Childbirth

On this page

Summary

When you are ready to have your baby, you'll go through labor. Labor is the process of giving birth. Signs that you might be going into labor include

Contractions that are regular then start to come closer together
Leaking fluid or bleeding from the vagina
Low, dull backache
Abdominal cramps

Call your health care provider if you have any of these signs, even if it is before your due date. Preterm labor can start before 37 completed weeks of pregnancy.

Labor happens in three stages. The first stage begins with contractions. It continues until your cervix has become thinner and dilated (stretched) to about 4 inches wide. The second stage is the active stage, in which you begin to push downward. Crowning is when your baby's scalp comes into view. Shortly afterward, your baby is born. In the third stage, you deliver the placenta. The placenta is the organ that supplied food and oxygen to your baby during pregnancy.

Mothers and babies are monitored closely during labor. Most women are able to have a baby through normal vaginal delivery. If there are complications, the baby may need to be delivered surgically by a Cesarean section.

NIH: National Institute of Child Health and Human Development

Start Here

Labor and Birth (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health) Also in Spanish
Stages of Labor (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation) Also in Spanish
What Is Labor? (National Institute of Child Health and Human Development) Also in Spanish

Diagnosis and Tests

Contractions (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation)
Fetal Heart Rate Monitoring during Labor (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF Also in Spanish
How to Tell When Labor Begins (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF
Signs of Labor (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation)
Water Breaking: Understand This Sign of Labor (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

Treatments and Therapies

Dealing with Pain during Childbirth (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Medications for Pain Relief during Labor and Delivery (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF Also in Spanish

Related Issues

Apgar Scores (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
Birth Plans (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Birthing Centers and Hospital Maternity Services (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Birthing Classes (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish
Cord-Blood Banking (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Elective Delivery Before 39 Weeks (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF
Let Baby Set the Delivery Date: Wait Until 39 Weeks if You Can (National Institutes of Health) Also in Spanish
Midwives (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Perineal Massage in Pregnancy (American College of Nurse-Midwives) - PDF
What Is Full Term? (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation)

Specifics

Assisted Vaginal Delivery (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) Also in Spanish
Back Labor: Childbirth Myth or Reality? (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Cesarean Section: MedlinePlus Health Topic (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish
Episiotomy: When It's Needed, When It's Not (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)
Home Birth: Know the Pros and Cons (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Labor Induction (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF
Natural Childbirth (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
Vaginal Birth After Cesarean Delivery: Deciding on a Trial of Labor After a Cesarean Delivery (TOLAC) (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) - PDF Also in Spanish

Images

Epidural - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Episiotomy - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Vaginal birth - slideshow (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

Videos and Tutorials

At Least 39 Weeks (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation)
Signs of Labor (Healthy Roads Media) Also in Spanish
Your Recovery After Vaginal Birth - Part 1 (Healthy Roads Media) Also in Spanish
Your Recovery After Vaginal Birth - Part 2 (Healthy Roads Media) Also in Spanish

Statistics and Research

Birthing Options for Full-Term Pregnancy (National Institutes of Health)
FastStats: Births -- Method of Delivery (National Center for Health Statistics)
FastStats: Obstetrical Procedures (National Center for Health Statistics)
PeriStats: Perinatal Statistics (March of Dimes Birth Defects Foundation)
Recent Declines in Induction of Labor by Gestational Age (National Center for Health Statistics)
Trends in Out-of-Hospital Births in the United States, 1990-2012 (National Center for Health Statistics)

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Delivery, Obstetric (National Institutes of Health)
ClinicalTrials.gov: Labor, Obstetric (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

womenshealth.gov (Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

Am I in labor? (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Assisted delivery with forceps (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Delivery presentations (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Delivery presentations (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Epidural block (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Episiotomy (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Spinal and epidural anesthesia (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
What you should bring to your labor and delivery (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish