[Quindin]

I posted about my constant contractions here

Midwife said it is irritable uterus.
What do I do about it?
If I am having contractions basically every time I do most physical activities, won't it mean I risk going into preterm labout unless I go on bedrest? I mean, all these contractions have to be doing something in terms of speeding things up

Can't they do anything to stop them?

I am scared the baby won't wait 9 more weeks if I keep having these ctrx...

 

[VegMomma]

Me me!

I had an irritable uterus with DS2. It was crazy, and I would have contractions 5 minutes apart for hours at 27 weeks. My doula and doctor (and me!) all expected quick labour, but I went into labour at 38 weeks, and my labour lasted 3 days!

Try not to be too concerned. Rest when you need it, and listen to your body.

HTH!

 

[kamane18]

Is your MW sure it's just irritable uterus and not contractions that are doing the work of dilating and effacing? If just irritable uterus, it's most likely not going to cause preterm labor but can be very annoying. I was having a LOT of issues related to IU but seem to have calmed them down a lot last few days by a combination of:

1. NO coffee. Apparently the tannins in coffee can be very irritating to the uterus. I miss my morning coffee (was having two large cups of 1/3 organic caf, 2/3 swiss water decaf) but it seems to help

2. Stay very hydrated: in addition to water, I drink gatorade and coconut water daily. About 1 ounce of either to every 8 ounces of water. I probably have 10-14 glasses total of water with a little of either every day

3. Add in a magnesium supplement. I was already taking a supplement with calcium and D3 and added in a liquid magnesium daily (I put it in my smoothie). Can act as a natural relaxant

4. Empty bladder frequently: I definitely notice more contractions when my bladder is even a little full

I do still drink 10-12 ounces of RRL tea a day. Some say this can make irritable uterus worse, others say it helps. I'm not sure but for me the benefits outweigh any potential discomfort and with the other measures above I've definitely been feeling less contractions and less like this baby's going to fall out early!

 

[Quindin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by VegMomma but I went into labour at 38 weeks, and my labour lasted 3 days! !

I never had a baby before 41.5 weeks.
Wow... I hope these contractions don't speed things up!
I began accepting my gestations are 42 weeks with baby 3 (yeah, I know each baby is different, but still), so anything sooner than that sounds VERY soon to me. To imagine a whole month earlier

All I hope is that the baby comes out when he/she is ready and perfectly cooked, whenever that is!

Oh, do you know whether sex and/or orgasms should also be avoided?
Gosh, I hope not!

 

[Quindin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by kamane18 Is your MW sure it's just irritable uterus and not contractions that are doing the work of dilating and effacing?

They have a policy to avoid internal examinations as much as possible, so she did not check. I should have asked...
She wanted to know if the contractios eased when I rested, and when I said YES, that's when she said I had irritable uterus.
Hmmm

Thank you for the tips.
I will do the things you listed.
I try to drink a lot of fluids, but could do with more.
And I will add the magnesium.

 

[VegMomma]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quindin I never had a baby before 41.5 weeks. Wow... I hope these contractions don't speed things up! I began accepting my gestations are 42 weeks with baby 3 (yeah, I know each baby is different, but still), so anything sooner than that sounds VERY soon to me. To imagine a whole month earlier All I hope is that the baby comes out when he/she is ready and perfectly cooked, whenever that is! Oh, do you know whether sex and/or orgasms should also be avoided? Gosh, I hope not!

Both my babies came before 40 weeks, so it wasn't because of the IU.

That's just how my babies roll.

We didn't have to avoid sex or anything. We had an ultrasound just to make sure the the contractions weren't shortening the cervix, and they weren't, so I was just told to take it a little easier than usual. The tips the PP suggested are great too!

 

[dallasslynn]

I was told I have an IU as well. I'm on preg #3 and I have contrax all the time! With DD(#1) contrax started at 27wks resulted in PTL @ 31w dilated to 5cm, thankfully the Dr's were able to stop the labor. Then bedrest 'till 36w when Dr took me off bed rest...had DD 3 days later.

With DS(#2) had contrax from 16w on. Took PTL tincture(skull cap, wild yam, cramp bark) 3xday for entire preg and also took niphedipine to keep uterus calm and contrax from doing anything. Had DS @ 40w(my dates) 41w(sono dates).

This preg (#3) I've had less contrax, but they pick up as soon as I forget to take my PTL tincture. Haven't had to use niphedipine at all. Sex is DEFINITELY an issue for us.

DD was almost born after sex, born @36w after sex, and w/ DS I ALWAYS had tons of contrax after sex. Used condoms and it helped!! Sex isn't the issue, its the prostoglandins in the semen.

Do I feel weird buying condoms when I'm 8mos preggo so I can have sex with my DH? yep. But its worth it

 

[TzippityDoulah]

you could doubel check for a bladder infection/UTI.... often they are a cause of IU.

for what it's worth I have the SAME problem. uggh!!! it drives me batty.

 

[rebeccalynn]

I have had this with all my pregnancies too (28w with #3 now). I also have had 42w-ish pregnancies. I joke that it is just because my uterus is trying to defend itself from my extremely active little ones - all of my babies have been kung-fu babies in utero.

I have tried everything above and nothing has really helped me other than resting/sitting down. If anyone has anything else to try, I'm interested.