Stages of Labor

One of the best ways to prepare for labor and giving birth is to have a general idea of what to expect as the day approaches. While no two birth stories are ever exactly the same, understanding the stages of labor can help you prepare for what you will experience physically and emotionally. Thinking through these stages can help you decide who you want in the room with you, what you want to include in your birth plan and which pain management techniques you want to use.

You may or may not experience Braxton-Hicks contractions, also known as false labor or prodromal labor, days or weeks before you go into labor. These contractions often feel like a strong tightening of your uterus but do not maintain a predictable pattern. What differentiates them from true labor is that they do not cause your cervix to significantly thin or dilate, although you can be sure that they’re preparing your body for labor.

The first stage of active labor, known as early labor or the latent phase, often begins slowly. The contractions may grab your attention, but they will be 10 or more minutes apart and last only 30 to 45 seconds each. Most women will not need to head to the hospital at this point, other than in special circumstances. However, your doctor or midwife may want to hear from you so that they know to plan accordingly. During early labor, most women are excited as they anticipate the arrival of their new baby. The contractions are manageable, and many women prefer to wait at home through this stage.

Next, you will enter the active phase of active labor. Contractions will continue to get stronger, longer and closer together. Most doctors ask that you head to the hospital when your contractions have been 5 minutes apart and lasting 45 to 60 seconds each for about an hour, but of course you’ll want to verify when they’d like for you to call. As you enter active labor, you will most likely become more serious and focused as you cope with the contractions.

As you reach the end of active labor – it’s almost time to push! – you’ll enter what’s known as transition. During this time, contractions become very intense. If you have opted to use non-medicinal pain relief management, you will doubt your ability to continue with “natural” labor and may find yourself wanting an epidural or other drug relief during this stage. For most women, this stage lasts less than an hour, but it’s important to just focus on each contraction as it hits or the thought of continuing can become overwhelming. It is during this stage that your support – whether it be your husband, mom, best friend or a hired doula – becomes indispensable.

When your cervix has reached ten centimeters, it will be time to push. During this phase, the contractions may slow down, and you may feel an intense urge to push. Some women say that they couldn’t NOT push during this time, that their body simply took over.

Pushing can become discouraging very quickly because you cannot see the progress that is being made with each push. However, it’s important to remember that pushing can last anywhere from five minutes to three hours. It’s always best to prepare for that worst case scenario while hoping for the best so that you do not become discouraged while pushing. You’ll also want the encouragement of your support team during this time.

Soon enough, your baby will arrive. The emotions of this moment may be indescribable, or you may simply feel relief as your body immediately begins to relax. While it would be nice to be able to simply enjoy bonding with your baby, you must still deliver the placenta, which has been nourishing your baby for the last nine months. This phase may last from 5 to 30 minutes, but you will no longer be experiencing strong contractions, and this stage will not require the same amount of focus as the others.

While there are a million different ways giving birth could play out for you, having a general sense of what to expect allows you to focus more on coping with each stage and relieves some of the fear and uncertainty surrounding labor and birth. Reading birth stories is another great way to prepare. I highly recommend Ina May Gaskin's Ina May's Guide to Childbirth. Even if you are not planning a "natural" birth, the birth stories in this book paint a beautiful and peaceful picture without minimizing the intensity of labor and giving birth. 

Mandi Ehman has three beautiful girls under 4, two born naturally and one via emergency c-section. She works at home as a general transcriptionist and also blogs at Transcription Talk, a daily blog for transcriptionists and those looking to get started in the industry, and at Doodles’ Place, where she shares some of the ways that she strives to “make the most of every moment” with her three girls.