Need some encouragement

[aumismommy]

I know it's 'normal', but I'm still a little frustrated. Our EDD is June 30th (though in the beginning it was July 6th so who knows), but for the last few days from about 6pm to 11pm I've had contractions from 7-10 minutes apart at about 1 minute long, then as soon as I go to bed they go away. Yesterday however, they got stronger, to the point DH and I went for a walk to see if that would either speed them up or get rid of them and they got stronger and closer - about 6-7 mins apart still 1 minute long. They kept that way til 1135pm when we went to bed, I fell asleep and woke up at 3am to pee and no strong contractions. Now that I'm up and moving around they are back but not nearly as strong as yesterday. I know it's just my uterus getting ready, but this is so frustrating! I get all excited that it might be time and then nothing. How am I ever going to know when it's real if this keeps happening? When they're 5 mins apart? But then will those just go away too?

[Just1More]

This is so frustrating...but it's a good thing.

It's likely that when it's time, you'll go pretty fast. I tend to do that off and on (though not as long or as frequent as you describe), and my last two labors have been pretty short. Your body is just practicing and getting the baby in the best position possible.

You can try a few things to ease them up, though...

Drink red raspberry leaf tea. Some people say these increase BH contractions, and that has also been my experience. I don't drink it until the end...and I have had my baby within 2 days both times I tried it.

Drink a lot of water. Being sure you are well hydrated can stave off some of those annoying contractions.

Do some positioning exercises. Visit spinningbabies.com for ideas. Also, going to a pool and holding onto the side and kicking a bit is good. Belly down, of course. The weightless and slight movement help encourage the baby to get where it needs to be.

Is this your first baby? If not, or if you have weak abdominal muscles, you may consider buying a belly band to help hold your belly up. Sometimes the baby can be hanging too far forward to put pressure in the right places. A band can help hold the baby in like your muscles should, and can sometimes help labor get going.

But...mostly...just be paitent. This is normal. This is good. And you're still early...it really could be a few more weeks. You CAN do this!

[aumismommy]

Thank you . I really appreciate your help. Yes, this is our first so I know he could come in as much as a few weeks. I'm pretty impatient normally so this is definitely a test for me. I have been drinking RRL tea for the past couple weeks - MW loves this stuff for many things so I've just been drinking it daily so maybe that has been making them stronger. It has been super hot here (Sacramento Valley) so maybe I am a little dehydrated? Will definitely up my water intake!

Thank you again. It's helpful to know that someone else had a lot of BH. All my friends and whatnot said they never really noticed any BH which is crazy because mine are beyond noticeable...the don't 'hurt' but they don't feel good! I just keep trying to tell myself what my DH keeps telling me "you won't be pregnant forever, he has to come out someday, and these contractions are doing exactly what they're supposed to be doing" repeat repeat repeat

[XanaduMama]

I second the positioning advice. IME, prodromal labor often means that baby isn't quite in the right position... Work on spinning babies, and also go see a chiro who does Webster technique.

Hang in there!

[gradstudentmommy]

I had TONS of Braxton Hicks contractions for weeks and weeks. When I was finally in labor, I knew it was real because I started losing my plug and the contractions were 5 minutes apart for over an hour and kept getting stronger.

I did have a few false alarms near my due date where my contractions were 5 minutes apart for about 45-50 minutes than stopped! So for me, the Braxton Hicks can feel very much like real labor. Hang in there!

[GreenMomPhD]

I have tried going to spinningbabies.com for the past few days, and it doesn't seem to be working. Does anyone know anything about it?

[XanaduMama]

I actually find this site much more user friendly than spinningbabies:

http://www.homebirth.org.uk/ofp.htm