What are the three stages of labor?
Motherly Motherly
  • Pregnancy
    • Getting Pregnant
      • Infertility
      • Surrogacy
      • Adoption
      • Miscarriage & Loss
      • Pre-Pregnancy Shopping Guides
    • Registry Guide
      • Feeding
      • Toys & Books
      • Diapering Essentials
      • Bedtime & Bathtime
      • Baby Clothing
      • Baby Gear
      • For Mama
      • Health & Safety
    • Pregnancy
      • First Trimester
      • Second Trimester
      • Third Trimester
      • Pregnancy Products
    • Baby Names
      • Baby Names By Month
      • Popular Baby Names
      • Unique Baby Names
    • Birth
      • C-Section
      • Labor & Delivery
      • Birth Stories
    • Postpartum
      • Fourth Trimester
      • Parental Leave
      • Postpartum Products
  • Parenting
    • Baby
      • Sleep Guides & Schedules
      • Feeding Guides & Schedules
      • Milestone Guides
      • Health
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Toddler
      • Memorable Moments
      • Milestones
      • Sleep
      • Nutrition
      • Health
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Child
      • Health
      • Milestones
      • Sleep
      • Nutrition
      • Learn & Play
      • Products
    • Teen
      • Tween
      • Issues
      • Nutrition
      • Health
      • Activities
  • Life
    • Beauty & Style
      • Style
      • Beauty
      • Beauty & Style Shopping Guides
    • Food
      • Meal Planning & Shopping
      • Nutrition
      • Entertaining
    • Motherly Stories
      • Personal Essays
    • Home
      • Home Decor
      • Home Shopping Guides
    • Career & Money
      • Work & Motherhood
      • Family Finances & Budgeting
      • Taxes
    • State of Motherhood
    • News
      • Viral & Trending
      • Celebrity News
    • Health & Wellness
      • Covid
      • Women’s Health
      • Children’s Health
      • It’s Science
      • Mental Health
      • Self Care
      • Fitness
      • Health & Wellness Shopping Guide
    • Travel
    • Entertainment
      • What To Read
      • What To Watch
    • Holidays
      • Halloween
      • Thanksgiving
      • Rosh Hashanah
      • Christmas
      • Kwanzaa
      • Hanukkah
    • Relationships
      • Single Parenting
      • Blended Families
      • Community & Friendship
      • Marriage & Partnerships
      • Grandparents & Extended Families
  • Shop
    • Mother’s Day Gifts
    • Pregnancy
      • Stretch Mark Cream
      • Pregnancy Pillows
      • Maternity Pajamas
      • Maternity Workout Clothes
      • Compression Socks
      • All Pregnancy Products
    • Toddler Products
      • Pikler Triangles
      • Toddler Sleep Sacks
      • Toddler Scooters
      • Water Tables
      • Sippy Cups
      • All Toddler Products
    • Postpartum
      • Breastmilk Coolers
      • Postpartum Pajamas
      • Postpartum Underwear
      • Postpartum Shapewear
      • All Postpartum Products
    • Child Products
      • Kid Pajamas
      • Play Couches
      • Kids’ Backpacks
      • Kids’ Bikes
      • Kids’ Travel Gear
      • All Child Products
    • Baby Products
      • Baby Wraps
      • Baby Swaddles
      • Eco-Friendly Diapers
      • Baby Bathtubs
      • Splat Mats
      • All Baby Products
    • Beauty & Style Products
      • Pregnancy-safe Skincare
      • Diaper Bags
      • Maternity Jeans
      • Matching Family Swimwear
      • Mama Necklaces
      • All Beauty and Style Products
  • Classes
    • Classes
      • All Classes
      • Free Classes By Motherly
      • Parenting & Family Topics
      • Postpartum
      • Sleep
      • Toddler Topics
      • TTC & Pregnancy
      • Wellness & Fitness
  • Podcasts
  • Join the list!
  • Please wait..
×
Clear
Ultimate Family Movie Night: Smurfs is now streaming on Paramount+

Home / Birth

What are the three stages of labor?

By Motherly Updated Jan. 15, 2022

  • Rectangle
Categories:
Birth, Labor & Delivery, Pregnancy

Related articles

Toddler bites
Viral & Trending
Mom’s “biting pandemic” clip shows a common toddler phase—experts share how to handle it
Updated Sep. 18, 2025
News
Dad hears “I think it’s my period”—what he does next builds trust at home
Updated Sep. 18, 2025
Kind kids have parents who follow these 9 habits
Food
9 store-bought dips that transform dinner battles into dipping parties
Updated Sep. 18, 2025
News
Tap a $8 “sticker,” and chores check themselves off—moms are loving this NFC trick
Updated Sep. 18, 2025
parents undercover as grandparents for daughter Grandparents Day
Viral & Trending
Undercover ‘grandparents’ turn a school lunch into a core memory
Updated Sep. 18, 2025

More articles like this

how to raise curious kids
Child Learn & Play
7 ways to raise curious kids who question everything (in the best way)

In a world where facts seem increasingly negotiable and science is treated like just another opinion at the dinner table, raising critical-thinking, curious kids has never been more important.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Child Learn & Play
sprout recall
Safety
Sprout baby food pouch recalled for possible lead: How to check your lot and what to do

Parents are urged to check their Sprout baby food pouches after a lead-related recall.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Safety, Food, News, Parenting
easy smoothie recipes
Food
The pre-portion hack: Easy smoothie recipes for maximum lazy mornings

The best part is there are no rules. Everyone gets what they want and nobody has to think at 6:30 AM.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Food
Cardi B pregnant
Celebrity News
Cardi B reveals she’s pregnant again—and what she said about motherhood is striking a chord

True to form, Cardi shared the news with humor, honesty, and the kind of raw energy that makes her so relatable to moms everywhere.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Celebrity News, News, Pregnancy
justin bieber instagram post
Celebrity News
Justin Bieber just shared his family’s values—and it has parents reflecting on their own

Justin Bieber’s family values list is inspiring parents to reflect on the principles they want to pass on and live by with their children

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Celebrity News, News, Parenting
girl scared of going to the bathroom because of a "dog" looking
Viral & Trending
Kid says the bathroom window is ‘watching’—dad’s reveal has parents cracking up

Even babies can spot a “face” in the shadows—sometimes their imagination sees more than meets the eye

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Viral & Trending, News, Toddler
The Freemans on the Motherly Podcast
Relationships
How parenthood transforms your marriage—the Freemans on connection, intimacy, and rebuilding after hard seasons
Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Relationships, Marriage & Partnerships, Podcast, The Motherly Podcast
The motherly podcast Chrissy Teigen interview
Health & Wellness
Chrissy Teigen on motherhood, postpartum healing, and advocating for kids with Type 1 diabetes

Chrissy Teigen opens up about surprises in motherhood, embracing imperfection, and her son’s Type 1 diabetes diagnosis.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Health & Wellness, Children's Health, Podcast, The Motherly Podcast

Featured Posts

newborn preterm birth
News
What if your gut bacteria could predict preterm birth? A new study suggests it’s possible

A groundbreaking new study suggests that the gut microbiome—the trillions of bacteria living in your intestines—could play a powerful role in predicting preterm birth.

Updated Sep. 15, 2025
News, Birth, Pregnancy
Saoirse Ronan
Celebrity News
Saoirse Ronan takes first stroll as a mom—and fans are celebrating

Saoirse Ronan and Jack Lowden have welcomed their first child, sharing a rare public moment with fans during a sweet London outing.

Updated Sep. 12, 2025
Celebrity News, Birth, News
Baby comes home
Birth Stories
They went in for a 38-week appointment… and came home with a baby

At 38 weeks pregnant, they expected a quick check-in with their doctor and then to head back home to keep preparing for their baby’s arrival.

Updated Aug. 27, 2025
Birth Stories, Baby, Birth, Parenting
Babies
News
The best states to have a baby in 2025 (and the 10 that need to do better)

For many parents, the financial and logistical realities of birth are prompting a bigger question: What does “baby-friendly” actually look like when you’re the one giving birth?

Updated Aug. 06, 2025
News, Birth, Parenting
ivf
Baby
A 30-year-old embryo just became a newborn—and his big sister is already a mom

This is a story where time folds in on itself: a child conceived in one century, born in another, sharing DNA with a sister who now tucks her own children into bed.

Updated Aug. 01, 2025
Baby, Birth, Parenting

Most Popular Posts in Birth

young-girl-looking-over-her-baby-sister - do second babies come earlier?
Birth
Do second babies come earlier? Here’s what you need to know about the second time around

The good news is that your second labor may be only half as long.

Updated Jan. 22, 2024
Birth, Women's Health
mums in 40s
Birth
A historic shift: More babies now born to women over 40 than to teens

According to a brand new report from the CDC’s National Vital Statistics System, births among women in their 40s have more than tripled since 1990, while the teen birth rate has plummeted to a historic low.

Updated Apr. 03, 2025
Birth, Birth Stories, Getting Pregnant, Health & Wellness, Women's Health
hailey beiber
Postpartum
Hailey Bieber opens up about birth trauma, postpartum identity shifts, and finding herself again

“Being postpartum is the most sensitive time I’ve ever gone through in my life,” she said. “Learning a new version of myself is very difficult.”

Updated May. 22, 2025
Postpartum, Birth, Labor & Delivery
Girl or boy
Parenting
Your odds of having a boy or girl might not be 50/50—here’s what affects it 

For families raising all boys or all girls, this might offer a scientific explanation.

Updated Jul. 23, 2025
Parenting, Baby, Birth, Life
pregnant woman holding belly
Labor & Delivery
7 things to think about when you go past your due date

We are here to tell you that it really will be ok! Here are some thing to keep in mind during these final days of your pregnancy.

Updated Apr. 01, 2024
Labor & Delivery, Birth, Pregnancy
This Is Birth
This is Birth: Bekah Martinez’s serene & empowered waterbirth
Updated May. 03, 2023
This Is Birth, Birth, Birth Stories
Kylie Kelce
C-Section
Kylie Kelce shuts down harmful claim that C-sections aren’t “real” births

“They just had massive abdominal surgery to get out the human life that they just built.”

Updated Apr. 04, 2025
C-Section, Birth, Child
mom hugging baby to chest - birth quotes
Pregnancy
You’ve got this, mama: 15 empowering quotes on giving birth

"When you change the way you view birth, the way you birth will change."

Updated Oct. 12, 2022
Pregnancy, Birth

The Latest Posts

tips for hot sleepers
Postpartum Products
Science-backed solutions for hot sleepers (that don’t involve sleeping in the freezer)
Updated Sep. 16, 2025
Postpartum Products, Pregnancy Products
Sibling fights
Parenting
Mom sends her boys running to stop their fights—what happens next is parenting gold

At first, it looked like punishment: two kids forced to run a mile together. But by the end, the tension was gone, replaced with laughter.

Updated Sep. 17, 2025
Parenting, News, Viral & Trending
18th birthday
Viral & Trending
The 18th birthday morning becomes a childhood time capsule—made by a big sister

Small, symbolic acts like revisiting old toys or making a playlist of family songs can help a teen feel seen and celebrated without requiring a big budget.

Updated Sep. 16, 2025
Viral & Trending, Life, News
Toddler making friends with strangers in the market
Toddler
Shoppers stop as a toddler runs in for a hug—and an aisle turns into a smile line

A one-year-old’s spontaneous aisle hug spreads joy, sparks smiles, and reminds us how to teach kids kindness with consent.

Updated Sep. 16, 2025
Toddler, News, Viral & Trending
trader joe's everything bagel seasoning
Food
15+ creative ways to use Trader Joe’s Everything Bagel Seasoning that kids will love

Everything Bagel seasoning isn't just a millennial food trend—it might actually be the perfect gateway seasoning for kids of all ages.

Updated Sep. 16, 2025
Food
Our Partners
Beyond the Blue: Why the New Smurfs Movie’s Message About Being Different Is Perfect for Today’s Kids
Updated Sep. 16, 2025
Our Partners, Entertainment
Woman explaining why you should not be scared of your parents moods
News
The inheritance this dad gave his kids wasn’t money—it was something far greater

This TikTok is about what happens when a parent owns their feelings, processes them, and keeps them contained — giving kids the steady foundation they need to thrive.

Updated Sep. 15, 2025
News, Parenting, Viral & Trending
Baby sleeping in crib with a bug on her leg
News
When mom instincts meet motherhood fears: The moment a spider tested one mother’s courage

A parenting video that had everyone holding their breath

Updated Sep. 15, 2025
News, Baby, Viral & Trending

We believe in creating a world in which all mothers are thriving

Connect

  • Contact Us
  • Advertise With Us

About Us

  • Our Story
  • Careers At Motherly
  • Partner with Us
  • Press
  • Privacy & Security
  • Accessibility
  • Terms & Conditions
  • About Our Ads
  • Do Not Sell My Information
  • Glossary

© 2025 Motherly. All Rights Reserved.

×