Early stages
You notice that you have lost some fluid, as you have ruptured the membranes around the baby, and labour should start very soon. The Branxton-Hicks contractions (the contractions that occur in the last six weeks or so of pregnancy) wake you more than usual. Soon after the membranes rupture you can feel the first contraction grinding through your abdomen. Every ten to fifteen minutes more contractions occur. Most are mild, but some make you stop in your tracks for a few seconds. When two contractions have occurred only 7 minutes apart, you should head off to hospital. On arrival you change into a nightie and answer questions. Despite it being a meal time you are not in the slightest bit hungry, and you are given an enema to clear your bowels.

Middle stages
The obstetrician calls in to see how you are progressing when the contractions are occurring every 3 or 4 minutes. S/he examines you to assess how far the cervix (the opening into the womb) has opened, how far down the birth canal the baby has progressed, and the position of the baby’s head. This examination will be repeated regularly by doctors and midwives throughout labour. As events progress, you are moved into the delivery room. Sensors are attached through the vagina onto the baby’s head to monitor its health. The contractions become more intense, and if the pain in your tummy doesn’t attack you, the back ache does. Massage can ease the back ache, and breathing exercises you were taught by the physio at the antenatal classes prove remarkably effective in helping you with the more severe contractions. A pain relieving injection or breathing anaesthetic gas on a mask when the contractions start, make them more bearable.