Contractions vs cramps

Meg

How do you tell the difference? I had my membranes stripped yesterday and had pretty intense cervical cramps (felt like extreme lightning crotch) that only lasted 5-10 seconds and came every 30 seconds to minute.

I know they weren’t long or close enough to go to the hospital but when it is time what should I look for pain wise? I know the 60 seconds contraction every 5 minutes rule