Predominal labor !!! Braxton hicks,the real thing WTH

[zeevah]

So I decided to write this because over all im just frustrated, this is my 3rd baby, I am 38 weeks , all natural delivery a girl and boy ,, expecting this one (boy) soon I hope and I am just so frustrated with all the braxton hicks contraction and I wonder if anyone else ever had them to this extreme, I had them with my son  but not my first child but only a few here and there ,All of my labors so far have been about 4 hours total but im starting to be a little nervous that this one will be even faster.I know some people want that but for me it was just really intense and I cant even remember much because of that so was hoping for maybe 6 hours or so...So this is my story,,, Lets see, I lost part of my moucus plug at 30 wks , but I know you get some of that back so no stress there, and have been having braxton hicks since then just off and on .at about 36 weeks I went crazy and had severe case of nesting.Last week 37 weeks I began getting  BH that start out 10 min apart  for about 30 min then go to 15 m in apart then 20 then fade away  this lasted for about 3 or 4 hours each time, sometimes starting for no reason , others after sex or going shopping etc.  thats  continued  and at my last appt I was 3 cm dialated 30 percent effaced  . Yesterday I went to the bathroom  wiped and it was that moucousy yucky stuff all tinged with blood  and had a few BH on and off all this with my usual pelvic pressure ive had for 2 weeks ,, you know the one where you can hardly walk it hurts so much lol so we (the family) decide we need some things at walmart,, we go about 20 min in I start feeling weird,, like dizzy  or drunk even just out of it but keep shopping, by 5 pm I start having  the same uncomfortable BH ,, some painful some not    after about 1 hgour at 10 min apart estimated I start to time them more responsibly  my skins all red and blotchy and I feel like im going to puke,, fun fun,.,, then they go to 5 min apart,, and this continues untill 10:30 at the end of  witch the last 40 min they were 2 min apart,, but not painful just uncomfortable,,, then poof they just stop and since then,, its 9:22 am the next day,, im just having them here and there ,,sleeping was aweful and when I get them nothing makes them better ,, I tried walking resting drinking,, massage,, grrr its very uncomfortable,, I dint call my midwife because real contractions get more painful as they go on  but I just never heard of someone getting braxton hicks like this before???Anyone had something like this??(sorry was so long)

[Lynann]

I had 4 weeks like this before labor with DS2. It became more frequent and lasted longer each time. I ended up with a 9 hour labor.

I do hope you get some rest before labor starts.

[odinsmama]

Yes, I had many frustrating days like this with my second, which was an intense 5 hour labor. First birth was a smooth (exhausting) 12 hour labor.

Anyway, the hardest part for me of the days of on/off contractions was the mental fatigue... Feeling like it was never going to *really* start happening. You may or may not end up with a fast labor but just try to relax, rest when you can and do anything to get your mind off of it.

I was obsessively searching for info on prodromal labor and it didn't do me any good. Finally had a good cry, talked to DH, took a walk and baked an apple pie. Baby came later that night.

Hang in there!

[cryswilkins]

I am right there with you. My midwife says its typical for third babies. But that is still not very comforting to me!

My contractions almost always start in the afternoon. Then go until about 11 or 12 at night and then just stop. Last few nights they were 3 min apart for a few hours but didn't increase in intensity so I knew it wasn't the real deal. It's mentally exhausting.