Curious what you think/know...Is there any significant benefit to Braxton Hicks? I thought I've heard that they are preparing your body for labor. Well, I've had TONS since about 18 weeks (this is my second pregnancy), so I think I'm getting this false hope that this labor is just going to be smooooth runnings - and hey maybe early? Maybe I'm dreaming here though... 
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I think mine helped dialate me. So I was a three before labour even started. And I did have a relatively easy labour and delivery after having a ton of Braxton hicks.
(less than 20 min pushing, went into labour 5 days before my due date, 11 hours from water breaking to baby arrival, 6 hrs active labour).
But I have nothing to compare it to. So who knows if any of it is related.
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I had tons of BH and was dilated 1 cm at 41 weeks. I had a 40+ hour labor, was 4 cm when admitted after ~28 hours of labor. I pushed for 2 hours.
That being said, everyone is SO different. AND, maybe if I didn't have a those BH I would have been clamped tightly shut and needed to be induced. Who knows!!
Best of luck!
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I've been having tons since 20 weeks, but they are getting worse since 33 weeks. I'm hoping they will help, but not sure. My midwife just says I have an irritable uterus.
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@Banana330: Sometimes I wonder if that's the case for me too! It's especially worse after I workout. I pushed it a bit hard this weekend and had a lot more than normal (definitely the max 4-6/hour). So, I was just being hopeful it was doing something good for me!
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@Mrs. Lovejoy: I get them at every movement especially things like stairs, but on the weekend I had them for 45 seconds, every three minutes for 45 min. Then they went away. I have the same hope as you, that they will help come delivery time!
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I think mine helped dilate me faster when I did go into labor. I went from 1 to 10 pretty quickly, especially for a first time mom. Unfortunately they didn't help my son fit through my pelvis and I ended up with a c-section anyway
I do have a friend though who gets a ton of them like I do and her four kids have basically fallen out once she's gone into labor. She definitely thinks it's the one benefit of having to deal with a ton of BH.
@Banana330: Irritable uterus is also what I've been told. They put me on bed rest for it last time, but this time they are willing to just do regular cervical measurements to make sure the contractions aren't doing anything.
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My mom tried to convince me they were a very good thing b/c they gave you a chance to really explore the pain and try to use methods to deal with them.
I was not really convinced! The strong ones freaked me out.
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@Happygal: haha! The pain for me is so different between BH and regular contractions! But, I can understand the concept..
@SeptMomma12: haha, I did have a bunch last pregnancy and progressed fairly quickly as well - so who knows the correlation. Yeah, too bad they wouldn't affect your pelvis or son's size.. boo
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I was told irritable uterus last time too (wound up with never fewer than 5 an hour, and if I was on my feet at all they would drop to as little as two minutes apart), and my midwives weren't worried. 19 weeks now, and it looks like it's going to be the same this time. They actually started in the first tri, which I didn't know was possible!
My experience with labor was far from normal, but I responded too well to the procedure. They had to have me take pills to stop contractions the day before my induction, and they had to immediately drop my pitocin to the lowest setting because contractions were so close together. I don't remember because of the drugs, but DH said it all took around an hour. I feel like the BH's did help make me labor fast.
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I had them ALL the TIME and then my water broke at 39 wks and I was a 6 when I went in. So just in my experience they were helpful! Perhaps just a coincidence though.
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I had them.. I don't know how often compared to others.. But I was induced at 39 weeks due to GD so I don't really know what purpose they serve besides besides showing me what contractions feel like!
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I had them with the first pregnancy. I was dilated to 3cm 3 weeks before my due date. Then went to 4cm when I was finally admitted. My water broke so they had to admit me. And since I was already at a 4 they went ahead and put me on the list for the epi.
This pregnancy I'm 25 weeks along and started having them only when I've been pushing something. For example, the grocery cart or stroller. Once I stop and relax for a few minutes it will subside. Kind of scares me at this stage. If I was around 30 weeks I'd feel better about having them. Still wouldn't be full-term but very close. -
@turkeylurkey: I started having them at 14 weeks this time and am holding strong at almost 31 weeks. My doctor said some people's bodies just like to contract.
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I had MAYBE one BH contraction (never was sure, since it never happened again) and had a natural, 7 hour labor. I did okay without them, but it still makes sense that they would help at least a bit!
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I had a ton of painless and painful BH contractions with both pregnancies. I was induced with zero signs of labor progressing on its own the first time, and I went into a crazy fast labor the second time. Who knows!
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