how much do you have to be dilated to be in labor?
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Your cervix needs to open about 10cm for your baby to pass through it. This is what's called being fully dilated. In a 1st labour, the time from the start of established labour to being fully dilated is usually 8 to 12 hours.
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Some women may reach 100% effacement within a few hours. For others, cervical effacement may occur slowly over several weeks. The same applies to dilation. It is not uncommon for a woman to be 1–2 cm dilated a couple of weeks before going into labor.
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Cervical Dilation in the First Stage of Labor: Active phase: The cervix expands from 4 cm to 7 cm and contractions become more intense and regular. Transition phase: The cervix dilates to 10 cm. Transition ends when the cervix has reached 10 cm and is fully dilated.
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In general, though, once active labor begins, the average progress is about 1 centimeter dilation per hour for your first baby and 1 1/2 centimeters per hour for a second baby.
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Generally speaking, once you are dilated past 5 or 6 centimeters and having regular contractions, most practitioners will be fairly insistent that you remain in the hospital or birth center until your baby is born.
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Typically, you can receive an epidural as early as when you are 4 to 5 centimeters dilated and in active labor. Normally, it takes about 15 minutes to place the epidural catheter and for the pain to start subsiding and another 20 minutes to go into full effect.
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Active labor will last about 3-5 hours. Your cervix will dilate from 4cm to 7cm. Contractions during this phase will last about 45-60 seconds with 3-5 minutes rest in between. Contractions will feel stronger and longer.
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Now it's time for the real work to begin. During active labor, your cervix will dilate from 6 centimeters (cm) to 10 cm. Your contractions will become stronger, closer together and regular.
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During active labor, your cervix will dilate from 6 centimeters (cm) to 10 cm. Your contractions will become stronger, closer together and regular. Your legs might cramp, and you might feel nauseated. You might feel your water break — if it hasn't already — and experience increasing pressure in your back.
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Once the cervix is around 4 cm dilated and you are having regular contractions we finally say you are “in labour”! During your induction all pain relief options are available for you.
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When the cervix dilates from 0 to 3 or 4 centimeters, contractions get stronger as time progresses. Mild contractions begin at 15 to 20 minutes apart and last 60 to 90 seconds. The contractions become more regular until they are less than 5 minutes apart.
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For first-time mums, the first stage of labour (cervix dilating), lasts an average of eight hours but for women who've had a baby before, the average labour is five hours. The second stage (pushing and birth) is likely to last under two hours, compared with three hours for first-time mums.
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Once you begin active labor, you'll have strong contractions around a minute long and 3-5 minutes apart. It may be hard to talk or move easily. At this point, your cervix will be dilated 3-10 centimeters.
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During active labor, your cervix will dilate from 6 centimeters (cm) to 10 cm. Your contractions will become stronger, closer together and regular.
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The active phase. After your cervix dilates to around 3 cm (1 inch), you will enter the active phase of labour, where things really start to get rolling. For the next few hours, your contractions will be strong, painful, and regular. Unlike the early phase, you may no longer be able to talk through these contractions.
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At this point, your cervix will be dilated 3-10 centimeters. (Dilating 1 cm/hr is textbook, but like in early labor, it's different for every woman.) If you're opting for an epidural, the time is…now!
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Once active labor begins, the cervix dilates to 10 cm. You will not feel dilation, but your doctor will measure it. If the baby is preterm and smaller than a full-term baby, then delivery can occur prior to 10 cm dilation.