to them (meaning they don't last about the same amount of time, the downtime in between is not regular, etc). Also, if you move or change positions they tend to go away.

Good luck and enjoy the last 6 weeks!

You will feel on and off tightening or pressure in your abdomen. It will come and go and should not follow a particular pattern. Some say it is a cramping sensation like menstrual cramps, though can be felt around the whole stomach (uterus, which expands all the way up to the top towards your chest). You will know when the real labor starts as this feeling of tightness will wrap around your whole front and sometimes to the back and hold for at least 30 seconds in a significant pattern. I am 35 weeks now with my 2nd! It is a great time so enjoy these last weeks!!!!

B-H often feel just like a tightening in your belly - usually nothing to write home about. You can feel it if you put your hand on - your belly will feel hard, and then will relax a minute later. I noticed them more when I was walking around. And you'll notice them more and earlier with subsequent babies than with #1 (b/c you know what you're looking for). With my first, I started noticing them around 34-36 weeks. With #2 I noticed them around 20 weeks.

They are different from labor contractions because labor contractions will make you stop what you're doing to notice them - you'll say "oh THIS is different". B-H generally don't. B-H ctx may be in a regular pattern (like every 5 minutes for some amount of time) but they don't require any concentration to "get through". Congratulations on your baby and good luck w/ the birth!

Braxton Hicks are kind of painful, more annoying, make you have to pee, and your belly feels like it's tightning up and getting hard. I had them with all of my pregnancies. They started at different times with all. With my last pregnancy they started like around 6/7 months. Yeah, I had them for a long time with this last one (third).

A little like cramping,but I also hear if your dehyrdated they can come to. So drink plenty of water and if you feel bloated just remember that the water build up is good though you might have to pee more and that you'll lose the water weight a week or so after delivery.

I know you can at least feel them about 2 weeks before. For my sister it was like a month before. If you ever had cramps from your periods this has a similar feeling. My sister felt the braxton hicks in her lower abdomen and I felt it in my lower back. Everyone is different. Just so you know if you feel an extreme cramping for a few minutes then a minute break and then it starts again for about an hour, call a doctor or go to the hospital. Good luck! It is so exciting!

congrats!!! I just had baby #2 and had them for the whole last 2 months. Every day, and they would last for an hour or so. Basically my stomach felt very hard, like a basketball. They would be more intense after lots of walking or exercise. Sitting or lying down and drinking a glass of water would most always make them subside. They were always more uncomfortable than painful. Once you've experienced real contractions, you realize how benign the braxton hicks ones really are!

it feels like a tightening in the abdomen. almost cramp-like. they werent really painful as much as uncomfortable. i have about a dozen in a span of a few hours on a sunday and was in labor the following tues...nothing happend on monday :\

I haven't read the other responses, but I'm sure they are filled with how the real ones last longer, and are more intense, etc. You will know the difference when the real contractions start. When you begin to feel your body begin the process of moving that baby down and out, it is more noticeable and involved that BHs are. Stay relaxed and in tune with what you are accomplishing, and prepare to be amazed at what women can do!! You'll be on a high for weeks after when you see that baby you nurtured. Good luck and Congrats!

I was the queen of Braxton Hicks contractions. With my first pregnancy, I was so freaked out and my OB kept sending me to the hospital to be monitored. I went full term and delivered on my due date with no interventions. For my second pregnancy, I switched to midwives because they're not so hyper about everything. I felt my first BH at 13 weeks and got lots and lots. By my 34th week, I was getting, probably, 25 a day. They do not hurt, they aren't regular, but your whole belly tightens and can form some weird angles for a minute or so. I always felt them in my head too. Maybe something about the constricting of the uterus muscle also constricted something in my head. I don't know, and it didn't cause any problems.
The good thing about BH contractions is that I believe they strengthened my uterine muscles so that when it was pushing time my kids went sailing out in three pushes (both times!)
You'll know real labor when it happens. If you're unsure, it's not the real thing. Trust me, when it's baby time, you'll know!
Best of luck to you, and I hope your baby flies out in three pushes!

I'm 14 weeks and I've been feeling them a while now, but this is #5 and I started early with the past few kids. It's just a tightening of your belly. It's not really painful, although it can be uncomfortable. I was probably 34 or 35 weeks when I noticed them with my first baby.