“I wanted parents to understand that not only was labor hard work, but it wasn’t something they should do lying down”
I loved this quote because I think it is helpful to look at labor as hard rewarding work. For me that’s what is was. It wasn’t something to be afraid of or to dull..it was to expereince, to obsorb, and to work through. I had one new mom tell me that the breathing did nothing for her. She was expecting it to take her pain away or to make it easier, but that’s not what preparing for labor is. Preparing for labor is like preparing for a marathon. You don’t just run and run all those days/weeks before a race to then expect the race to be a peice of cake. You train so that you can exert yourself more fully when that race does come, and then you reap the rewards. It’s the pushing forward that makes the difference in the experience of birth and labor. That’s a big part of what I cherish.