First Stage of Labor

Content provided by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School

First Stage of Labor

The first stage of labor begins with your first contraction and ends when the cervix is fully dilated (open) to 10 centimeters. During this period, the mucous plug dislodges if it has not already done so, and the regular contractions force the baby's head into the opening of the now-effacing (thinning) cervix. For first-time mothers, dilation of the cervix from 0 to 2.5 centimeters can take as long as 8.5 hours, with contractions that are not too severe or rapid. This is called the latent phase. In the second part of the first stage, known as the active phase, the cervix dilates from 3 to 10 centimeters and the contractions become more frequent and intense. You will feel discomfort at this time. The latent and active phases take an average of 12 hours for first-time mothers but can last up to 20 hours normally. For mothers who have been in labor before, full dilatation is usually reached within seven hours.

Toward the end of stage one, when the cervix is progressing from 8 to 10 centimeters, you may feel a premature urge to push. This is a classic sign that birth is close at hand and that stage two is beginning.

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Last updated:	September 29, 2004
Reviewed By:	Faculty of Harvard Medical School

Medical content reviewed by the Faculty of the Harvard Medical School. Harvard Health Publications, Copyright © 2007 by President and Fellows of Harvard College. All rights reserved. Used with permission of StayWell.

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