Childbirth also known as labor, birth, or parturition is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the expulsion of one or more newborn infants from a women’s uterus. There are three stages to giving child birth and some different methods. There are also some physical and emotional effects that come along with being pregnant and going into labor.

The first stage to giving childbirth begins when you start having contractions that cause progressive changes in your cervix and ends when your cervix is fully dilated. Contractions are the tightening and shortening of the uterine muscles during labor causing effacement and dilation of the cervix and contributing to the descent of the baby. This stage is also divided into two phases’ early labor and active labor. Early labor is when your cervix gradually effaces and dilates. Active labor is when you cervix begins to dilate more rapidly, and contractions are longer, stronger, and closer together. The second stage is when you are fully dilated and ends with the birth of the baby. This stage is also known as the pushing stage. The third stage starts right after the birth of the baby and ends with the delivery of the placenta. Every pregnancy is different so each of these stages could last longer than others and some complications could come along. For women having a baby for the first time labor usually last between ten and twenty hours. Labor for women who have already had a child is much easier and the delivery doesn’t take too long.

Going into labor is a big deal. There are many different way to go into labor and deliver a baby. The three most common ways are natural birth, medicated birth, and cesarean section known as a C-section. Natural child birth is once thought only for the bravest souls. It is having birth with absolutely no medication of any kind. When you choose to have natural birth you accept the potential for pain and discomfort as part and parcel of giving birth.  Medicated birth is when you decided to use pain medication during labor. The most common medication used during child birth is the epidural. Most women choose this route. Although there are other medications used to make the delivery easier. The C-section is usually not a choice it’s more a decision from the doctor. The way a C-section is determined to be done is if the baby or you are experiencing distress during labor or other complications. The rate for C-sections in the US has increased forty percent in the past ten years. Labor is the last stage in a pregnancy and is one of the most important. You need to choose which method of labor would be best for you and your unborn baby.

There are many physical effects to giving birth and even after birth. Most of the effects have to do with the cervix. The cervix is the opening to the womb and plays a crucial role in pregnancy. The cervix is always moving from a posterior position to an anterior position. It is softening and thinning and can thin anywhere from 0% to 50% during this stage. When the cervix begins to open you then may lose your mucous plug. After labor and delivery your body then has to go through many changes to get back to normal. It will not go back right away because your body has prepared for delivery for forty weeks.

During a pregnancy and childbirth many emotions are going on before and after. They can be good, happy, and excited emotions or frustrated, depressed, and ill emotions. You may be really excited when your contractions increase and they are stronger than they usual are because that means the baby is coming soon or you may be in so much pain due to the contractions. The contractions could go on for a while and no baby yet and it may lead you to be discouraged and tired.  After giving birth women are so happy and glad to have their child. They feel emotional satisfied but some women may feel dazed, bruised, and exhausted. Your body after birth will be tried for the first few weeks. You may become over whelmed with the lack of sleep and a new born child. All these emotions are normal during the phases of pregnancy.