Are these Braxton Hicks?

[greenpjs]

No pain as such or anything, but occasionally my bump will feel really tight and hard! I'm 32 weeks tomorrow.

Are these BH? Should I be worried? Never experienced this before.

Midwife here, what you describe sounds exactly like Braxton-Hicks :).

Signs of premature labour would include: pains that get more frequent and more regular and stronger, nausea/vomiting, lower back pain, diarrhoea, you may lose your mucous plug.

Random tightenings where your whole belly goes hard, but don't get more frequent or stonger are very common on the third trimestre. Congratulations on your pregnancy!

Yes, those sound exactly like Braxton Hicks. It's as though your bump is suddenly shrink-wrapped.

Labour contractions feel much more like period pains/back pains.

I had BH, I was monitored for them but didn’t see the point so stopped attending - I was due anyway so thought it was normal. It felt like period pains to me.

It took far longer than I care to admit that what I thought was baby stretching or turning and staying in an awkwardly tight position was actually Braxton Hicks. I can't recall having any in my first pregnancy but my second was constant! Maybe that's why he took all day and she only took an hour and 25 minutes to arrive 🤔

Yes it sounds like it. With my third and fourth pregnancies I started getting braxton hicks quite early into the pregnancy, I think around 25 weeks. They sometimes stopped me in my tracks and I would always worry I was going into premature labour, some of them were so strong. They felt like my bump went hard and tight and I would get a lot of pressure between my legs, almost like the baby was right there ready to come out, but they would ease up after a few seconds.

@aurynne I've woken up this morning with the worst leg cramps and back pain, it literally makes me jolt if I move in a certain position 😣 is this normal? I suddenly feel very "pregnant" over night if that makes sense!

Without assessing you it's not a good idea to give advice through here. Sudden jolts of leg pain could be sciatic nerve pain from the baby's head starting to engage/descend into the pelvic inlet. But if you're worried the best thing is to contact your midwife so she can do a full assessment.