Contraction question

This is my second pregnancy and with my first my water broke on my dude date so there was no question if I was in labor or not and I got my epidural as soon as I walked in the hospital so I don’t remember contractions at all... I’m just wondering if the tightening I feel that comes with pain is a contraction? My whole stomach gets completely hard and hurts ... some times I get the tightness with no pain or anything uncomfortable at all and others it’s very painful they both last between 45seconds and a min and half im 38.2 weeks and have only been having on and off pain with the tightness the past 2 days

—- also should I time the non painful tightness too or only ones that are supper uncomfortable