Braxton Hicks? When?

"Stephanie and Tim" wrote in message
Hi. I had a contraction today. I am hypersensitive since I am at risk for
incompetent cervix. As such I have been having cirvix checks every visit.
I
had 2 visits added to my schedule for more cervix checks to make sure it
was
not changing because it was thin. So now, I am paranoid. I called my doc
office and they said to call for 4 or more in an hour that are not stopped
by resting. That's fine. I am sitting on my rump now. My question is, when
do BH start? I am 30 weeks right now. These contractions are definitely
not
of the ferocity of real labor. They do not hurt. ALso, how long do BH
contractions usually last?

From what I understand pre-term labor contractions often aren't painful, so
whether they hurt or not is often irrelevant. However, I also have been told
& have read in several sources that a few isolated contractions a day (about
8-10) are perfectly normal as long as they aren't accompanied by any other
pre-term labor symptoms. I've also read that you should have no more than 4
during an hour.

My experience has been that I started feeling Braxton Hicks contractions at
about 16 weeks (I'm 30 weeks today). I usually have one or less per hour,
but have had as many as three an hour before. They last less than a minute
(for me). So, in my experience, what you're experiencing sounds totally
normal & I would say not to worry about. However, given your cervical risk
and all that I can definitely see why you would be worried! The other thing
my doctor told me to pay attention to was if they changed at all--i.e.
started to feel more intense, come more frequently, last longer--and also to
time them for a little while to make sure they were happening fairly far
apart. It is kind of funny, because when I don't make a mental note of the
time when I feel one, they seem *much* closer together than they actually
are. At one point, I was convinced that I was having several per hour only
to find out after timing that it was more like once per hour (oddly, they
were precisely an hour apart too. I had one at 45 past the hour every hour
for the four hours I was paying attention). There was also one time though
where I know for a fact that I had three in 30 minutes though, because I was
driving at the time & it is a 30 minute drive.

Anyway, just wanted to let you know that I definitely think it sounds normal
to be feeling b/h at 30 weeks, but keep a close eye on them just in case!

--
Em
edd 9/23/03

With each pregnancy the BH change to be somewhat painful. My BH have started
since i think about 5 months which is normal and are painful at times at
others i barely notice.

Shannon
due sept 12