# Help with contractions - im new to this please help



## jackabean

im 38 weeks and 2 days been having contractions on and off for about a week and today been having them since 2pm and been really hurting since 5pm so almost 5 hours however i keep noticing (and i noticed with my first baby too) when i get a contraction i can feel it pulling across my back and down low near my pubic bone but my left side always stays quite soft but my right side esp underneath my lowest rib goes ROCK hard and bulges!!!! im sure that what im experiencing is contractions and not BH because i have been on the trace machine at hospital a few times and midwives and doctors have confirmed these are contractions but why onyl on my right side???
i failed to progress past 2cm with my first was induced and made it to 3cm in 36 hours then had a c section so im wondering if my body is not contracting properly will i fail to progress again is it something my body just cant do??? 

Any advice of help would be great thanks oxx

also i lost my plug on saturday and somemore on sunday too so im hoping this maybe the start of real labour i went for a 2 mile walk earlier in the rain and contractions remained strong during and after but have not increased in intensity for about 2 hours that i have noticed!

My contractions always seem to stop sometimes i can go on for 10+ hours and then they stop im worried this could be stressing the baby, i didnt labour with my son and dont have my mum to get advice from so im really really nervour as my first birth exp was awful and everything went wrong!!!! 
So im wondering why i only have contractions on the right side and also is there any truth in if you dont dilate the first time you wont ever be able to, giving birth is something i should be able to do and im convincing myself i wont be able to!!! 
Thank you and sorry for the essay!


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## stardust599

Your body is preparing for labour. Have faith, this is what your body is designed for. With your first it sounds like your body wasn't ready for the induction hence why it ended up C-Section, it sounds like your body is preparing just great now! Contractions on one side of the body are normal and they can be felt high/low/left/right even in the legs, bum, across the ribs etc. Trust your body.

Stay active, walking etc. each day but also spend time resting and sleeping and eating well to conserve your energy. You still have lots of time yet, you aren't overdue until 42weeks so just relax and carry on letting your body prepare you over the next few days or weeks. Good luck hun xx


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## Jingles23

What she said! Trust your body. Try to relax and allow it to do what it needs to do. You are doing great! Try to keep moving. It helps baby move down which in turn helps you dilate. 
Good luck!!


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