36 weeks pregnant &' my doctor said my cervix was open on the outside but not the inside? she didn't explain anything. am i dialated? is this normal?

Not really yet: When the cervix is still long (it flattens out during labor) the lower end of the cervix softens up and is slightly open but up at the top it is still closed tight. That is normal and the cervix will continue to soften and shorten before dilation occurs.

Cervical dilation: The cervix must completely thin out and dilate before you can push the baby through the birth canal. The lower part of your cervix has started to dilate but not the inner part. This is very normal at 36 weeks of pregnancy but really does not suggest when baby is coming.

Normal: This is normal if you have other children and delivered normally (not by cesarean section). From what you have said it sounds like you are not dilated as the part doctors check is really on the inside of the cervix--that is the part that needs to open in order for the baby to come out.

This is normal.: Think of blowing up a balloon. You would be the uterus, and the outer part of the cervix would be the lower part of the balloon that would dilate first as the cervix undergoes the changes that make it possible to eventually dilate to 10 cm (!) The close you get to term, the more the cervix dilates, and the dilation starts to creep towards the top of the cervix, allowing the baby to move down.