Braxton Hicks query...

[CathieW]

Hi
BH for me is a tighting of my belly and it kinds of take my breath away. This is my 4th and My having twins. I have been having BH for about a couple of weeks and they have been quite strong, I saw my Ob yesterday and I'm 4 cm dilated this has never happened to me before maybe it's because I've already had 3 pregnancies.

Cathie

[SunnyRain]

I only just noticed that I've been having BHs the other day at 37 weeks when I was lying on my side and I said "oh THAT'S what they feel like." I guess I had noticed my belly tightening before, but I thought it was the baby having a big stretch. It's really just an overall hardening of my entire uterus that is very easy to deal with.

Around 31 weeks I had one experience one night when I woke up with strong period-like cramps that made me go and I thought that was a BH, but it happened only once.

Then lately I've had some cramps across my lower abdomen when I'm lying on my side in bed at night before I go to sleep, so I wondered about them, too, but now I'm getting close and baby's full term I'm just thinking "general pre-labour".

I don't know why, but I seem to only notice it when I'm lying on my side. Weird.

[mellys bubby belly]

Thanks everyone!!

I did run it by Dr but he advised that BH aren't usually painful, so he said he wasn't sure what I may have experienced, but from what you ladies are sharing, I'd say that it was completely normal. Dr wasn't too concerned cause i advised that it wasn't accompanied by any discharge etc (sorry if TMI) and baby is still wriggling around as much as usual.

Thanks again!!

[SweetPea]

I've found that bh's feel like a tightening of the uterus, goes hard as a rock and makes me feel a bit breathless, and I usually get more when I'm more active, although at this stage of the pregnancy I feel like I'm getting them all the time! It's actually a good thing as your body is getting itself ready for labour. It's amazing that our bodies know what to do without us doing anything! I was also told that when you get a bh it can help to breath through them, or practice any other techniques you might use in labour, in other words use them as practice runs for labour contractions. Good Luck!!