Labor and delivery

By Mayo Clinic Staff

Everyone's labor and delivery are unique. Still, knowing what's typical can help you know what to expect as your due date nears.

Labor and delivery usually follow a pattern. The cervix softens and opens. The fluid-filled sac around the baby, called the amniotic sac, breaks open. Contractions get stronger and closer together.

But sometimes, labor and delivery go another way. For example, how the baby lies in the uterus, called fetal presentation, can affect labor and delivery. You might change your mind about pain medicines. Or you might find that you need a C-section.

No matter what happens during labor and delivery, your health and your baby's health are most important. Discuss what you want during labor and delivery with your healthcare professional.

Talk about pain medicine. Tell your healthcare team how you feel about procedures that may be used during delivery. These include having a surgical cut made in the opening of the vagina, called an episiotomy. Then get ready to welcome your baby into the world.

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Oct. 26, 2023

See also

  1. Breastfeeding nutrition: Tips for moms
  2. Can vaginal tears during childbirth be prevented?
  3. C-section recovery
  4. Eating the placenta
  5. Episiotomy
  6. Exercise after pregnancy
  7. Fetal presentation before birth
  8. High-risk pregnancy
  9. Home birth
  10. Inducing labor
  11. Kegel exercises
  12. Labor pain medications
  13. Labor positions
  14. Medicine concerns while breastfeeding
  15. Placenta
  16. Postpartum care: After a vaginal delivery
  17. Postpartum complications
  18. Postpartum depression
  19. Pregnancy and breastfeeding when you have psoriasis
  20. Repeat C-sections
  21. Sex after pregnancy: Set your own timeline
  22. Signs of labor
  23. Stages of labor and birth
  24. Tailbone pain
  25. Vaginal tears in childbirth
  26. Considering VBAC
  27. The epidural block
  28. Water breaking