New Posts  All Forums:
 

Braxton Hicks

post #1 of 16
10/25/10 at 10:53pm
Thread Starter 
Anyone having these on a regular basis? This is my second pregnancy to this point (but 5th overall) and for the past 24 hours or so I've been noticing them a lot more. I really didn't have them with my DS until a few days before I had him! I've seen 4 or more per hour requires a call to your provider, at times I've been at that but it was when I couldn't sit down and rest. They tend to only happen when I'm standing, not painful or crampy but I can feel the tightness most of the time without feeling with my hand. Drinking a ton of water in case your wondering.
Sponsored Links
post #2 of 16
10/25/10 at 11:02pm
wow, you read my mind tonight. i've been googling them tonight since tonight's have been more frequent and obnoxious than normal. but i was on my feet all day, didn't drink any water, and didn't have a chance to go to the bathroom from 7 am until 3 PM. whoops.

with that said, yes, i've been having them a lot. i also had them a LOT and early with my first. so this time around is been a lot more and even sooner. everything i read online makes it sounds like this is typical with subsequent pregnancies - for them to increase in severity and for them to come along sooner.

my bh triggers include: dehydration, moving from sitting to standing after a long time sitting, moving from standing to sitting after a long time standing, and bumpy car rides. yeesh, as if that doesn't happen many times in a day.

usually i handle them fine and don't worry, but i do pay more attention when backpain is involved.

they say that a big glass of water often does the trick of clearing them up. unless you're perfect about water consumption, i know dehydration is a HUGE bh trigger.
post #3 of 16
10/25/10 at 11:10pm
Meh. I have them all the time. They start early for me. If you're noticing that they are frequent or increasing, try drinking an extra big glass of water and taking a break or a bath to relax. If they are painful and you have more than 4 an hour, call your midwife or doctor.
post #4 of 16
10/26/10 at 2:04pm
Can you have Braxton hicks and not feel them ( but just be able to notice by external touch that your uterus is harder right then?)

I have been noticing for a while that a few times a day my bump gets really firm and then after a short while is not anymore, I feel nothing else, a girlfriend just told me that they are probably BH, I guess I just always figured I would feel something else with them.
post #5 of 16
10/26/10 at 3:46pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by •Adorkable• View Post
Can you have Braxton hicks and not feel them ( but just be able to notice by external touch that your uterus is harder right then?)

I have been noticing for a while that a few times a day my bump gets really firm and then after a short while is not anymore, I feel nothing else, a girlfriend just told me that they are probably BH, I guess I just always figured I would feel something else with them.
I feel tightness but not any pain with BH. I think it is more painful when baby stretches than when I get a BH contraction. Also, when I went to the hospital with my daughter, I was having regular contractions 5 min apart that showed up on the monitor, but if you had asked me, I would have said that I was not having any. So, I certainly think you can have contractions without feeling them!
post #6 of 16
10/26/10 at 6:24pm
Thread Starter 
Thanks guys. Mine haven't decreased a whole lot since yesterday so I gave my mv's office a call. The nurse said 10 or more per hour and/or if they continue at this pace to call back right away. I have an appointment on Tuesday and if they are still going she mentioned they'd want to check me to rule out PTL.
My activity level has gone way up but my water intake didn't. So that didn't help I'm sure. Drinking it like it's going out of style now lol. She did ask me if I had any pain with urination and thing like that to rule out a uti so if anyone is have that it can be a contributing factor just FYI.

I'm sure you can not feel them and be having them! I was 3cm with my first and hadn't felt a single thing at 41 wks!
post #7 of 16
10/26/10 at 7:37pm
every night for 1-2 hours i get them every 10-15 minutes. my water's not broken, my baby's moving around like a disco dancer.. so i don't worry about it. a few things i do to deal:

go to the bathroom, a full bladder or bowel can trigger them.
drink lots, apparently dehydration can do it too.
if sitting, walk around. if that doesn't work, lay down. left side seems to work best. don't ask me why.
post #8 of 16
10/26/10 at 9:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by •Adorkable• View Post
Can you have Braxton hicks and not feel them ( but just be able to notice by external touch that your uterus is harder right then?)

I have been noticing for a while that a few times a day my bump gets really firm and then after a short while is not anymore, I feel nothing else, a girlfriend just told me that they are probably BH, I guess I just always figured I would feel something else with them.
This is what I'm experiencing too. Sometimes I notice by external touch that my uterus seems hard but I wouldn't know if I wasn't pressing on it at the time.
post #9 of 16
10/26/10 at 9:29pm
Any sort of emotional distress also makes them much worse for me.
post #10 of 16
10/26/10 at 9:29pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by •Adorkable• View Post
Can you have Braxton hicks and not feel them ( but just be able to notice by external touch that your uterus is harder right then?)

I have been noticing for a while that a few times a day my bump gets really firm and then after a short while is not anymore, I feel nothing else, a girlfriend just told me that they are probably BH, I guess I just always figured I would feel something else with them.
Yes. They aren't supposed to be painful, so it would make sense if you couldn't tell you were having any.
post #11 of 16
10/26/10 at 9:45pm
had them fairly regularly starting about this time in my last pregnancy. I noticed they tended to increase significantly with the full & new moons. BFF noticed the same thing. Both our children were born on full (mine) and new (Hers) moons... The moon contractions were the only ones that didn't go away when I laid down & drank water.
post #12 of 16
10/28/10 at 9:12pm
I've been having them a lot more this pregnancy. DD1 is still nursing so that is what is causing it for me. They are good though, right? It's like excersize for your uterus! (i might be crazy/wrong! )
post #13 of 16
10/28/10 at 10:58pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by cmnewbs View Post
I've been having them a lot more this pregnancy. DD1 is still nursing so that is what is causing it for me. They are good though, right? It's like excersize for your uterus! (i might be crazy/wrong! )
I think the only issue is that too many can signal preterm labor or other problems like having a UTI. I think it's a lot less of an issue when your "term" and if they did send you into labor it would be no big deal. At this point though (28 wks for me) they would want to at least have a chance at stopping labor/do steroids for lung development/etc.
post #14 of 16
10/29/10 at 12:58am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jessica_s View Post
I think the only issue is that too many can signal preterm labor or other problems like having a UTI. I think it's a lot less of an issue when your "term" and if they did send you into labor it would be no big deal. At this point though (28 wks for me) they would want to at least have a chance at stopping labor/do steroids for lung development/etc.
BH don't send you into pre-term labor. It's just that a lot of people IN early labor mistake their contractions for braxton hicks. And lots of them can indeed signal that you will be bumping it up to real labor pretty soon.
post #15 of 16
10/29/10 at 1:13am
DDCC - Full Moon. October's Full Moon was about the 23rd. December DDC was having issues too. Lots of people having lots of BH all around the same time.
post #16 of 16
10/29/10 at 1:33am
Oooh, that reminds me, we need to pull out the past moon phases and start a new thread to see if other moms have a pattern. I think two of my kids came on the same phase of the moon (not full, new maybe?)