Cramps in pregnancy.

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I'm getting these horrible abdominal cramps. They're pretty much like menstrual cramps. I'm scared for my baby. Should I go to the doc, or are these cramps normal? I'm really REALLy worried! Besides, I've spent most of the evening locked up in my room, crying. I guess this is a hormonal part, but I'm not sure about the cramps. Please, help me! I need advice!

I had this in early pregnancy and everything was fine it is quite normal. Big hugs hope you feel okay.

I do not know what country you live int, so this might work differently for you. If you live in the USA call your OB/GYN, ask over the phone if you should make an appointment based on what is happening to you (there is usually a nurse available for the phones who can advise you better than me- an ex-medical student). Thinks to include would be how many weeks pregnant you are, if you have any spotting or other bleeding, when during the day the cramps happen (both in relation to time and activities), how long the cramps last, do they come and go or are they constant, how long has this been happening. How long has it been since your last check up, and when is your next check up due? Is this your first child, or not?

Overall, it would not hurt to go see a doctor.

If you are close-ish to your due date it could be premature labor, or braxton-hicks contractions (false labor contractions) or it could be something else, but ask your doctor.

If you are worried I would go to the doc. The hormones can make you more emotional but being so upset isn't good for you or the baby. If you see the doc he/she can probably give you good info about whether or not anything unusual is going on. I would think it is worth the trip just for some peace of mind.

It's pretty normal and cramps alone (without bleeding or spotting) aren't usually a sign of anything being wrong, but the peace of mind from going in and getting an ultrasound would probably be worth it!

I hope everything's okay. I've had three healthy babies and three losses so I'm very familiar with anxiety in early pregnancy The first trimester is living hell for me and it has greatly eased my mind to get things checked out when I'm really worried or when I feel like things aren't quite right. For me it's the not-knowing that's the worst.

When I had them, I was in labor. How far along are you? You may be in early labor.

I had really bad cramps through out my first trimester, I googled it and lots of websites say its very common. However its a good idea t to see your Dr/midwife if your worried.

If you have any bleeding go straight to the 'accident and emergency' of your local hospital (what my midwife advised me).

Yup, I agree - call your doctor, midwife, or if you haven't set up something call your general practitioner and see if they can see you. You're about 8 weeks along now, right? You are due for your first appointment anyway.

This is most likely nothing but your body settling in (could even be garden-variety indigestion) or it could be something your doctor will want to check out. Here's a good overview of what's happening developmentally to your baby and you: http://www.womenshealthcaretopics.com/p ... week_8.htm

It is really important that you do NOT try to do this all by yourself. Get medical advice. Most especially, your mental health is pretty important right now, and finding medical support to help your peace of mind is an important part of taking care of yourself; this onslaught of new possibilities while awash in hormones is hard for everybody. Do NOT settle for a doctor who is dismissive of your concerns (dismissive being "oh, all mothers feel that" without taking time to do an ordinary checkup or to explain what is going on.) You want someone who can reassure you.

whitemissacacia, are you living alone? Do you have a partner who is helping you through this pregnancy? If you don't have support, there are programs out there to help - you shouldn't have to do this by yourself. We're all happy to weigh in, but I'd like to know you have someone who understands your needs available to you on a more immediate basis.

IT NEVER hurts to go to the doctor....are you spotting at all? (I used to be a OB/GYN). Your doc will not mind looking you over to ease your mind. It may also be our ligaments stretching, this is sometimes very painful. Many first pregnancies and even last ones (I was worried a lot with my last baby because I felt I was too old to have another one). Just give the doc a call, no big deal, dont feel bad .

If you were miscarrying you would be bleeding, dont worry.....I even bled a bit with a few of mine and it was nothing.

It's one thing to have help and refuse it; its another thing to be going it alone and need someone and not have that as an option. Sure, anybody could do pregnancy alone (and certainly, I hated being fussed over - that's not what I mean when I say support, and it doesn't have to be the case) but what I'm trying to get across is that there is no reason to do so.

Most of the time, pregnant women can get healthcare for free, sometimes you can get access to a midwife or doula for free if you can show you have need, and you can have someone to talk to, to get feedback from, and to do things that get hard when you're pregnant or have a kid, like laundry or grocery-shopping (grocery shopping with morning sickness? No thank you.) Depends on where in the world you are, but in the US, this is a good place to start: http://mchb.hrsa.gov/

Here's another resource, less clinical: http://www.healthconnectone.org/

It's great to be strong, and pregnancy is far from impossible even if you're doing it alone - but why make something more difficult than it has to be? Less stress, anxiety and exhaustion make the adjustment to parenthood much easier, and therefore the adjustment to being born is easier for the baby.

Yes, it's very important to have support throughout your pregnancy! If there are any doulas in your area it would be well worth it to e-mail a few of them and see if they offer free or reduced rates. Every doula I know offers at least one or the other of those if not both. If not, maybe you can find some other type of supportive person. Depending on where you live, insurance or medicaid might cover a midwife. IME (as a midwifery client and student midwife), you usually get to see midwives for an hour and they actually sit down and talk to you and you don't usually wait more than 5-10 minutes either. They don't generally run behind like at doctor's offices.

Maybe you could think of a doula, midwife, or other support person as a guide... it's as if you're going on a journey that's through a brand new, sometimes treacherous, land and it helps so much (IME) to have someone there to help you find your way through it.

And I cannot think of any doctor or midwife who would want you to worry instead of calling. Seriously. You won't be bothering anyone.