With my first labour the midwife said I’d stopped contracting but I hadn’t. It took another 10-20seconds or so before I had. She thought I was causing a fuss and I found it hard to get into a position for an examination. I guess my stomach looked less tense from her POV but, if it were on a graph, it would have looked like the tension had come down half way before relaxing again. At least that’s how it felt.
I can’t see anyone else describing this and only one mention in a medical website about “skewed” contractions:
“ A skewed contraction occurs when the crescendo and decrescendo of the contraction are not mirror images of one another. This relates to unequal relaxation of uterine muscle fibers and the clinical importance is not known.”
ob-efm.com/2426.htm
Has anyone else experienced this?
I had an incredible and experienced midwife for my second labour and she didn’t faff about with internal exams (I was obviously well on the way!).
Approaching labour no. 3 and I just remembered this about my first labour. I found it so upsetting to be told I wasn’t having a contraction when I was, I’m sure it slowed my labour. I’d been so keen to have the baby in the birthing centre but didn’t relax until they sent me up to the labour ward 10 hours later.
I know what to expect this time and how to handle the situation but I wondered if anyone else had had the same thing? I guess the midwife just hadn’t heard of such a thing!