How long do practice bouts start? When do pregnancies begin and how long do they last? The typical picture of labor pains is different

Pregnancy is the strongest stress for the female body. But every woman is ready to go through this for the sake of the birth of a treasured little ball of love.

Women in position will agree that during pregnancy changes occur in the body that affect the health of the expectant mother.

Even if the pregnancy proceeds without complications, then a woman will still not be able to avoid training contractions, so she should know what false contractions are and for how long they appear.

Training contractions or Braxton Hicks contractions appear in the middle of pregnancy. They are designed to prepare the birth canal for the birth of a baby.

False contractions are contractions of the muscles of the uterus in an involuntary manner. They are mandatory for a woman in order to prepare the muscles for childbirth.

Don't worry this phenomenon does not harm the baby. But often they are confused with the threat of miscarriage.

Note! The symptoms of miscarriage and training muscle contractions are similar. But their main difference is that the signs of Braxton-Hicks contractions disappear, and the symptoms of the threat of miscarriage increase.

Table: symptoms

If the contractions are frequent, regular, strong and bring pain, then this is the beginning of labor or the threat of miscarriage.

It is worth remembering that training contractions do not cause severe pain. But a woman still needs to rest or change her body position. This will make it easier for contractions to flow.

If they bring severe discomfort, then it is worth using the technique of rhythmic breathing.

How long before birth do contractions start?

Every female body is individual, so it is very difficult to say exactly from which week such changes begin.

But it can be noted unambiguously that this phenomenon begins to manifest itself after the twentieth week of pregnancy.

But it is worth noting that this process sometimes it occurs completely without symptoms, so many women during pregnancy may not be aware that preparations for childbirth have begun in their body. But this happens very rarely.

When practice bouts start:

1. During the first pregnancy. If a woman is pregnant for the first time, then it is more difficult for her to recognize this process.

   Experts say that Braxton Hicks contractions appear as early as the sixth week. interesting position. But the first symptoms are felt only in the second trimester.

   As mentioned earlier, each organism is individual and it is impossible to predict their exact appearance. Many expectant mothers experience this phenomenon only from 37 weeks.

   In nulliparous women, the process is more painful in most cases. If future mom already on later dates noticed contractions of the uterus, it is better for her to immediately consult a doctor.

   After all, sometimes false contractions quickly flow into tribal activity, that is, they are harbingers of childbirth.

2. During the second pregnancy. The second pregnancy is often easier for women, so in multiparous contractions appear closer to the end of the third trimester.

Important! If during pregnancy the expectant mother has a uterine tone, then she will not feel the harbingers of childbirth.

Causes of Braxton Hicks contractions

Often the appearance of training contractions of the muscles of the uterus provokes:

1. Excessive activity of a pregnant girl.
2. Excessive activity of the fetus in the womb.
3. Insufficient amount of moisture in the female body.
4. Full bladder.
5. Nervous strain.
6. Stress, anxiety, fatigue.
7. Completion of sexual intercourse.
8. Frequent touching and stroking of the abdomen.

If this process brings discomfort, it is worth:

1. Control fluid intake.
2. Reduce physical activity.
3. Stop having sex for a while.

How to distinguish contractions from training: symptoms

False contractions are not difficult to distinguish from real ones. But it's hard to figure it out on your own.

In order to know how to determine real abbreviations from false ones, you must first find out what they are for. Training contractions are aimed at stretching the muscles of the uterus for further childbirth.

They increase blood flow to the uterus and help transport oxygen to the unborn baby.

Note! With the onset of labor, the cervix gradually opens, preparing for the birth of the baby.

With false, the cervix remains closed. That's what it is main criterion definitions of false or true abbreviations.

It is impossible to independently determine the condition of the cervix, so a doctor's consultation is necessary.

Table: differences between false contractions and real ones

Useful video

Pregnancy is a time of happiness and expectation, which are gradually replaced by light experiences. Not all women can easily endure hardships. last month, the stomach is growing, and the days are approaching the long-awaited moment. Mom with trepidation treats every extra movement of the baby, a new sensation, in anticipation of the onset of contractions, the thought of how the birth will go does not cease to leave.

What are training bouts about?

It was intended by nature that the child grow up without lack of nutrients, and was protected in every possible way in the mother's stomach. But nature has not forgotten about Mommy herself, nature gives the first reminders of itself when training bouts begin. During the entire pregnancy, there is a slight exercise of the muscles of the uterus. As a result, it becomes more elastic by the end of pregnancy, the cervix shortens to allow the baby to be born easily.

Training, false or Breston Hicks contractions are all one concept, which implies a contraction of the walls of the uterus for a short period of time, usually they last no more than two minutes. Oddly enough, but such training begins with the onset of the 20th week of pregnancy. Almost no one feels any contractions at this time, since the tummy is very small, and the processes taking place there go unnoticed.

In the later stages of pregnancy, a woman begins to feel some discomfort and an unpleasant feeling in the lower abdomen - this can alert a young mother. The uterus becomes elastic, acquires increased tone, appears pulling sensation in the lower back, the abdomen becomes hard. But this phenomenon does not last long, and after two minutes the pain goes away.

How to behave during this time

An interesting fact is that not all women feel these contractions, it all depends on the level of the pain threshold. Someone feels them until the 20th week, and someone did not understand that she had training contractions. But still, most pregnant women know firsthand about false contractions, and this can greatly disturb them.

Note! If training your uterus gives you inconvenience and discomfort, doctors advise changing the situation and taking a walk on fresh air. When such contractions catch you while doing work, do the opposite - lie down and rest a bit. It will be very helpful if future dad will make a light back massage - this will help to relax and forget about discomfort.

When training bouts are taken for granted a change in body sensations and do not deliver unnecessary worries, mommy can use such moments to prepare for the upcoming birth. Namely, feeling that training is coming again, try to relax as much as possible and establish correct breathing, such preparations will be simply invaluable in the upcoming labor pains.

Note! In the event of training contractions at night, get out of bed, take a walk, you can take a warm shower, but in no case hot, after a shower, brew a soothing herbal, or green tea. If after that insomnia sets in, do not force yourself to fall asleep, just turn on pleasant music and listen through headphones so as not to disturb anyone, or read a book.

When the workout comes to an end

In the last two weeks of pregnancy from training contractions, the pain gradually moves to the lower abdomen, and the sensations become more unpleasant. The closer the time to give birth comes, the more often training contractions come, those women who are used to feeling them throughout pregnancy may no longer pay special attention to training waiting for them. But don't overdo it with your patience, you might miss important time at the approach of real labor pains.

Note! False contractions pass after 2-3 minutes, and if they repeat, then in different time without a constant frequency, and the pain will not be very noticeable. As a rule, the uterus spends training in the evening or at night, when your body is as relaxed as possible, and nothing distracts your attention. As for the arrival of real contractions, the woman will feel all their strength on herself. The onset period can be checked against the clock.

Do not confuse with real childbirth

At first, the contractions will begin four times in one hour, as a rule, they are accompanied by girdle pain throughout the back and abdomen, there may be different kind discharge, muscle cramps or diarrhea. All these symptoms directly indicate labor activity, if you are at home at this time, dial the ambulance number, since no one is immune from the fact that childbirth can be quite fast, and the consequences are not very good.

Because of the fear of the onset of real contractions, many women confuse them with training ones and start sounding the alarm too early. Just listen carefully to your body, mentally list for yourself what you really feel, discard all fears of anxiety, try to relax, and nature itself will take care of informing you about real contractions on the eve of childbirth.

Video

How to behave during the harbingers of childbirth:

A few weeks before the expected date of birth, a pregnant woman may have contractions. Often they are unexpected for the expectant mother, and, mistaking them for ordinary contractions, a woman in a panic rushes to the doctor. These are called Braxton Hicks training contractions. They are named after the English physician John Braxton-Hicks, who first described this phenomenon at the end of the 19th century. In our article, you will learn what training contractions are, when they begin, what symptoms and sensations appear when they occur, and how to distinguish training contractions from real labor contractions.

So what is it? Training contractions are contractions of the smooth muscles of the uterus, during which the cervix does not dilate, and therefore such contractions do not lead to childbirth. In fact, a pregnant woman's uterus tightens throughout pregnancy, which is part of the body's preparation for upcoming birth. Just for more early dates During pregnancy, a woman does not feel these contractions, but when the gestational age is more than 20 weeks, such small contractions become noticeable.

Training contractions: symptoms, sensations

The main symptom of training contractions is a feeling of tension in the uterus, as if the uterus were turning to stone. This is due to the fact that part of the muscles of the uterus comes into a state of tension.

How long do practice bouts last? Training bouts are short-term in nature - they last about 30-60 seconds. These contractions are irregular and can occur at different intervals: they can occur several times an hour, or they can stretch all day. A pregnant woman can feel them by placing her hand on her stomach.

So, when do training contractions start and what can cause them? The occurrence of training fights can be affected by:

• Stress, anxiety and emotional overload.
• Physical exercise, active movements fetus.
• Filled bladder.
• Dehydration of the body.
• Sex can also provoke false contractions, so from the 38th week of pregnancy it is recommended to limit intimate life.

What to do during training bouts?

To avoid the occurrence of training fights, you should adhere to the following recommendations:

• Avoid factors that can trigger contractions: try not to worry, avoid stress, and limit or even eliminate intimate life in late pregnancy;
• More often take walks in the fresh air in the morning and evening;
• Empty the bladder in time;
• Drink enough water.

In case of training contractions, you can do the following:

• Accept warm shower;
• Relax (listen to calm music and lie on your left side with your eyes closed);
• Help to alleviate the condition breathing exercises. It also increases the oxygen supply to the fetus. At the same time, you can work out - breathing exercises will need to be done during childbirth. The most popular breathing techniques:
• A slow breath at the moment of tension of the uterus, alternates with a deep exhalation.
• Slow and deep breath nose, then a sharp and short exhalation through the mouth, as if blowing out a candle.
• Breathing is rapid and shallow, like a dog's. Similarly, it is not recommended to breathe for more than 30 seconds.

When to see a doctor?

• If the contractions become painful, with increasing pain;
• If appeared nagging pain in the lumbar region;
• If they become intense and frequent;
• If the waters have broken or you have noticed their leakage;
• If spotting has appeared or an abundant thick mucous plug has begun to move away;
• The intensity of fetal movement has become less frequent.

How to distinguish training contractions from generic contractions?

So how can you recognize training contractions? They have a number of distinctive features:

• Training contractions are weakly expressed, they gradually decrease and, finally, disappear on their own. During labor pains, their intensity increases, and they become more painful.
• During training contractions, the tension of the muscles of the uterus is local in nature, that is, it is concentrated in one place (for example, in the upper part of the uterus or in the lower abdomen), and with real labor pains, the uterus is fully tensed. In addition, during training bouts, pain does not radiate to the lumbar region.
• Braxton Hicks contractions are irregular and irregular (less than 6 contractions per hour). Labor pains are rhythmic and regular. They are constantly growing, becoming longer, and the intervals between them - shorter.
• Training fights stop when you change the position of the body. And during labor pains, a change in body position does not affect their intensity.

But the expectant mother is simply not able to let everything take its course, she listens to each baby, and if the baby does not move for a long time, the mother starts to get nervous.

And when it starts to reduce the stomach, pull the lower back, and everything seems to be like contractions (is it really time to give birth?), And the period is still short, then you will definitely think: are these or training (false) contractions before childbirth?

How to recognize and how training contractions manifest themselves? Let's try to figure it out together.

It is very important to distinguish labor pains from training otherwise, the expectant mother will simply exhaust herself with unnecessary questions and suspicions. However, if you clearly know the differences and what to do, then you can not be afraid of real or training fights.

Training fights are also called false. They were first described by the Englishman Braxton Hicks in 1872, so Also known as Braxton Hicks contractions.

It is believed that nature specially invented them in order for the cervix and the uterus itself to prepare for childbirth during such contractions, as it were, to train (hence the name - training contractions).

Exploring similarities and differences

In order not to confuse false contractions with generic ones, it is necessary to know exactly their differences.

False contractions (their symptoms and signs):

• irregular, the intervals between them can be any, not cyclical. Contractions may disturb once a day or several, and possibly once a week;
• painless, in very rare cases they bring discomfort (painful false contractions are very rare);
• attacks can be neutralized by a change of position, a warm bath or shower, just get up to walk around or, on the contrary, lie down, do breathing exercises and think of something good;
• the cervix does not open.

Birth pains:

• differ in regularity and clear periodicity. Gradually, the time intervals between contractions decrease, and the duration of the contractions themselves increases;
• very painful, they cannot be anesthetized or relieve seizures;
• contractions continue until the baby is born;
• the cervix opens and prepares for childbirth.

When do contractions start and how long do they last?

False contractions can appear already during pregnancy and, of course, this does not mean that it is time to give birth. Relax and calm down. Just listen to yourself and your feelings.

With false contractions the uterus, as it were, becomes stony, as the muscles come into tone. At the same time, the lower back can ache and sip the lower abdomen.

But these contractions pass, do not grow, they are very easy to remove (unlike the real ones, which no longer calm down and calm down, but, on the contrary, become more frequent).

Many women do not experience false contractions at all throughout their pregnancy, so at the time of their appearance can scare any mother, especially - primiparous. Young women get scared, confuse them with real ones and prepare for the upcoming birth.

Therefore, in order not to worry in vain, try to walk around, change your body position, drink water, tea or juice, and most importantly, calm down. If contractions do not recur at regular intervals, then this is definitely a "false alarm" and you can still wait.

False contractions last 30-60 seconds and pass, may appear once an hour, or twice a day.

Their timing is impossible to predict. This can happen when you are walking with bags from the store, on a walk, at home. The longer the period, the more noticeable false contractions can be. But it’s easy enough to deal with them by learning breathing exercises.

With training fights, this is just a miraculous method for removing them. However, Each woman can have her own individual method of getting rid of false contractions.: it is enough for one to take a walk, and the other to drink something sweet. Try different ways and you are sure to find the right one.

In what cases should you consult a doctor?

With pregnancy and more, the woman is already ready for childbirth. At this time, you already need to be more attentive to your condition.

In some cases, it is simply necessary to immediately consult a doctor, namely, when contractions are accompanied by:

• watery or spotting from the vagina;
• severe back pain;
• if you feel like your water has broken;
• if you notice that at the same time the fetus froze or the movement weakened.

Pregnant women very often ask doctors a question, How not to confuse Braxton Hicks practice contractions with labor contractions. Doctors answer this unequivocally that it is impossible to confuse real contractions with anything.

That's why, dear mothers, listen to yourself, compare the signs of real and false contractions with your feelings.

If, however, suspicions bother you, and you are not sure that you have correctly identified, best to see a doctor, who will examine you, listen to your story about his feelings and, based on this, tell you if something threatens you or you should not worry.

So you will feel more confident and will not be nervous, keeping calm and strength for the upcoming birth.

The more your tummy grows and the more more active baby makes itself felt, the more often you think about how the birth will take place. Without exception, all pregnant women ask this question, no matter what kind of pregnancy it is. And if you become a mother for the first time, then the more you are concerned about the upcoming birth. And with the approach of the expected date, every strange or suspicious sensation is ready to be considered as “everything has begun! ..”.

Women who have given birth tell their young friends that the onset of childbirth cannot be missed or confused with something: they say, when they start, you will definitely understand that the process has started. However, many expectant mothers arrive at the maternity hospital ahead of time. And all because of false contractions.

When do practice bouts start?

It turns out that the uterus of a pregnant woman is tense throughout pregnancy. There is a theory that in this way she is preparing for the upcoming birth. In the short term, women do not feel these workouts, but after 20 weeks, many experience so-called training contractions, describing their sensations as tension or spasms in the uterus, in which the stomach hardens for a while. She seems to petrify, and then returns to normal again.

Such sensations are often confused with real contractions that have begun.

How to distinguish practice contractions from real ones

“Unreal” contractions are called so - false or training, and by the name of the doctor who first described this phenomenon, they are also called Braxton Hicks contractions. But it's not a fight yet. And so that you are calm, learn to distinguish them from the real ones.

If labor is in fact already beginning, then you will certainly feel regular contractions, repeating at the same time interval and gradually becoming more intense, prolonged and painful. Training contractions are non-cyclical, do not cause pain. They are felt mainly in the evening and at night, because it is during these hours that a woman relaxes as much as possible, the daily bustle recedes into the past, a pregnant woman listens more closely to her body and, without even focusing on her own well-being, rather feels various changes.

In addition, real contractions may be accompanied by cramps or diarrhea: the addition of any of these symptoms will help you understand that labor is really starting.

How long do practice bouts last?

The fact that the alarm turned out to be false will also tell the duration of the attacks. Training bouts last for a short time - from a few seconds to 2 minutes.

It is noteworthy that with an increase in the term and with the approach of childbirth, false contractions may appear more often, but their duration normally never increases. Moreover, it is not at all necessary to feel these uterine contractions: many women do not feel them at all.

If training contractions give you some discomfort, try to distract yourself somehow. Rest can help you, or vice versa - unhurried. Already now, learn to breathe and relax correctly - this will be very useful in childbirth. Listen to your body, try to understand and feel it.

Should I be worried?

Be prepared for the fact that closer to childbirth, false contractions can “fall” lower into the pelvis and become more intense - which means you will give birth within 2-4 weeks. Take training bouts calmly, do not dwell on them. But if they are accompanied by suspicious symptoms, it is better to immediately go to the hospital:

• the uterus becomes stony for more than 2 minutes;
• contractions become regular (more than 4 times per hour);
• contractions are very painful;
• contractions are accompanied by vaginal discharge - clear or bloody;
• along with contractions, there was a pulling pain in the lower back.

If you don’t observe anything like this, then there is nothing to worry about. The only inconvenience associated with the increase in false contractions in late pregnancy is that it will become increasingly difficult for you to find comfortable position In the bed. But this also contributes big tummy, And hypersensitivity and irritability, and many other factors. So we recommend that you get a lot of different pillows and rollers, so that if necessary, put them wherever you can. You should not force yourself to sleep if this is not possible. Better listen to music or read a book.