There are three phases in the first stage of childbirth: early labor, active labor, and transition labor. Certain positions are recommended for laboring women during each stage of labor. Many expecting moms get excited when they start feeling those first real contractions. They get up and move around to get the party started. Doing this isn’t a bad thing; however, it may cause them to exert more energy than recommended for early labor. If you’re wondering how to ease into this early phase and which positions can help most, here’s what you need to know.

Below, we’ll walk through how to pace yourself in early labor and the best positions to support your body as it prepares for active labor. As a birth doula who has supported many women through early labor, these are the steps and positions I teach families to use at home.

How To Manage Early Labor at Home

Early labor looks different for everyone, but knowing how to pace yourself and support your body at home can make this stage feel more manageable.

During early labor, the first phase of labor, your cervix begins to efface (thin) and dilate (open up) to about 3 centimeters.^4,5 Laboring women should stay at home during this first phase to make sure that things are progressing and that they’re not experiencing prodromal labor.^6,9 Prodromal labor starts and stops but doesn’t progress to fully active labor. Many people refer to this as “false labor.”⁷ However, we feel there’s nothing false about those contractions. But we would hate for a woman to experience these initial prodromal contractions and go to the hospital too soon if labor were to stop shortly after. The expecting woman would then be sent back home.

So, what are the best positions and things to do to help in early labor? It depends:

• Is it daytime or nighttime?
• Did your water break, or are you only experiencing contractions?
• Are you GBS positive or negative?
• If your water has broken, are you feeling contractions at all?

Related: What To Do in Early Labor

It may seem odd, but all these things can make a difference in what you should do during early labor. Let’s dive into each of them:

Looking for positions to use later on? Here are the best positions for active labor.

Is It Daytime or Nighttime?

Whether it’s daytime or nighttime, remember this is just the beginning. Early labor is the longest phase of the childbirth process.^6,8 It’s also the one that’s the most manageable on your own. Early labor is the time to distract yourself, conserve energy, and get lots of rest. This is not the time to exert a ton of energy. If you do too much, you will leave yourself exhausted for active labor, transition, and pushing your baby out. These other phases and stages require significantly more of your focus and energy to reach the finish line. (Remind yourself that giving birth is a marathon, not a sprint.)

Daytime

If it’s daytime and you start to feel contractions, distract yourself. Keep your mind off the contractions because you have a long way to go. Some things you can do are:⁹

• Go on a walk
• Bake cookies (you can give them to your nurses at the hospital, and they will be so thankful for the treat!)
• Watch a movie
• Go to a restaurant
• Read a book
• Meditate
• Garden

Do anything you enjoy that will keep your mind off the contractions until you can no longer ignore them.

Evening

If it’s the end of the day (evening time), distract yourself with the following:⁹

• Take a hot shower
• Have a delicious dinner
• Snuggle up on the couch to watch a movie
• Make sure your hospital bag or birth center bag is ready. Here’s our full guide for what to pack in your hospital bag for labor and delivery (or what to pack in your birth center bag).

Again, ignore the contractions and don’t pay attention to the clock. Only begin paying attention to them when your contractions require you to stop what you’re doing to focus on your breathing. You won’t be able to ignore them any longer and should begin timing the length and frequency of each contraction with a contraction timer.

Related: 15 Things to Do While Waiting for Labor to Start

Nighttime

It’s most common for women to go into labor in the middle of the night. Why is this? Melatonin, the sleep hormone, begins to increase as sunlight decreases, and it continues to build up when our bodies are ready for sleep.¹ But in full-term or late-term pregnancies, this hormone works with oxytocin, which is the hormone that creates contractions, to work more efficiently and increase its intensity, thus causing women to go into labor. In 2015, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that most births occur during the morning or midday hours.² This means that the majority of women begin labor at night.

If you’re in bed or are already sleeping and contractions wake you up, try to go back to sleep. Stay in your side-lying position and focus on your breath as you go to sleep. Even if you’re unable to fall back asleep, rest.¹⁰ Don’t get up until you feel like you can’t lie down anymore. Getting as much sleep and rest as possible will give you the energy you need for the rest of your laboring journey.

Did Your Water Break, or Are You Only Experiencing Contractions?

If you’re asleep and your water breaks and you’re GBS negative, get a pad and/or a towel, put them between your legs, and try to go back to sleep. Of course, check to ensure that your water is clear, does not have a foul odor (meaning there’s no infection), and that your baby is still moving.¹¹ If everything is normal, get some sleep. The same applies if contractions wake you up. This is the time to get as much rest as possible for a busy day of labor!

Are You Group B Strep (GBS) Positive or Negative?

Around week 36 of your pregnancy, you will be tested for GBS.¹² After a few days, you should receive whether you’re GBS positive or negative. No matter if it’s daytime or nighttime, if your water breaks and you’re GBS positive, you must receive antibiotics through an IV every four hours until your baby is born. Antibiotics protect your baby from infection.¹³ (They will give you penicillin for the antibiotics, so if you’re allergic to penicillin, let your medical team know and they will provide an alternative medication.^12,13) This is why it’s encouraged that you go to the hospital soon after your water breaks if you’re GBS-positive.¹³ However, if you’re GBS negative, you have up to 12 hours before you need to go to the hospital. So get up and get those contractions going!

If Your Water Broke, Are You Feeling Any Contractions at All?

It’s best if you have contractions when going into the hospital. If you go there without contractions and your water has broken, your medical team will need to give you Pitocin, the synthetic form of oxytocin given through an IV, to induce your labor.¹⁴ Pitocin can make your contractions much more intense and much faster, and lead to a cascade of other interventions. It’s something to avoid unless medically necessary.³

Best Positions for Early Labor

These positions can help your body conserve energy and keep your labor progressing no matter what time of day it is.

Daytime Positions for Early Labor

1. Walking

If it’s daytime and you have the energy, take a nice walk and use gravity to your advantage. You can walk around the neighborhood, the park, or even the mall if it’s cold outside. The movement of your pelvis helps move your baby further into your pelvis, and gravity helps push your baby down further onto your cervix, which will help you dilate more.^4,15 Walking is a great way to get this party started!

2. Curb Walking

What is curb walking? Curb walking is when a pregnant woman walks with one foot on the road and the other foot up on the curb or sidewalk. These uneven, exaggerated steps can further open your pelvis and increase pressure on your cervix.¹⁷ It’s not the most comfortable thing, but it can help your contractions strengthen.

3. Sitting on a Birthing Ball

Walking and standing can get tiring, so it’s good to sit down and rest. One of the best places to sit is on a birthing ball. Sitting on a birthing ball helps improve a person’s posture and allows the baby’s head to be positioned directly over the cervix.^18,19 Sway side to side on the ball, make figure-eight motions, and take the pressure off your feet, but still encourage your body to continue what it needs to do to further your labor progress.

4. Straddle a Chair

To conserve your energy, lean back against the chair as you sit down to rest. This position requires you to straddle the chair, which helps open your pelvis.²⁰ Leaning forward can also put less pressure on your lower back.²¹ Place your pillow on the back of the chair and take a break. This is also a great position for a support person to perform counter-pressure and massage your back and lower back.²⁰

Nighttime Positions for Early Labor

1. Side-Lying

This is the position most expecting women sleep in during pregnancy. If contractions were to wake you, continue lying on your side (preferably your left side) and try to go back to sleep. If you can’t, at least rest.²² Focus on your breath and relax all of the muscles in your body. Lying on your back is not recommended at this point in your pregnancy or in labor.^23,24 It can reduce blood supply to your baby and cause intense lower back pain and back labor.²⁵

2. Child’s Pose

When side-lying isn’t helping anymore, child’s pose can be a great alternative. This pose helps the laboring woman relieve pressure off her back, stretches her hips, and is a great position to rest in between contractions and focus on her breath.²⁶

3. Cat-Cow Pose

It’s beneficial to stretch your back when lying down too much. Do the cat-cow yoga position to stretch your back. This position also helps your baby get into a more optimal birthing position and can decrease back labor.²⁷

4. Open-Knee-Chest

Tired but want to work with your body to continue the labor process? The open-knee-chest position is a great one. This is part of the Miles Circuit that I highly recommend.

5. Sit in the Tub or Stand in the Shower

Step into the shower or sit in the tub to catch your breath and regain your energy. Hydrotherapy is incredibly helpful and can provide the break you need.16 Don’t stay in the shower or tub for too long, though. It’s great to relax your body and muscles, which can help increase your effacement and dilation, but it’s also good to change positions every 30 minutes to an hour.¹⁵

What To Remember

Here are the most important takeaways to guide you through early labor at home.

• Rest: CONSERVE YOUR ENERGY! You have a long way to go.
• Distraction, distraction, distraction: Bake cookies, watch a movie, go to a restaurant, go on a walk. Do anything that keeps your mind off these contractions until they’ve developed a closer pattern.
• Eat and drink plenty of fluids: If it’s daytime, build up your energy for a wild ride with these foods to eat in early labor!

Early labor is a time to rest, pace yourself, and trust that your body knows what to do. Focus on comfort, stay hydrated, and listen to your instincts about when to change positions or call your provider. You are already doing an incredible job, and each step brings you closer to meeting your baby.

You’ve got this, mama! Soon, your perfect little babe will be in your arms! 🙂