need a positive way to say "slow" labor

[MommyHawk]

My beautiful SIL is in the midst of a very slow, putsy labor. She's been in early labor - thinning out to almost done, dilated 3.5cm's - for almost 2 weeks now. I had the same thing happen - very putsy labor with baby number one - and everyone around me and now around her are saying it's 'false' or that she should run to the hospital and have a cs since she's been trickling water for a week, had bloody show, and lost the mucus plug...

maybe me sending her good birth vibes - from a previous slow labor mama - has done this to her? jk

So, we determined that we both need to come up with a better, more positive word than putsy or slow to describe this long, drawn out early labor that, although it IS doing some good work in terms of getting her to where she is, is still....slow!!!

any thoughts?

thanks!

[mysticmomma]

It's just a prolonged first stage... hmmmm let me think.

[pageta]

Gentle?

[AutumnAir]

Gradual. Steady. Unhurried.

[mysticmomma]

deliberate?

[mysticmomma]

lingering?

[Belle]

There's already an official term for it. Prodromal labor. It sounds much nicer than slow labor.

[JamieCatheryn]

Originally Posted by AutumnAir

Gradual. Steady. Unhurried.

I like this. Mine were sorta like that, long long early labors, it wasn't even start and stop though it kept on going, just took it's time. Gave me a long time to ease into labor and enjoy the beginning of it.

[wombatclay]

I've had prodromal labor for almost three weeks now... and the words I've been using for myself are:

Methodical (my body is moving one step at a time, following the 6 stages of progress)

Steady

Social (as in, I can continue with my "social life", such as it is )

[MommyHawk]

I must admit I like the "Social" labor too!

[Bluegoat]

What about leisurely?

[April422]

I call that "getting ready for baby labor."
vs
"we're having a baby today labor."

[MsBlack]

Gentle, steady, unhurried, 'labor by installments' (my personal fave).... you and your baby working things out in just exactly the right way and time for both of you.

[kcparker]

This isn't one word, but I describe it as the body doing work incrementally, giving you breaks (and time to sleep and eat and do last-minute chores) between, and gearing you up for an efficient labor when true labor does come on. I think in some ways, a long prodromal labor can be a kindness - it gives you time to adjust to the onset of labor, rather than slamming you like a Mack truck, and it does mean that a lot of work to efface and dilate has already been done, so your body isn't starting out from zero when true labor comes on.

[vegasgrl]

Originally Posted by kcparker

This isn't one word, but I describe it as the body doing work incrementally, giving you breaks (and time to sleep and eat and do last-minute chores) between, and gearing you up for an efficient labor when true labor does come on. I think in some ways, a long prodromal labor can be a kindness - it gives you time to adjust to the onset of labor, rather than slamming you like a Mack truck, and it does mean that a lot of work to efface and dilate has already been done, so your body isn't starting out from zero when true labor comes on.

This is totally what I was thinking. Like a train you can hear 6 miles away, albeit very faintly. But you have 6 miles to prepare for it YAY! You get used to how loud it is, and then it's a little louder; you get used to that, and it gets louder again...

ETA: that that was from kc

I'm going to scour the internet for a good word for this. But quite honestly, it sounds pretty close to the labor I hope to have!

ETA: How about gently accelerating labor? Gently rising? Gently increasing? (It probably doesn't feel all that gentle does it. )

[Beppie]

My midwife was very encouraging when I was having some "false" or early labor that was very putzy. The phrases she used were... my body was getting ready, get lots of rest because the real thing is almost here, the uterus is doing all its early work before active labor starts. And as others have said, the cervix is gradually effacing for when the baby actually comes.

How about the word "preparation"? the body is preparing itself for the active stage. Gentle and gradual preparation for the birth.

[kcparker]

Beppie - Preparatory labor...that sounds nice, less clinical and more descriptive than prodromal.

And shout out to vegasgrl!

[Incubator]

You could describe it as "warming up" like warming up before the marathon, or "calm" I frequently called the time between contractions "the calm between the storms"