Lesson 8: The First Stage of Labor
"To be pregnant is to be vitally alive, thoroughly woman and distressingly inhabited. Soul and spirit are stretched - along with body - making pregnancy a time of transition, growth and profound beginnings." — Anne Christian Buchanan
introduction
Emotional Signposts of the First Stage of Labor
In this lesson we discuss the main phases of the first stage of labor, often known as pre-labor, early labor, active labor and transition. The first stage of labor is what most people think of when they picture being in labor...and you'll soon learn why the term "labor" is so appropriate for the work that is about to be done to bring your little one into this world!
You'll hopefully notice that we really focus on understanding the emotional signposts a woman may exhibit during each stage of labor. We can then use that information to think about what might best fit her needs at that moment. Remember that what a woman needs often changes frequently throughout her labor, so don't be afraid to try a coping technique that might not have worked earlier in the process. Understanding the emotional signposts can make it much easier to make critical decisions, such as when to call the midwife or go to your birth location, when to use water for pain relief, or when to have the doula come. So let's get started!
You'll hopefully notice that we really focus on understanding the emotional signposts a woman may exhibit during each stage of labor. We can then use that information to think about what might best fit her needs at that moment. Remember that what a woman needs often changes frequently throughout her labor, so don't be afraid to try a coping technique that might not have worked earlier in the process. Understanding the emotional signposts can make it much easier to make critical decisions, such as when to call the midwife or go to your birth location, when to use water for pain relief, or when to have the doula come. So let's get started!
learning goals & focus guide
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After viewing and completing Lesson 8 - "The First Stage of Labor", students will be able to:
- Explain the purpose of pre-labor contractions.
- Role play a woman and her support person experiencing each phase of the first stage of labor, demonstrating the emotional signposts and at least 2 coping techniques for each phase of first stage of labor.
- Hypothesize what a woman in the early phases of labor might consider doing if her labor starts during the evening. Do the same, only hypothesizing if labor starts during the day.
- List at least 3 ways to assess a laboring woman's dilation WITHOUT doing an internal exam. (See "How Dilated Am I? Assessing Dilation in Labor WITHOUT an Internal Exam", by Sarah Vine).
- Explain the purpose of pre-labor contractions.
- Role play a woman and her support person experiencing each phase of the first stage of labor, demonstrating the emotional signposts and at least 2 coping techniques for each phase of first stage of labor.
- Hypothesize what a woman in the early phases of labor might consider doing if her labor starts during the evening. Do the same, only hypothesizing if labor starts during the day.
- List at least 3 ways to assess a laboring woman's dilation WITHOUT doing an internal exam. (See "How Dilated Am I? Assessing Dilation in Labor WITHOUT an Internal Exam", by Sarah Vine).
video lesson
The Phases of the First Stage of Labor
Audio Only:
Identifying the Emotional Sign Posts Of Labor - A Video Analysis of the Birth of Trisha & Arp
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When finished viewing the clips from Orgasmic Birth™ please join us for the following discussion in which we work as a class to identify coping techniques used during this birth, as well as each phase of the first and second stages of labor for Trisha and Arp.Please view “Trisha and Arp's birth” from Orgasmic Birth™ (56:60–1:03:23). This is a home birth, and the statistics for the safety of home birth are discussed.
Notice that during her birth Trisha comments that she is scared, and her birth team responds by acknowledging her fear, but also by being very encouraging of her body's ability to birth her child. Trisha talks about the need to have people around who are accepting and will allow a laboring woman to totally "let go". She reflects on her need to scream during birth; not because of the pain, but because her birth was emotionally overwhelming and screaming was a satisfying response for her. Think about how low noises could be a useful tool for your own labor and birth! When finished viewing the clips from Orgasmic Birth™ please join us for the following discussion in which we work as a class to identify coping techniques used during this birth, as well as each phase of the first and second stages of labor for Trisha and Arp. |
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Audio Only:
resources
~ "Prepared Childbirth: The Family Way", by By Debby Amis and Jeanne Green (Your Purple Book, specifically pages 38-41)
~ "The Stages of Labor", by Penny Simkin
~ "How Dilated Am I? Assessing Dilation in Labor WITHOUT an Internal Exam", by Sarah Vine
~ "The Stages of Labor", by Penny Simkin
~ "How Dilated Am I? Assessing Dilation in Labor WITHOUT an Internal Exam", by Sarah Vine
diving deeper
Want to Dive Deeper? Let's Go!
~ "Emotional Sign-posts in Labor - The Alternative to Vaginal Exams" ~ By BoldTurquoise.com
reflection opportunities
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Student Poll: |
Journal Entry:
Please visit the forum below under "Unit 3: Preparing For The Stages Of Labor - The First Stage Of Labor" to reflect on the following question:
- Hypothesize what a woman in the early phases of labor might consider doing if her labor starts during the evening. Do the same, only hypothesizing if labor starts during the day.
- Hypothesize what a woman in the early phases of labor might consider doing if her labor starts during the evening. Do the same, only hypothesizing if labor starts during the day.
Please note you must log in to the forum at the beginning of each online session, even after you have already logged into the Class Portal. Click below on "Powerful Mamas Online Student Forums" to access this feature:
Inspiring Birth Stories!
"Mia Carmen was born on Friday, 5/16 at 1:37 pm. She weighed 8 pounds, 10 ounces and was 20 1/4 inches long. And she was born NATURALLY!
I was 40 weeks and 2 days when she came. On Thursday evening I had been having some contractions that I knew were more than just Braxton Hicks. They were about 30 minutes apart so I didn't really think much of them. By the time I went to bed around 11:30 they had become so random that I didn't think they would turn into anything. I told my mom to just go on to bed and that I would let her know if they got closer together.
I never did fall asleep because each contraction was getting harder to breathe through even though they were far apart. By 2:20, they were coming about every 15-20 minutes. I decided to get up and rock on my ball to see if that increased the intervals. Sure enough, by 4:00 I knew that I was definitely in labor and contractions were every 10 minutes. I made myself a sandwich (lol) and kept rocking on my ball. I alerted my parents and best friend because they were all going to be involved in my labor and/or the care of our 3 year old. We decided to head to the hospital around 7:30 when my contractions were 5 minutes apart.
Once we got to the hospital, we found out that there were no rooms and the triage was full so we had to go to the overflow room. We were in one room, split by a curtain and both me and the lady on the other side were in labor. That was interesting. I just remembered thinking that I didn't want to labor in that room next to random people because I was just so uncomfortable. Once the nurse checked me and realized I was a 4-5 with a bulging bag of waters, a room magically appeared :)
While we were waiting for them to get the room ready, my water broke. Once I had walked to my room and gotten my saline lock, the midwife came in to check me. I was a 7! She said my water wasn't completely broken so she broke it all the way. I wanted to labor on the ball for a bit but once I had been doing that for a while, the midwife suggested that I try a couple of different positions. Once I did that, I knew that pushing was close. I was making all the sounds you see in the videos and they were uncontrollable. I knew that would happen but it was just weird hearing them come out of me.
Rolando was wonderful during labor. Heat and counter pressure on my lower back was all I needed through every contraction. She was sunny side up so I had back labor until the end. She never did turn. In my video, it's definitely her face that we saw first!
Pushing was the most difficult part for me because I got tired so quickly and contractions were on top of each other. I ended up using the squat bar not to squat but to pull on to help myself. I thought she was never coming out and I said "I can't do this!" probably every contraction I had!
I certainly did do it though and I'm still in shock. She was so alert and looking around right away.
She's a miracle though because after examining the placenta, we realized she had a true knot in her cord that was causing blood to pool because it couldn't get through. I'm amazed at God's grace and I just can't believe how perfect she is.
We had some breastfeeding issues at first but Angela [Swieter, of Basking Babies LLC] came to our house yesterday and corrected her latch and things are going better now. I highly recommend her, she's fantastic." ~ Jessica Z.
I was 40 weeks and 2 days when she came. On Thursday evening I had been having some contractions that I knew were more than just Braxton Hicks. They were about 30 minutes apart so I didn't really think much of them. By the time I went to bed around 11:30 they had become so random that I didn't think they would turn into anything. I told my mom to just go on to bed and that I would let her know if they got closer together.
I never did fall asleep because each contraction was getting harder to breathe through even though they were far apart. By 2:20, they were coming about every 15-20 minutes. I decided to get up and rock on my ball to see if that increased the intervals. Sure enough, by 4:00 I knew that I was definitely in labor and contractions were every 10 minutes. I made myself a sandwich (lol) and kept rocking on my ball. I alerted my parents and best friend because they were all going to be involved in my labor and/or the care of our 3 year old. We decided to head to the hospital around 7:30 when my contractions were 5 minutes apart.
Once we got to the hospital, we found out that there were no rooms and the triage was full so we had to go to the overflow room. We were in one room, split by a curtain and both me and the lady on the other side were in labor. That was interesting. I just remembered thinking that I didn't want to labor in that room next to random people because I was just so uncomfortable. Once the nurse checked me and realized I was a 4-5 with a bulging bag of waters, a room magically appeared :)
While we were waiting for them to get the room ready, my water broke. Once I had walked to my room and gotten my saline lock, the midwife came in to check me. I was a 7! She said my water wasn't completely broken so she broke it all the way. I wanted to labor on the ball for a bit but once I had been doing that for a while, the midwife suggested that I try a couple of different positions. Once I did that, I knew that pushing was close. I was making all the sounds you see in the videos and they were uncontrollable. I knew that would happen but it was just weird hearing them come out of me.
Rolando was wonderful during labor. Heat and counter pressure on my lower back was all I needed through every contraction. She was sunny side up so I had back labor until the end. She never did turn. In my video, it's definitely her face that we saw first!
Pushing was the most difficult part for me because I got tired so quickly and contractions were on top of each other. I ended up using the squat bar not to squat but to pull on to help myself. I thought she was never coming out and I said "I can't do this!" probably every contraction I had!
I certainly did do it though and I'm still in shock. She was so alert and looking around right away.
She's a miracle though because after examining the placenta, we realized she had a true knot in her cord that was causing blood to pool because it couldn't get through. I'm amazed at God's grace and I just can't believe how perfect she is.
We had some breastfeeding issues at first but Angela [Swieter, of Basking Babies LLC] came to our house yesterday and corrected her latch and things are going better now. I highly recommend her, she's fantastic." ~ Jessica Z.