Labor and Delivery

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What happens to your body before labor starts . True versus false labor . Pain-relief options during labor . When to leave for the hospital or birthing center . What to expect during each stage of labor . Getting to know your new baby

Labor and Delivery

Despite what some childbirth instructors would have you believe, there's no such thing as a textbook delivery. Birth experiences are every bit as individual as the babies they produce.

This may come as a tremendous relief to you if you've been listening to birth-related horror stories for the past nine months, or as a bit of a shock if you've been counting on having the intense but satisfying birth experience like the woman in the labor video.

The best way to prepare for what lies ahead is to learn as much as you can about giving birth and to spend some time anticipating virtually every possible scenario—a long labor and a short labor; a labor that requires fetal monitoring and one that doesn't; a pushing stage that warrants an episiotomy and one that doesn't; a planned vaginal delivery, a planned cesarean delivery, and an emergency cesarean delivery; and so on. It's important to have at least some idea of how you would handle the situation if it became necessary to deviate from your birth plan, however slightly.

What happens to your body before you go into labor

Just when you think you're going to be pregnant forever, some tell-tale signs cue you to the fact that your baby's birth is fast approaching.

" Our Lamaze instructor…
assured our class…that our cervix muscles would become 'naturally numb' as they swelled and stretched, and deep breathing would turn the final explosions of pain into 'manageable discomfort.' This description turned out to be as accurate as, say, a steward advising passengers aboard the Titanic to prepare for a brisk but bracing swim.
—Mary Kay Blakely in American Mom "

You may experience one or all of the following symptoms during the weeks and days leading up to your baby's birth:

• Lightening ("dropping"): The term lightening refers to a descent into the pelvis that causes the abdomen to protrude at a lower position than before, resulting in a sense of reduced pressure and crowding in the upper abdomen. What most pregnancy books fail to tell you is that it is a very subjective phenomenon and not experienced by all women, first-time mothers or otherwise, to the same degree—or even at all. Once lightening has occurred (be it a few weeks prior to the onset of labor or as labor starts), you will carry your baby differently: your breasts will probably no longer touch the top of your abdomen, and you may find it easier to breathe. On the other hand, because the baby is now being carried in a much lower position than previously, you may experience an increased urge to urinate.
  Note: The term lightening is often used interchangeably with the term engagement—even though the two terms mean totally different things. Engagement is a measurable and detectable event that occurs when the leading bony edge of the fetal head descends into the pelvis and reaches the level of the ischial spines (at which point the baby is said to be at zero station).
  
  
• Increasing pressure in the pelvis and rectum: You may experience crampiness, groin pain, and persistent lower backache. These symptoms are likely to be more pronounced if this is your second or subsequent birth. One fourth-time mother describes the sensation as being not unlike carrying a bowling ball around in a sling—the sling, of course, being your just-plain-weary levator sling—a collection of muscles that support the pelvic organs.
  
  
• Slight weight loss or reduced weight gain: Your weight gain may taper off at the end in spite of adequate nutrition and continuing fetal growth. This is because of the complex interaction of a number of factors, including varying rates of water retention.
  
  
• Fluctuating energy levels: Some pregnant women feel fatigued to the point of exhaustion during the last few weeks of pregnancy. Others get a sudden burst of energy (often referred to as the "nesting instinct") that makes them want to clean out closets, organize the baby's room, and otherwise prepare for baby's arrival. Just a quick word of wisdom from all the mothers who have been there: Even if it kills you, force yourself to rest and relax. You don't want to be feeling burned out and exhausted by the time the first contraction hits.