Expert: Catherine Beier MS CBE - 1/23/2009

Question
Hi,

I don't know whether you will be willing to help me as I'm not pregnant, but I am writing a short non-profit fiction and I wanted to try to make sure that the experience/details I write about the labor are as correct as I can make them.

So if you are willing to help me, this is the information I wanted to clarify.

My protagonist is a physically fit woman in her early 30s and this is her first child.  She wants to stay home as long as possible, but knows that her care provider is so overprotective that they will whisk her into hospital as soon as they notice she's in labor.  So as they live quite near to the hospital, she decides to keep it from them as long as possible.

a) Your web site suggests that if a person was asleep when they went into early labor that it is not impossible that they could stay asleep.  But I am presuming that once they more into active labor that the contractions would wake them up, is this a fair assumption?
b) The different articles that I read say that in active labor the contractions increase in frequency from 10 to 3 minutes apart and can last up to 60 seconds (I presume the duration increases as the frequency does).  However I cannot find any information on how strong these contractions are likely to be.  For example, if a person wanted to conceal that they were in active labor (say with contractions around 5-7 minutes apart) from a person sat next to them, would they be able to do it?  Or are the contractions too strong?
c) Roughly how long should it normally take for the contractions to move from 10 minute to 5 minute apart?  Or is it so individualistic that it's impossible to say?
d) Finally, if the contractions were at the 5 minutes apart level, would you be able to feel the contractions if you placed your hand on the outside of the person's belly?

Thanks in advance for any help you can offer,
AJ

Answer
AJ,

a) Yes, that's a fair assumption.  At some point, they would wake her.

b) It is possible, but would depend upon the individual person and how relaxed they remained.  The contractions are noticeable to the woman at this point, but can still remain completely manageable.

c) It's so individual it's impossible to say.  For example, with both my second pregnancy, my contractions started at 2 minutes apart.  It could be hours (and typically is) but it could also be minutes.

d) Yes.


Best,
Catherine