Bump going hard - baby stretching out?

[allthesharks]

I'm 28 weeks. Every now and then I feel my bump go hard, but not all over, it feels more solid where the placenta is and it doesn't always feel hard above my belly button when it happens which makes me think its not a contraction. Is it possible that this firmness is just the baby stretching out?

This is my third pregnancy but both were born premature and I don't have a good grasp of what is "normal".

I cant be much help, other than I have a similar thing. Am 32 weeks. Sometimes my bump is hard to touch on one side but not the other. Then after few minutes it goes away. No pain, just uncomfortable feeling. I presumed it is the baby moving around but I dont really know. My placenta is at the back so I dont think its that. Though at the moment there is no hardness at all. I presumed it was as the baby just moved at a strange angle, but I dont really know! Will mention to the midwife when I next go. But I agree its difficult to know what is 'normal'

Sounds like Braxton Hicks... have a google, they are painless contractions, quite common.

My money is on Brixton Hicks, I had these from 26 weeks with DD. Harmless contractions that help your uterus prepare.

Braxton Hicks - pretty common 😁

I put these down to branxton hicks I get them alllll the time from about 20 weeks. I think I get more when baby is moving and sometimes my whole uterus will tighten or other times it's just a little section that feels hard.

Thank you for the responses. I feel a bit silly that I don't know this the third time around. I didn't have this at all with DD1. She was born at 28 week after only 4 hours of labour. With DD2 I had this sensation a lot and then they became painful regular contractions every evening for a week before they became constant and I went to hospital and had DD at 33 weeks.

This time around at 26 weeks I had regular painful contractions, with this tightening, which ultimately came to nothing.

Sometimes I get these tightenings accompanied by period type pain but not at the same time, as in I would have the pain with no tightening, the the pain eases and the tightening starts.

Its so difficult to know what you should react to and what you shouldn't.

Thank you all for your responses.