Usually, towards the end of the second trimester of pregnancy, many women start to feel tightening and moving of the uterus. The pain they experience is almost like contractions. They are not really labor pains, but false contractions. Known as Braxton Hicks contractions, they basically help the body to prepare for real labor. Some women feel it for longer duration, some feel it for a couple of minutes while some don’t feel it at all. The time period, when women start feeling false contractions, is usually known as ‘pre-labor’.
Way back, in 1872, an English doctor named John Braxton Hicks, observed and studied the later stages of pregnancy. He concluded that maximum women felt contractions just weeks before their due dates were predicted. Though they did not lead to labor, they were almost like labor pains. He concluded that though the contractions were essentially painless, they helped the body to get prepared for the real thing and gradually softened cervix. Ever since then, these contractions have been known as Braxton Hicks contractions.
Symptoms - How do They Feel Like
Different women feel different kind of Braxton Hicks contractions. The symptoms vary from person to person, depending on a number of factors like age, weight, genes, physical strength, etc. However, the most common symptoms of contractions are listed below, so that you get an idea as to how do Braxton Hicks contractions feel like. Following are the symptoms of Braxton Hicks contractions:
- Contractions with longer time intervals between them
- Contractions that weaken after some time
- Contractions are felt only in the front
- Contractions that cease after some time (20 seconds to 2 minutes)
- There is no change in the cervix even though you experience contractions
