Stage III of Childbirth - Delivery of Placenta
The placenta played a vital role in supporting your baby inside your womb. Now, that your baby has come out into the world, the placenta has outlived its purpose. It is now the turn of the placenta to be delivered.
The entire process takes about five minutes to half an hour. This is the shortest and final stage of the entire childbirth life cycle. You will experience mild contractions within a few minutes after the baby is born. Each contraction will have about one minute gap between them. You may not even realise the contractions. The contractions detach the placenta from the uterine wall. You can then push it out of the vagina. This results in the delivery of the placenta and is also called afterbirth. Some doctors may administer oxytocin to stimulate the uterine contractions. Breastfeeding your baby also causes the release of the oxytocin hormone naturally.
Once the placenta has been delivered, the doctor checks the cervix and vagina for any tears and stitches them up. If an episiotomy was done, that incision is stitched up as well.
What can I do during delivery of placenta?
Some things that you can do during delivery of the placenta are:
- Push when the doctor tells you to.
- Remain calm and patient as the hospital staff stitches your tears and repairs your episiotomy.
- Hold your baby close and feed her.
Congratulations!
