A woman who is 30 weeks pregnant has just finished her morning walk. Suddenly, she feels her stomach tighten. A few hours later, it happens again. No pain — just a rock hard belly. Should she grab her ...

A gush of water, being doubled over in pain, the head of your baby crowning. These are things many women picture when they think of labor. However, for most laboring women, these things take time and ...

A concentric contraction is a type of muscle activation that causes tension on your muscle as it shortens. As your muscle shortens, it generates enough force to move an object. This is the most ...

As the gestation period nears completion, the uterus grows to a length of 12 inches (from 3 inches) and the weight increases to 1,100 g (from 30–40 g). The uterus has 5 liters of fluid, and together ...

Guys, there is so much to look forward to about pregnancy and birth: the adorable socks, that thing babies do when they grab your finger, and, you know finally getting that other living thing out of ...

Labor is the process of the fetus moving into position for delivery. It happens when a person experiences contractions 5–10 minutes apart that last for 30–70 seconds. A person getting ready to give ...

Muscle contraction is the tightening, shortening, or lengthening of muscles when you do some activity. It can happen when you hold or pick up something, or when you stretch or exercise with weights.

Medically reviewed by Shieva Ghofrany, M.D. Shieva Ghofrany, MD, is a board-certified OB-GYN in Stamford, Connecticut with 23 years of experience as a physician caring for people of varied ages, ...

Pregnancy is filled with weird aches, pains, and twinges, and some are a little scarier than others. Former Bachelorette star Ali Fedotowsky recently had a particularly confusing experience with ...

A woman who is 30 weeks pregnant has just finished her morning walk. Suddenly, she feels her stomach tighten. A few hours later, it happens again. No pain — just a rock hard belly. Should she grab her ...