Hilary Duff Helpfully Describes 'Lightning Crotch' Pregnancy Symptom

Pregnancy is not for the faint of heart. It can be painful and surreal and more than a little uncomfortable, and the closer you get to delivery, the worse it gets. Hilary Duff who is closing in on the due date for her third child,  shared some horror stories of her own when the Younger star sat down with guest host Brooke Baldwin on The Ellen DeGeneres Show and dished one of the weirdest and most painful parts of her third trimester: “lightning crotch.”

“I texted my midwife the other day and I was like, ‘What’s up with the stabbing pains in my vagina? I’m not feeling this,'” Duff said on the show. “It feels awful, like you’re being struck by lightning! And she just wrote back and she was like, ‘Oh, lightning crotch,’ like it was no big thing. And I was like, ‘This is quite traumatic.’ ”

Duff explained that the sensation is caused by “the baby getting ready for birth and lowering. So you can actually breathe and … fill your lungs up with air, which I haven’t been able to do in months, but you get stabbing pains in your vagina.”

“It’ll just strike and all of a sudden, and you’re doubled over, and then it’s gone,” she added.

According to Healthline, lightning crotch usually occurs when the baby’s head putting pressure on the cervix or on a nerve ending. Of course, this is just one of several aches and pains pregnant people suffer — all in the name of bring those little ones into the world. If you’re experiencing a new pain in your pregnancy, don’t just trust  Doctor Google to tell you whether it’s serious or not. Do as Duff did and call your health-care provider.

Alongside the birth of her third baby, Duff is also celebrating the publication of her first children’s book, a picture book inspired by her daughter, Banks Violet Bair, who she shares with husband Matthew Koma.  On Instagram, Duff shared the impetus for her foray into the world of kid lit. “I wrote this one night after a long day at work away from my 4-month-old daughter,” she wrote. “Emotions running high, still trying to hang on to nursing and being fearful of the change that comes with new schedules/work/really just life.”

“I went down the rabbit hole thinking about the many adventures she will have in her life with and without me, and all of the ways she will have to be brave and find her footing in this beautiful challenging world! I hope this book inspires girls to lead with their heart and know how special their mind is, and helps parents not feel so alone when dealing with the bittersweet taste of letting your child grow.”

Childbirth is nothing like in the movies, as these beautiful photos show.