Early Labor
What to Expect & How to Respond
As a doula with experience in over 200 births, I get a lot of questions about early labor. So today I want to jump into a quick overview of what to expect and how to respond when faced with this part of your birth experience. There are a few things I want to share in order to help your early labor as peaceful and enjoyable as possible.
First things first. What is actually happening in early labor? There are three big things that are going on. 1- Dilation. The cervix begins to open and dilate from a 1 to a 10. 2- Effacement. This is simply the process of the cervix thinning until it disappears. 3- Position of baby. A “station” describes how the baby is progressing through the birth canal. A negative 3 (or -3) station would be a common place to start in early labor as the head is further up the canal. A woman can go into labor already dilated to 3cm and 80% effaced & at a -2 station. That may mean early labor will progress a little quicker. If the contractions aren’t strong enough for change, though, she may stay at 3cm, 80% and -2. It’s all about the combination of these three factors while having strong, effective contractions. Unfortunately, there’s no magic, no set way and no predicting how everything will go. Because of this, it is important to keep your mind clear and at peace in the last days of your pregnancy.
A lot of moms have trouble knowing the difference between “warming up” and active labor. Some feel as if their labor was extremely long because they mentally committed to having the baby too soon. The key is distraction. Do your day. Ignore the little voice inside your head saying “this might be it”. If you feel the need to time contractions and they are still a good 10 min apart or if there is no pattern at all, there is nothing to do at that point. By putting on your “binoculars” and dwelling on every single thing you are feeling, you can create a longer birth for yourself. It is easy to wear yourself out too early mentally. And it is important to conserve that energy for later in the birth when you will really need it.
If you are feeling symptoms during the day, finish the task at hand, do some laundry, go grocery shopping. Eat a healthy snack. Take a walk to encourage any contractions to get stronger. Remember, try not to focus on them. Having said that, if you are feeling some things happening at night, try to rest. There is no telling how long you are about to go without sleep once your true labor begins. Ask yourself- “Do I really want to have this baby in the middle of the night?” If you are able to go back to sleep, by all means, do it! I’m always encouraging my clients to stay in the comfort of their own home as long as possible. You will be more at ease not being hooked up to monitors and watched constantly. This is a marathon, not a sprint.
A good way to indicate if you are in active labor is to drink a big glass of water or two, and get into a relaxing bath tub. Put your feet up and try to nap. If it’s not labor, 9 times out of 10, your symptoms will stop. If you are in labor, doing these things may slow it down a little, but there is no stopping this locomotive. Once the body has agreed and said “yes” to labor, than it’s truly a runaway train going downhill. Trying to decide whether or not you’re in labor, or if it’s time to go to the hospital is almost always about a pattern and an increased intensity in your contractions.
You can shave time off of your birth if you focus on things other than early labor. But there will come a point where you cannot ignore your contractions anymore. They may be 3-5 minutes apart. You will move from discomfort to pain. And then it’s go time, baby!