[Cheryl_W]

So last night I was laying in bed, and I started to feel really... Strange. Almost ill in a weird way, but not like I was going to throw up, more like I needed to have a BM or pass gas.

So I laid down for awhile, waiting to see if it would pass, and it just kind of got stronger and stronger until it felt like a trapped gas bubble (like gas cramps) but they were where my uterus is. It lasted about 45 seconds or so, and got so bad at one point I had to slow my breathing a bit to relax through it, and then it went away.

It came back again about 5 minutes later, not as bad as the time before, but this time I was half on my tummy (DH was giving me a back rub to relax me) and I could feel my uterus tighten up because I felt it get REALLY hard in my tummy (I could feel exactly where it was, even though only the right side was barely resting on the bed kind of thing... It kind of felt like I could feel where baby was in the uterus, with the right side feeling harder than the left.)

I never did pass any gas or have a BM, and it hasn't happened since - but I'm just wondering if that was maybe a BH contraction? It kind of hurt, a little bit, but it was more uncomfortable than anything... And of course it was just the two, the second one way shorter than the first and not as strong.

20 weeks tomorrow... I've read that BH commonly come on in the 2nd tri, but is it too early for them now? When did you start feeling them? Does that sound like one?

It made me a little nervous because the first one was SO strong and sudden, but the 2nd one was easier and they didn't come back so I knew it wasn't real preterm labour or anything.

Thanks girls...

Oh and just to add - I'm not constipated or anything, BMs have been regular and I didn't eat anything spicy or bad last night.

[MommaLee]

I haven't experienced this yet. Hope someone else can help.

[jbhonea]

I didn't start feeling Braxton Hicks until the very end. I wanna say probably at 36 weeks. They weren't painful though. What I did feel around 20 weeks was a stretching pain. Especially if my daughter was moving around a lot. I asked the Dr. and he said it was just cramps from my uterus expanding. Hope that helps.

[Celry]

I had BH starting in my first trimester. By 25 weeks I was on medication to stop them. My stomach would get hard as a rock, but I never got the feeling you're describing.

[fromustobaby]

For me BH was how Val described, just rock hard belly, and then it would go away and be normal again - for me, it started around 25-27 weeks, and they were all the time when I was working toward the end...that's the main reason why I took off a week early...

I also got them the most when I was doing things, and they usually went away when I was relaxing...

[Etph007]

Mine started around 28-29 weeks.

[Oreobaby]

I still haven't gotten any...so sorry, I'm really no help. I hope you are feeling better now though!!

[Lyz]

mine started around 26 weeks or so but it was just tightening of my belly. Not really painful (until 36 weeks or so).

Sounds like maybe you had trapped gas and it worked its way around? TMI, but you could have tooted (hehe) in your sleep and didn't know. 20 weeks is kinda early to have BHs. It was expected for Val since she was carrying twins.

[Soape]

Mine started at 18 weeks. they felt like my uterus was tightening and releasing like when you get a leg cramp but not painful just the uncomfortable part where the muscle is contracting. By 23 weeks they started to get much stronger. I think that the larger the uterus grows the stronger they can get. But they should never be PAINFUL.

[Cheryl_W]

About the gas thing - I was up for about 60-90 minutes still after that, reading, so I would assume that if it was gas it would have worked its way out by then - although it could be...

It just freaked me out a little because I'd been having on and off back pains all day, and it was in the back of my mind that back pain that comes and goes can be a sign of labour LOL

Oh the paranoia we go through...

[tiffanys]

I just started getting them...yesterday to be exact! They weren't really painful, just an uncomfortable tightening of my belly! It only happened like twice and then went away and haven't come back as of yet!

[Cheryl_W]

Ugh, these have been going on all afternoon now pretty much since I made that first post, some of them painful some not, some coming from my back, some going to my back, some going down my legs...

Freaked me out a little bit, so I phoned L&D - got told to call my doctor. yeah, if I could just call my doctor and talk to him like that, I would. But since doctors here don't DO that, I called you guys - you useless pieces of... UGH.

Definitely solidified my choice of hospital as NOT THAT ONE. They were about as helpful as sitting at home alone doing nothing.

They're still coming, on and off, freaking me out a little bit but I don't want to go into L&D and get treated like an idiot. The condescending b!atch on the phone was like, "And this is your first baby?"

Uh, yeah. Because if it was my second, I'd know better than to call YOU.

So I'm just going to wait until my prenatal class tonight and go a bit early, since the instructor used to be a midwife so she might have some insight on what I should do. More than those useless tit L&D nurses anyway.

I am still SO p!ssed about that... Everyone always says, when in doubt, phone L&D. So I call, and get that kind of treatment. Nice...

Sorry for the rant, but its like - as if being a first time mommy feeling like she's having contractions at 20 freaking weeks isn't stressful enough, now I don't know who to call or what to do about it because my idiot hospital just blew me off as a paranoid yahoo.

At least theres NO blood, no fluid (AFAIK), the pains aren't getting worse or closer together they still seem kind of random, and the baby IS moving around a lot. That's reassuring. That nurse? Not so much. *sigh* Wish me luck! LOL

[MommyPoky]

I haven't had that either, but I hope they go away soon! They sound painful

[Jennifer-Jacob's Mommy]

Thats why I dont call my L&D if i have a concern etc. I hate to be treated like what im saying/happening isnt happening etc and feel like a fool afterwards.

Hope u are doing good and everything is ok

[Cheryl_W]

Yeah, I talked to the lady who runs our classes and she called the head midwife at my midwifery group for me to talk to, she said as long as they're not regular it is probably nothing to worry about, and it's a good thing they didn't continue after we DTD last night... She just said keep hydrated, take a warm bath/try to relax and not do too much, and if they develop a pattern for over an hour go to L&D/ER, otherwise avoid DTD until they go away and if they're still happening on Tuesday when I have my appointment they'll try and figure out why.

So it sounds like all is well, but I could have just as easily heard that from the L&D nurse if she wasn't such an idiot LOL

[Etph007]

L&D nurses can be very condecending. I suppose they just get so many false alarms or hypochondiracs that they blow a lot of things off- like my kidney stones which were giving me contractions at 20 weeks and my high blood pressure that ended up being severe pre-eclampsia. It's not just your hospital and I'm sure it's not all hospitals. I hate to generalize but from my experience, they can definitely blow you off and belittle an urgent situation. I would say, if it continues to happen and you're not satisfied, either go to another hospital or see if you can be seen by the dr. Hang in there!!!!

[Cheryl_W]

They seem to have calmed down today... A few back aches, and one tightening in my tummy early in the AM (about 3 I think) but none since. Just keeping hydrated, relaxing, and trying not to do too much physical stuff. Once I haven't had one for 24 hours though, I'll DH and get back to having FUN! LOL

[Soape]

I do know that it's common to have BH after having intercourse. If that continues you will definately want to talk to your Dr about it. my Dr told me that as long as they are not in a pattern, painful, or having fluid or bleeding along with it that they should be ok. Just start timing them if you notice that they are becoming more frequent. I hope that it was just from DTD, and needing hydration.

[Cheryl_W]

Well that was one of the reasons the midwife said it was probably OK - because it happened BEFORE we DTD, and didn't continue after. She said it was probably ligaments or something similar that caused the pain last night, not BH - although yesterdays did sound like BH, but I had some caffiene yesterday (a single cup of coffee) so that may have dehydrated me a little bit.

My body is really going on a rampage when it comes to what I eat - if its to sweet, too full of caffiene, or somehow not good for me - it LETS ME KNOW boy! I'll feel like crap for the rest of the day, and even the next day sometimes. UGH!

It's good to have a built in dietician though! *Thanks body, for being my savior from too much cake* LOL