Braxton Hicks: what they feel like and when they start
Braxton Hicks are tightenings of the womb during pregnancy that do not mean labor has begun. Braxton Hicks contractions are also called practice contractions or false labor, and this guide sets out when they start, what they feel like, how the sources tell them apart from labor, and when to call.
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Medically reviewed by Dr Mary Davidson, Reproductive endocrinologist, checked on
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Bleeding and cramping are common in early pregnancy and often do not mean miscarriage. The symptoms below, however, need to be assessed straight away.
- Soaking two or more sanitary pads per hour, or passing large clots
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Showing routes for United States.
If you are less than 37 weeks pregnant and think you might be in labor, if your waters break, if you have vaginal bleeding or if your baby is moving less than usual, the NHS asks you to call your midwife or maternity unit urgently, even in the middle of the night (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023). In the US, call your obstetric care provider. The box above shows the emergency and urgent numbers for where you are, and get help now lists the other symptoms that need checking straight away. This page describes what the sources say about Braxton Hicks; it cannot tell you which kind of contraction you are having.
What are Braxton Hicks contractions?
What is Braxton Hicks, in the sources' words? Tommy's, the UK pregnancy charity, says Braxton Hicks happen when the womb contracts and relaxes, are sometimes called false labor pains, and are one of the ways the body prepares for labor (Tommy's, "Braxton Hicks", 2023). The NHS calls them practice contractions: tightenings during pregnancy, particularly toward the end, that may feel uncomfortable but are usually painless, do not last long, do not happen very often and do not build up (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023). MedlinePlus, from the US National Library of Medicine, says most pregnant women feel mild contractions like these before true labor begins, and lists their other names as false labor, prodromal labor and latent labor (MedlinePlus, "Signs of labor", 2026). ACOG's glossary defines them as false labor pains (ACOG, "How to Tell When Labor Begins", 2020).
When do Braxton Hicks start?
When do Braxton Hicks start? The honest answer is that the sources disagree, by several months:
| Source | When |
|---|---|
| MedlinePlus, US | Any time after the first trimester |
| Cleveland Clinic, US | As early as the second trimester |
| Tommy's, UK | Most likely felt in the second or third trimester |
| NHS inform, Scotland | From week 28 onwards |
| NHS, England | During pregnancy, particularly toward the end |
MedlinePlus says they may occur any time after the first trimester (MedlinePlus, 2026), and Cleveland Clinic that they can start as early as the second trimester (Cleveland Clinic, "Braxton Hicks", 2025). Tommy's says you will most likely feel them in the second or third trimester (Tommy's, 2023), while NHS inform describes them from week 28 onwards (NHS inform, "Contractions", 2025). So how early can Braxton Hicks start? On these sources, from the second trimester; Braxton Hicks at 20 weeks fall within the range MedlinePlus and Cleveland Clinic give, and the UK pages place them mostly later. The NHS week-by-week guide mentions them on its week 33 page (NHS, "Week 33 of pregnancy", 2026), which this site's 33 weeks pregnant covers.
Not everyone notices them. Tommy's and Cleveland Clinic both say so, and Tommy's says not to worry if you do not have them (Tommy's, 2023; Cleveland Clinic, 2025).
What do Braxton Hicks feel like?
What do Braxton Hicks feel like? The sources describe a tightening of the bump rather than a pain:
- NHS inform: from week 28 you may feel your abdomen tighten for about 30 seconds several times a day, or harden and stay tense for several seconds (NHS inform, 2025).
- NHS: a tightening over the bump for 20 to 30 seconds before the muscles relax, which should not hurt (NHS, "Week 33 of pregnancy", 2026).
- Tommy's: people often say they feel like mild menstrual cramps or a tightening across the stomach that comes and goes, and the bump may feel rock-hard for a minute or two (Tommy's, 2023).
Where do you feel Braxton Hicks? In the front. ACOG says the pain from false contractions is usually felt only in the front, while pain from true labor contractions usually starts in the back and moves to the front (ACOG, 2020). Do Braxton Hicks feel like period cramps? For some people, according to Tommy's; but the NHS also describes real labor contractions as feeling, for some, like extreme period pains (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023), so the comparison does not settle which is which.
Do Braxton Hicks hurt?
Here the sources part. The NHS says they may feel uncomfortable but are usually painless (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023); NHS inform says they are not painful (NHS inform, 2025); MedlinePlus says they are not painful (MedlinePlus, 2026); and Tommy's that they may be uncomfortable but should not be painful (Tommy's, 2023). ACOG, though, says these practice contractions can be very painful and can make you think you are in labor when you are not, and that you might notice them more at the end of the day (ACOG, 2020). Are Braxton Hicks painful, then? Usually not, by most sources; sometimes, by ACOG's. Painful contractions are one of the reasons the NHS gives for contacting your midwife (NHS, "Week 33 of pregnancy", 2026).
How long do Braxton Hicks last?
About 20 to 30 seconds in the NHS descriptions (NHS inform, 2025; NHS, "Week 33 of pregnancy", 2026), though Tommy's says the bump may feel hard for a minute or two (Tommy's, 2023). True labor contractions, by comparison, last from 30 to 70 seconds and get longer in MedlinePlus's description (MedlinePlus, 2026), and about 60 to 90 seconds in ACOG's (ACOG, 2020).
Braxton Hicks vs contractions of labor
The difference between Braxton Hicks and contractions of real labor, as the sources list it:
| Braxton Hicks | True labor | |
|---|---|---|
| Pattern | Irregular; no pattern; do not get closer together | Regular, getting closer together, about 5 to 10 minutes apart |
| Length | Short | 30 to 70 seconds, or 60 to 90 in ACOG's account, getting longer |
| Strength | Weak; do not get much stronger, or start strong and weaken | Steadily stronger |
| Moving or resting | May stop when you walk, rest or change position | Continue whatever you do |
| Where | Usually only in the front | Usually starting in the back and moving to the front |
| Other signs | No bleeding, leaking fluid or reduced movement; no change in the cervix | The cervix opens |
The table draws on MedlinePlus's list of false and true labor (MedlinePlus, 2026), ACOG's comparison of timing, movement, strength and location (ACOG, 2020), and the NHS inform and Tommy's descriptions of Braxton Hicks as not getting longer, stronger or more frequent (NHS inform, 2025; Tommy's, 2023). ACOG suggests timing contractions and noticing whether they continue when you rest and drink water, and says that if rest and drinking make them go away, they are not true labor (ACOG, 2020).
The lines are not always clear. Tommy's says that as the due date nears, Braxton Hicks can seem to get stronger or happen more often, which is why people mistake them for the real thing (Tommy's, 2023), and ACOG says that sometimes the only way to tell the difference is a vaginal exam to look for changes in the cervix (ACOG, 2020). If you are unsure, call your midwife or maternity unit; the NHS says you can call if you are unsure or worried about anything (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023).
False labor and prodromal labor
False labor is another name for Braxton Hicks. MedlinePlus calls this stage prodromal or latent labor (MedlinePlus, 2026). The NHS uses "latent phase" for the start of labor itself, when the cervix becomes soft and thin and starts to open, which can take hours or days (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023). So when a page compares prodromal labor vs Braxton Hicks, check which meaning it uses: in MedlinePlus's usage they are the same thing, while in the NHS's the latent phase is early labor. Your midwife or doctor can tell you which you are having.
What causes Braxton Hicks?
Tommy's says the cause is not really understood, and that experts think Braxton Hicks are the body's way of toning the womb's muscles ready for labor (Tommy's, 2023). Cleveland Clinic says they happen as the uterus gets ready for labor, and that some providers think they help soften and thin the cervix (Cleveland Clinic, 2025).
Why am I having so many Braxton Hicks contractions? Both name things that may trigger them. Tommy's lists being very active, having a full bladder, having sex and being dehydrated (Tommy's, 2023); Cleveland Clinic adds lifting something heavy (Cleveland Clinic, 2025). Tommy's suggests changing position, lying down after activity, walking after sitting for a long time, relaxing, or drinking some water (Tommy's, 2023). Frequent or regular tightenings are a different matter: they are on the call lists below, and a reason to ring rather than to look for a trigger.
When to call your midwife or maternity unit
When to be concerned about Braxton Hicks is set out in the UK and US guidance differently. Both are given here as they are written.
In the UK
The NHS says to call your midwife or maternity unit for guidance if you are having regular contractions every 5 minutes or more often, and that you can call if you are unsure or worried. It says to call urgently, without waiting until the next day, if (NHS, "Signs that labour has begun", 2023):
- your waters break
- you have vaginal bleeding
- your baby is moving less than usual
- you are less than 37 weeks pregnant and think you might be in labor
- any of your contractions last longer than 2 minutes
- you are having 6 or more contractions every 10 minutes
It says to call the emergency number and ask for an ambulance if you think your baby is coming now and you have a strong urge to push. Tommy's adds a call if Braxton Hicks continue, especially before 37 weeks, and whenever something just feels wrong (Tommy's, 2023).
In the US
MedlinePlus says to contact your provider right away for leaking amniotic fluid, decreased fetal movement, any vaginal bleeding other than light spotting, regular painful contractions every 5 to 10 minutes for 60 minutes, or contractions lasting 60 to 90 seconds, and to call for any other reason if you are unsure (MedlinePlus, 2026). ACOG says to call your ob-gyn if you think you are in labor or are not sure, and to go to the hospital if your water has broken and you are not having contractions, you are bleeding heavily, you have constant severe pain with no relief between contractions, or you notice the baby is moving less often (ACOG, 2020).
The two countries' thresholds are not identical, so use the one your own care team gave you. If none of them fits and you are still worried, call.
Braxton Hicks in the third trimester
Most people who notice Braxton Hicks do so in the third trimester, alongside the other changes of those weeks. MedlinePlus says term labor can start any time from 3 weeks before to 2 weeks after the due date (MedlinePlus, 2026); 37 weeks pregnant covers the start of that window and 40 weeks pregnant the week of the due date.
This guide is information, not a diagnosis or a recommendation of treatment, and it is no substitute for your own clinician. See the medical disclaimer.
Sources
- NHS. Signs that labour has begun. nhs.uk, 2023.
- NHS Best Start in Life. Week 33 of pregnancy (week-by-week guide to pregnancy). nhs.uk, 2026.
- NHS inform. Contractions (Ready Steady Baby). nhsinform.scot, 2025.
- National Library of Medicine, MedlinePlus. Signs of labor. MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, 2026.
- American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. How to Tell When Labor Begins (FAQ004). ACOG, 2020.
- Tommy's. Braxton Hicks. tommys.org, 2023.
- Cleveland Clinic. Braxton Hicks. my.clevelandclinic.org, 2025.
Frequently asked questions
When do Braxton Hicks start?
The sources give different answers: any time after the first trimester (MedlinePlus), as early as the second trimester (Cleveland Clinic), most likely in the second or third trimester (Tommy's), and from week 28 onwards (NHS inform). Not everyone notices them.
Do Braxton Hicks hurt?
The UK sources say they are uncomfortable but usually painless. ACOG, in the US, says these practice contractions can be very painful. If contractions become painful or regular, the NHS asks you to contact your midwife or maternity unit.
How long do Braxton Hicks last?
NHS inform describes a tightening for about 30 seconds several times a day, and the NHS week 33 page 20 to 30 seconds. Tommy's says the bump may feel rock-hard for a minute or two. The NHS asks for an urgent call if any contraction lasts longer than 2 minutes.
Do Braxton Hicks mean I am dilating?
MedlinePlus and Tommy's say Braxton Hicks do not cause the changes in the cervix that true labor does. ACOG notes that sometimes only a vaginal exam can tell false labor from true labor, which is one reason to call if you are unsure.