Labor and Delivery Round 1

We thought it may be time as on Wednesday we made a trip to L&D for contractions. I have been having contractions since Saturday off and on but Wednesday woke with much more intense contractions at 5:30 AM. I also had/and still have a lower backache. Around 9 AM I went to the bathroom and discovered that I had lost my mucous plug. So I made the call, they of course said to come in. Upon arriving they checked me and we have begun to dilate and efface. Yay cervical changes! However, after laying there for several hours, I didn't have any changes but I was still contracting. So they sent us home with a line of it could be tonight or 4 weeks. Well it wasn't that night or even last night for that matter. We are a bit early yet in the pregnancy, however the drs do not stop labor after 34 weeks and with gestational diabetes we have a bigger baby so they are just letting us ride it out. We go today for an appt and to see if I progressed any. I don't think I have. Although I am feeling more pressure. Updates later!!

*Some research I found online.... as you read on you see that I could be dilated for weeks!

Is Cervix Dilation an Early Sign of Labor?

Ultimately, cervix dilation is necessary for labor to progress. If the cervix doesn't open, then the baby can't be born vaginally. But is cervical dilation necessarily an early sign of labor?

Not necessarily. A woman can remain 4cm dilated for weeks before true labor begins or can go from no dilation to natural childbirth within a few short hours. The degree of cervical dilation prior to the onset of labor is not a reliable indicator of when true labor will begin. Women can dilate several centimeters weeks early, contemplating the arrival of a preterm baby, and then remain at that same degree of dilation for weeks or go from zero dilation to having a baby in mere minutes.


The following cervical dilation chart illustrates the diameter of the cervix as it opens from 1 to 10cms. 1cm roughly equates with a Cheerio, 3 cm with a slice of banana, 4cm with a Ritz Cracker, 7cm with the top of a soda can, and 10cm with a bagel.

As cervix dilation itself is not a reliable predictor of when labor will begin, knowing the degree of cervical dilation in advance of active labor is of little benefit. It also carries unnecessary risks, the first of which is introducing infection. It also increases the risk of starting preterm labor.