How much should it hurt?

AllieBelle1

I'm having contractions. Over the last hour, they have averaged every 6 1/2 minutes, lasting about 1:20. The have decreased in frequency slightly, after having been every 5 1/4 minutes for 2 hours. My midwife said to call following the 5-1-1 rule and so I called her a bit ago. We agreed that I should wait a while since they are not too intense yet, but now I am wondering how strong they should get before I act. I live 40 minutes from the hospital, have to drop my son off at my MIL's first (another 15 minutes) and plan on getting an epidural. But also I'm planning a VBAC and don't want to get to the hospital too early.

I never had any contractions with my first so I don't really have a perception of the pain level to expect, even though I'm sure it's different from person to person and pregnancy to pregnancy. 

So what should contractions feel like when it's time to go to the hospital?