Centimeters and Dilation

I had decided that I didn't want to get too personal with the inner workings of my vagina but at this point, I've lost what little sense of decency I had so today we're going to discuss my cervix and its' progress!

I've been in early labor for 11 days. What does this mean? Strong, irregular contractions that occasionally find a pattern, like every 3-5 minutes, which makes us think that it's baby time but then they peter out and go back to every 10-15 minutes. These are very different than the Braxton Hicks contractions that I had felt up until about two weeks ago. These hit me like a wave, take my breath away and basically stop me in my tracks. I can feel one coming on because I get really short of breath, nauseous and then get the pain all over my upper belly accompanied by very strong period cramps. The one thing that I was told that I've found helpful in relaxing and getting through the contractions is that it's a familiar pain. Right now they are just very strong period cramps, something I've dealt with since I was 11. I'm sure active labor will be much different but I have to say that I think I'm doing pretty well with this extended early labor process!

The fun part of all of this is that last Wednesday the contractions were every 3 minutes, lasted at least a minute for about 3 hours. I was hesitant to call my doctor because I didn't want to be that false alarm first time mom but when I did finally call the nurse told me to go straight to Labor and Delivery because that sounds like labor. I jumped (well really gingerly stepped, jumping doesn't happen these days) in the shower, waited for Thomas and off we went to L&D. Apparently Wednesday was a super busy baby day because we were confined to a small triage room instead of one of the nice birthing rooms. Luckily we weren't in there long. They hooked me up to the monitoring thing (same one as detailed in this post), June's heart rate was perfect and they were picking up pretty consistent contractions. The nurse checked my cervix and I was so excited to hear that I was dilated to 1 cm and 40% effaced! Being only 36 weeks I hadn't expected any progress. Let's break this down and what it means for labor:

Dilation: Before and during pregnancy the cervix, the entrance to the uterus, is closed. Obviously, this is a good thing. You don't want the baby falling out, things getting up in there, etc. As labor begins, the cervix starts opening little by little. Some women go from completely closed (0cm) to pushing the baby out (you have to be at 10cm for pushing) in a matter of hours. Others can stay at 1 or even to 4cm for weeks. Here's a handy reference guide for cervical dilation.

I'm at a cheerio! C'mon bagel cervix!

Effacement: In addition to the fun part of the cervix opening up, it also has to thin out. Again, during pregnancy the cervix is not only closed but thick - about 4cm long (think of like a bottleneck). So as labor approaches it begins to thin out and it retracts up to the uterus. This aids the dilation. Effacement is described in a percentage number. Here's another handy guide.

I'm at 40%...60% to go!

Back to my L&D story...

After checking me they wanted me to walk around the floor for an hour. Thomas and I found this nice little corner of the L&D floor where the sun was beaming in and warmed me up (the hospital is freezing and those gross, flimsy gowns offer little warmth). I paced back and forth, did some squats, had Thomas massage my back, had continuous contractions and then headed back to our room. They monitored baby for about 20 minutes and made me walk again. I much preferred the walking to laying in a bed and feeling trapped. After another 30 minutes of walking I was checked again. No progress. I was still at 1cm and 40% effacement. The second nurse was a little more rough so it was more uncomfortable and she was not very reassuring of anything. We were sent home because there was nothing to do in the hospital. They couldn't induce me because I was only 36 weeks (I really didn't want that anyway), I wasn't progressing enough for them to keep me and I wanted to labor at home.

So now we're here at 37 weeks, full term, still contracting and bigger than ever. Last appointment with Dr. Man he said he very highly doubts we'll make it to full term because of all of the uterine activity I've had. I'm basically on stand by until she decides to come! Unfortunately, Dr. Man is out of town this week so we're trying to stave off labor until he gets back because I've grown attached to him and also, the longer she's in the womb, the better.

Another fun fact - at 36 weeks Dr. Man estimated she weighs about 6.5lbs and will gain a pound a week until she's born. If we go to our due date and he's correct, she'll weigh well over 9lbs! Yay for big, healthy babies! 

Send me some good luck vibes that Junie is born when she's ready and that she's happy, healthy and done cooking!