Stages of Labor I: Early Phase

If your are like my wife then you have to always be prepared. Whether you are planning dinner, or expecting a baby. It seems only natural for Kayla to have complete knowledge of labor before hand (she plans out our trips to walmart in such detail it is mind boggling). After being educated on labor I feel comfortable sharing some of the knowledge I retained. Knowledge is power!

Labor is divided into 3 stages, stage one has three phases. These phases are early, active, and trasition. Early labor is where the cervix begins to dialate. This phase usually lasts for about 8-10 hours and is when contractions will begin. These contractions will be anywhere from 20 minutes to 5 minutes apart and will last for about 30-45 seconds a piece. There are some things that mommy will want to start doing when these begin.

1. Start drinking only clear liquids (any liquid that you can see through). No! Vodka doesn't count, so put that Grey Goose away. Also, you may eat popsicles or jello.

2. Try to get as much rest as possible.

3. It may help to think of contractions not as bad and painful. But, necessary to squeeze your little one out. Think of it as a reoccurring bear hug, gently nudging your baby into this world.

4. At this point you will want to begin timing your contractions so you will better understand when you need to go to the hospital.

What will these contractions feel like? Well, they will more than likely start in your lower back and work themselves around your hips and down to your pelvis. If your contractions don't have a constant interval then it is likely it is false labor. When in doubt, check it out!

This will be a multiple post subject. I will continue this daily through the week.