Childbirth

Stage One of Childbirth

Stage one of childbirth or what is commonly referred to as early labor is when your contractions come at regular intervals and your cervix starts to slowly dilate and efface. Early contractions are very hard to distinguish between real labor and Braxton Hicks contractions, which are called false labor. If you are not at least 37 weeks into your pregnancy and you believe you are beginning to have contractions you should contact your doctor immediately.

Early labor normally begins slowly, with contractions as far apart as 15 to 20 minutes and lasting only a few seconds. As labor continues the contractions will become closer and last longer such as every 10 minutes and lasting for around 30 seconds. Then they will get even closer to around 5 minutes and last from 40 to 60 seconds. Once you have reached this mark you are no longer in stage one or early labor.

Always remember, every woman and every pregnancy is different. You cannot guess when it comes to labor. Some women experience very mild contractions in early labor with the contractions only lasting a few seconds, while other have severe contractions lasting a full 30 seconds.

In this stage of labor most of the time, you can still manage to walk around your house and do your normal routine. This early stage of labor is normally around 8 hours if this is your first baby, however, it can be much shorter or even longer. Some women can be in early labor for a couple of days to as short as a couple of hours. It all depends on how ripe your cervix is at the beginning of labor. With the first baby, it usually takes longer, with other pregnancies and labor going much quicker.

During stage one of childbirth you may also notice a bloody mucous discharge. This is very normal. The bloody show or mucous plug is at the opening of the cervix and protects infection or other bacteria from entering the womb, however once labor starts this plug begins to break down and be discharged.

Active labor begins when your cervix has dilated to 3 or 4 centimeters and your contractions are around 5 minutes apart. You will not be able to walk around any more and the pain will be more intense. This active labor will continue until you are completely 10 centimeters and the baby has moved down into the birth canal. Each contraction will last around 60 seconds and will be stronger. If your contractions are now close to 5 minutes apart and lasting 60 seconds it is time to go to the hospital or contact your midwife. If this is your first baby the average length of time for active labor is around 6 hours, however, remember every woman is different and every pregnancy is different.

Once you have dilated to 8 to 10 centimeters it is called the transition stage. You will now be entering the stage two of childbirth.