As you approach labour, your cervix will dilate — a good indication that the baby is ready to be born. The time it takes for the cervix to dilate from 1cm to 10 cm varies: not all moms take the same time. Some moms take hours – even days! – for their cervix to fully dilate. Dilation entirely depends on the mom’s body condition and the body’s ability to widen, creating an opening so that baby can be born. In this article, we’ve included a cervical dilation chart so that you’ll know what to expect before delivery.
What happens when the cervix dilates from 1cm to 10cm: A cervical dilation chart
A dilation of 1 cm means you’ll need to head to hospital soon
Cervical dilation chart: The first sign of your cervix dilating during delivery is when your water breaks. | Image Source: Stock Photo
When a pregnant mom’s cervix is 1cm dilated, there may be no further dilation for weeks.
Dr. Robert Atlas, an obstetrician and gynecologist from Mercy Medical Center, says that each patient is different. During childbirth, cervical dilation can take longer if you’re pregnant with your first child. That’s because your body needs to adapt to the initial stages of labor, moms.
Expect some contractions once your cervix dilates to 5cm
Cervical dilation chart: When your cervix dilates past 5cm, you will start to feel contractions to help you push the baby out. | Image Source: Stock Photo
Once your cervix dilates to 5cm and you’ve begun feeling contractions, you’ve entered what is known as the initial stage of labor.
According to Dr. Atlas, the initial stage of labor is a sign of the mother preparing to give birth . However, even being dilated by 5cm doesn’t necessarily mean the baby will be born soon.
The good news is that the contractions at this stage tend to vary between mild to moderate, so you can still hold them off. Also, the contractions only happen once every few minutes. Most of the time, you can still be engaged in other activities between contractions, moms!
A cervical dilation of 5cm also indicates that your cervix is becoming longer and softening to facilitate the baby’s passage out of the uterus to the vagina, and finally, being born.
A 6cm dilation means your baby is getting ready for birth!
Cervical dilation chart: At 10cm, the baby is ready to be born with the help of the mom’s pushing. | Image Source: Stock Photo
The doctor will monitor you closely if your cervix has been dilated beyond 5cm, that is, over 6cm onwards. That’s because at this point, labor becomes more active – so subsequent dilation will happen much faster than before.
You will also feel more intense and painful contractions once the cervix dilates beyond 5cm.
10 cm: PUSH!
A cervical dilation of 10 cm counts as complete dilation. That means the birth canal is completely open, and you can begin to push. Your cervix has elongated and the uterus has contracted fully so that you can give birth to the baby.
The doctor will start instructing you to push. However, if your cervix is fully dilated and the baby still hasn’t been born after some time, doctors will usually intervene to speed up the delivery process. Examples include using forceps, a vacuum, an episiotomy or a C-Section.
Cervical dilation differs for every mom
Moms, Dr. Atlas stresses repeatedly that cervical dilation differs between each mom. So you needn’t worry too much about how dilated your cervix is.
Dr. Atlas himself often encounters patients who experience contractions more frequently but without any dilation at all. And conversely, some moms also experience cervical dilation without contractions at all. There are some who don’t experience dilation nor contractions but are still able to give birth quickly.
If you are currently pregnant and am expecting to deliver soon, relax your mind. Don’t stress thinking about cervical dilation and the like. Remember, everyone experiences different levels of dilation, so you also need to be prepared for all the possibilities that can occur during labor later.
We hope this article has been useful, moms!
Reference: HealthLine
Also Read: Mga tips para mapadali ang panganganak
This article about the cervical dilation chart was translated by Kevin Wijaya Oey and republished with the permission of the theAsianparent Indonesia