Labor pain is "pain with a purpose and different from the pain of injury." It is a functional pain, akin to that which athletes experience. "If the athlete only thought of pain instead of about winning the race, she would give up. If the mountaineer thought that her aching muscles were the sign of some dreadful physical injury instead of the natural result of working them so hard, she would forget all about her goal and lose the feeling of triumph when she reaches the summit.
"Contractions are not pains. They are tightenings that may be painful, especially when they are being most effective. There is an art in approaching each new contraction, in thinking, 'Splendid! Here's another one!' and later, as you approach the end of the first stage, when they are at their strongest, 'Oh, this is a really good one!' "
(The New Pregnancy & Childbirth, Kitzinger, p. 308)
"Contractions are not pains. They are tightenings that may be painful, especially when they are being most effective. There is an art in approaching each new contraction, in thinking, 'Splendid! Here's another one!' and later, as you approach the end of the first stage, when they are at their strongest, 'Oh, this is a really good one!' "
(The New Pregnancy & Childbirth, Kitzinger, p. 308)
RSS Feed
