What do childbirth contractions feel like

Learn more about back labor and how to cope. I didn't have any contractions in my stomach like you see in the movies. I was literally trying to get away from my own back. I had no pain in my back or tummy.

I was unable to think of or do anything else after contractions started. I hadn't eaten, so I had very little energy and had to be on oxygen for about half my labor. I have never been more in my body. I think being fearful contributes to the pain level a lot. As the fear lessened, the pain became less grueling. Even if your own labor experience turns out to be less than tasty, remember that childbirth has a sunny side, as celebrated by many BabyCenter moms.

I had never really felt pain with a purpose. Somehow knowing the end result and that it was normal made it easier to bear. Many people say the pain disappears once your child is in your arms, and they're right! Smart ways to prepare for your baby's birth. BabyCenter's editorial team is committed to providing the most helpful and trustworthy pregnancy and parenting information in the world.

When creating and updating content, we rely on credible sources: respected health organizations, professional groups of doctors and other experts, and published studies in peer-reviewed journals.

We believe you should always know the source of the information you're seeing. Learn more about our editorial and medical review policies. March of Dimes. Stages of labor. As labor continues and the pain worsens, the pregnant person tunes out stimuli and adopts a tunnel vision, focusing on the labor and getting the baby out. Eventually their cervix dilates completely; at this point, they're ready to push and give birth.

During this pushing phase, some people feel clingy, not wanting their partners to leave their sides; some yell and become uncharacteristically demanding; some tremble and feel overwhelmed and anxious; and some lose all sense of modesty.

To some people, pushing feels like you are having a large bowel movement. When the baby finally starts to come out, many people think they've actually pooped. When we asked new moms to describe what labor felt like, we received almost responses. In the course of describing labor pain, their answers hit on many similar themes—how the experience compared with expectations, what pushing was like , and whether they'd recommend an epidural.

We culled through the responses to pick some of the most common themes. Wondering what the beginning of labor feels like? What about contractions and back labor? These moms share their personal experiences. My symptoms did not fit into either category. I had a lot of cramping under my belly, not radiating from the top down or in my back like the books said. When I finally went into the hospital to be checked, sure I would be sent home, I was told that I was actually in labor.

Louis Park, MN. Instead I felt like I was having one long contraction that felt like the worst menstrual cramps I had ever had. It was much more intense and it was almost all in my lower back. Every time a contraction would come, my lower back would slowly begin to seize up. It was kind of like the muscles inside were slowly twisting harder and harder until it became almost unbearable, and then it would slowly subside.

This is what back labor felt like for me, and it was still much more painful than I had imagined it would be. It would subside and come back until the beautiful epidural lady came to save me. If I fought it, the pain became worse. Once I surrendered to and accepted the pain, it was more bearable. It is like getting caught in the undertow of a wave. Being trapped underwater is scary — you can fight it and get more scared or you can just let go and wait until the wave releases you.

Also, there was an intense searing pain in my lower back, which was helped when my husband applied pressure to it. It feels like your abdomen is trying to squeeze out all its contents, not just the baby. They come in waves and varying intensity throughout the laboring process.

I would go from a pretty tolerable one to an extremely intense one the next time. I have a pretty high tolerance for pain and it is definitely the hardest thing I have ever done. They began early on for me and the sensation felt like the baby was doing a twirling or twisting motion. Eventually, I realized that they were BH contractions and felt the classic hardening, tightening in my abdomen.

It was that menstrual cramp feeling in the beginning, though, that distinguished them from the Braxton Hicks cramps I'd had through the pregnancy and let me know it was "real" labor.

Once I was about halfway dilated it felt like one big constant contraction, with no rest in between, even though the monitors showed a brief break between them.

The contractions felt different with my second birth, though, and I wasn't sure I was really in labor. They didn't feel the same way they did the first time around, and my BH contractions had been so intense and uncomfortable painful, not just the tightening feeling the last month or two of my pregnancy, that I constantly felt like I was in early labor.

My baby was "sunny side up" that time too, so more of the pain was in my back. My mother and mother-in-law had told me they never knew when they were having contractions, just felt the pressure of pushing at the end. That astonished me. My mom literally never knew when she was having contractions, just knew that she 'felt funny.

I had a c-section after pushing non medicated for 5 hours with my fat, 9lb 37 week direct OP baby occiput posterior -- baby who is facing up instead of back , and a non-medicated VBAC with my second, so feel like I really got a sense of what things felt like.

They started as menstrual cramps, and an ache in my lower back, moving around and increasing in intensity deep in my pelvis. I did not have back labor with either, even the OP babe. I have to say that I did not think they were that bad, I mean, intense, yes, requiring deep focus and coping, yes, but the worst pain I ever felt?

It was very freeing to surrender to the contractions, doing whatever felt good, no matter how crazy or silly it seemed. Labors last about 36 hours each, in both labors, I immersed myself in the tub, completely, except for my nose, when I had the intense contractions, removing all the sensory stimulation, ears underwater, eyes closed, remaining really loose. Alternately, I did a lot of deep vocalization. As I said, hard, yes, intense, yes, all encompassing, yes, body wracking, yes, but incredibly painful -- no.

If I could, I would labor and birth once a year! No pregnancy, no baby to keep, just a big ole labor and birth! It was the hardest, most intense, but doable work I have ever done! Tags Birth Birth stories Coping with pain Contraction.

Lamaze Home Contact Us Login. You might have noticed that your uterus contracts after you orgasm. Try not to worry — orgasm itself is a contraction of the uterus, after all. Many moms experience contractions after sex that can be powerful and last as long as a half hour. If you've passed the week mark and are officially overdue, you might be wondering how you can start contractions and get this show on the road, already.

There are a few techniques that may induce labor naturally , including acupuncture and walking. What to Expect follows strict reporting guidelines and uses only credible sources, such as peer-reviewed studies, academic research institutions and highly respected health organizations. Learn how we keep our content accurate and up-to-date by reading our medical review and editorial policy. The educational health content on What To Expect is reviewed by our medical review board and team of experts to be up-to-date and in line with the latest evidence-based medical information and accepted health guidelines, including the medically reviewed What to Expect books by Heidi Murkoff.

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