Does labour start with painful contractions

[JamesonCask]

Or just niggles that turn painful over time?

Mine were niggles that turned more painful. More like strong cramps to start - more uncomfortable than anything.

Mine started with back ache like period pains which ramped up.

Good luck if you think it's happening!

I think it can vary, but usually the start is very subtle, and you are questioning whether it is actually labour. Then it gradually gets more intense. IME, it escalates quickly once the waters have broken.

Mine felt like pins and needles at first. It was the fact they came every five minutes or so that made me think contractions.

It wasn’t until after waters broke that they got painful.

Mine started with a giant gush of water!!

Just uncomfortable for me x2 before ramp-up.

The other one was audible pop of membranes and bam straight into heaving contractions. Which was annoying as I had just dished up apple crumble. Still sad about that after twenty years. Heh.

Mine were weird! I was taught that they start spread out then come closer together but with both dd they were always 1 minute apart from the get go - they just became more and more painful but ur was very gradual so manageable as I became more accustomed to it

I had niggles for about 2 days, didn't think anything of them. Then on the night (early morn) I went into labour I was struggling to sleep but must have fallen asleep and woke up needing a wee! Ran to the loo and I was my waters then literally 5mins after strong contractions started. I knew!!!

Everyone is different. I was told (by a midwife and at NCT!) that labour will not happen quickly because she was my first, my waters wouldn't just break and contractions suddenly start straight away and then baby arrives...this is how she arrived! Full on contractions after waters broke and she was here within a few hours.

My waters broke first - but I didn’t realise that’s what it was, smallish amount. No pain for approximately 14 hours. But leakage had been tested by then and confirmed that it was indeed amniotic fluid.
What are you experiencing and how many weeks are you?

Mine was constipation-like backache that gradually made its way round the front. That lasted about 3 days, and dh and I went round a friend's house for the evening. I was sitting there and all of a sudden I thought ooh that feels like period pain come on all of a sudden. It only lasted a few seconds and went away. Half an hour later the same thing again. That went on for about another 2 days before they kicked in properly and were lasting a couple of minutes.

Everybody's different. Mine started with waters breaking rather dramatically. Then nothing for twenty minutes. Then intense contractions out of nowhere two minutes apart. I never got the subtle niggles.

Both mine started with obvious contractions but i had short labours (4 hours first time, 1.5 hours the second).

Mine started as a back ache, just a bit of cramp in the small of my back. Ignored it the first few times until I realised it was a contraction! Then they came every six minutes on the dot ( absolutely could have set your watch by them) getting higher and more painful in intensity. I ended up being induced in the end because even though I was contracting for 12 hours, pain ramping up, I was only about 1.5cm dilated.

I started with diarrhea!!! Would go to the toilet then get back in bed. Would get stomach cramps again and have to roll out of bed to the toilet...rhis happened 4 times. I was convinced it was food poisioning as we had chicken that night for tea!!! It was DH who said do you think its labour....doh!!!!

Before labour I too had a rather unsettled stomach! Presumably to clear you out?! Never really believed this but it happened every time.
But contractions for me started quite suddenly and painfully, quickly
Increasing in length and intensity.
Had fast labours all 3 times.

Lower back ache for two days first

One of mine I was induced but my two natural labours I woke up in full swing contractions a few minutes apart. I had had lots of braxton hicks through those two pregnancies but didn't have any niggling gradual build of contractions. It was rather intense both times.

Thanks everyone, I'm 37 weeks but just want it all to be over so I'm imagining every twinge is the start! Im being induced next week I think anyway so not like I've long more to wait

I woke up at around 5 in the morning and thought i was desperate for a wee. It was the same kind of sensation that you get when you have to hold it.
I got up, had a wee and went back to bed, then another one hit me. Not painful, just a bit 'ohh you bugger' type of thing.
Due to it being my first, a couple of hours later i was thinking it's a piece of cake this labour malarky.
A few hours later i was calling everyone a sheeps quim and threatening to wear my poor husbands balls as earrings

Sheeps quim is a very inventive insult, especially when in labour!

Mine did.

But they were quick labours.

A few days of mild contraction pains in parts very regular but not getting worse, then bam woke up with a constant bad pain on one side, went in for monitoring and was in established labour by midnight, DD was born the following morning.

The constant pain wasn't what I expected at all and completely threw me as a ftm.

Mine start with painful contractions and ramp up very quickly, every minute.

No slow build up for me

I started with a dull period pain ache at the front. I had no idea that thats what a cramp felt like and had been having cramps for years.