Wednesday, January 27, 2010

A wonderful labor & delivery... Am I crazy?

The other day, I posted a comment on my cousin Kristina's Facebook page. She was about to have her baby at any time, and I wanted to send her my best wishes. I said, "I hope you have a wonderful labor & delivery and that everything goes smoothly." One of her friends (that I've never met) later commented, "Wow... Who has a WONDERFUL labor?? Define D-E-L-I-V-E-R!" Immediately I was annoyed. First of all, why would someone who doesn't know me take what I said so literally? And why say that to my cousin who is about to give birth?? Sure, Kris knows it's going to be difficult but it would be nice if people wouldn't throw that in her face a day before she has to push a baby out. It got me thinking about all the horror stories people told me during my pregnancy, warning me that it's not a very pleasant experience. I appreciated the honesty from certain people, who were just sharing their stories with me and giving me insight so I knew what I was getting myself into. But there were also people who were clearly upset with their experiences and would vent to me about how horrible, painful and scary it was. When I went into labor, I forgot everything anyone ever told me and focused on my own experience. I threw my own birth plan out the window and it went completely the opposite of what I wanted. I begged for an epidural and ended up with that dreaded c-section, and you know what? I wouldn't re-do the birth of Oliver if someone paid me. (Ok, if you're able to pay me millions AND turn back time, we can talk. But you know what I mean). Maybe I have a touch of "momnesia", but I look back at our experience and can honestly say it was wonderful. Yes, it was painful and emotional and expensive (oh Lord, was it expensive) but overall it was amazing. Our doctor, the midwife, and all the nurses were absolutely incredible and we left the hospital on a total high. By writing that comment on Kristina's page, I was simply wishing the same for her. That no matter how many hours of labor she endured, or how much it hurt to push a baby out, she would look back at the experience and say it was wonderful for her, too. I hope she's treated well by all the doctors and nurses, that her baby is healthy and happy, that her body recovers well, and she leaves the hospital ready and confident for motherhood. So perhaps I'm crazy, but I think it's possible to have a wonderful experience. If you don't agree with me or if you had a horrible experience, that's totally fine and I'm sorry. Just do me a favor and keep that to yourself for now, and share that with a VERY pregnant woman after she has had her baby :)

1 comment:

  1. you're not crazy - you're just a thoughtful, kind person that's all :-)

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