Author’s note: This is the fourth of a ten-part series recapping and examining the birth story of my Itty Bitty. Birth is a beautiful experience, but some can find the contents of the topic a bit squeemish. In light of this, please note that these posts are neither too graphic, nor are they full of unicorns and rainbows. They’re just the unfettered, unadulterated truth. And the truth is that birth is the most amazing experience of which I have been a part. By far. So, read on – learn, cry, laugh, but most of all, enjoy.

Did you catch that grimace at the end of the video? Well, I guess our tiny baby heard our pleas, because after we recorded it, I realized that I was in the early stage of labor thanks those contractions.

What exactly do contractions feel like?

I’ll give it to you straight – my contractions felt like menstrual/diarrhea cramps around my whole lower abdomen.

a watercolor depiction of what a contraction feels like. Monet, I am not.

You feel it start right away, almost from your core. Tightening and aching immediately peeks, and then you get to breathe through the ache, for however long it lasts. For me, the hardest part was right at the beginning. This was how each contraction felt. In the beginning they were quite mild and short. As time went on, however, they became more intense and longer.

Now the main thing you need to know about contractions is 4-1-1. You are not supposed to go to the hospital until they are 4 minutes apart, lasting for 1 minute or more, and having this happen for at least 1 hour.

For some, that can be a loooooooong ways away. And even if you do get to 4-1-1, it still doesn’t mean that the baby is ready, and the hospital may not be able to admit you.

This is the fourth of a ten-part series recapping and examining the birth story of my Itty Bitty.