Knowing this helped me 'breathe' during labor. [Things I realized before birth vol. 2]

During labor, I was counting the waves.

While exhaling with a 'whew' sound,
I was counting '125 more to go...' in my head. Haha

Why was I able to stay so calm?
I think it's because I was taught the mechanism of labor at a seminar.

I was a scaredy-cat who was even afraid to look up labor,
but I will share the knowledge that I was actually able to use (or so I thought, haha).

Labor pain doesn't mean 'it hurts all the time'.

The pain during labor lasts about 30 to 50 seconds at a time.
When it subsides, a break comes. A 1 to 10-minute break.

They say 4/5 of the entire birth process is actually break time.
(*Though the break time gets shorter toward the end)

When I heard this, for the first time, I thought, 'It doesn't hurt all the time.'
It's not a pain that lasts forever. Just knowing that made me feel like I could breathe a little.

Your body is also producing 'painkillers' at the same time.

The trigger for labor is a hormone called 'oxytocin'.
But at the same time, a substance called 'beta-endorphin' is also released from the brain.
It's known as an endogenous morphine. This helps to soothe the pain.

In other words, the body is operating a mechanism that causes pain while simultaneously soothing it.
After the intense pain from oxytocin,
beta-endorphin gives you a break.

When I thought, 'It's actually well-designed,' I felt a little relieved.
I had been so scared, but I realized my body was designed to be able to fight it properly.

Breathing becomes your ally.

I was taught that the guideline is to take 3 'long exhaling breaths' during one contraction.
By breathing, your body relaxes, making it easier for the pain to subside.

Conversely, if you feel too much anxiety or fear, adrenaline is released,
which apparently makes you feel the pain more intensely.

And this was the phrase that stayed with me the most.

'Breathe for your baby.'

Labor is a difficult time for the baby, too.
I heard that the one thing that can ease that time even a little is the mother's breathing.

Somehow, that made me feel like I could do it.

The method of 'counting' the waves.

For a first birth, the peak of labor contractions is estimated to be around 200 times (though it varies by individual).

I heard that 'some people find it easier to get through if they can see the end in sight,' so
I was counting in my head too. 125 more to go... 124 more to go...

So, how did it turn out?

It had absolutely nothing to do with it, haha.

I used labor-inducing drugs.
Apparently, contractions from induction feel a bit different from natural ones.
I stopped counting when I got to about 20 left because I couldn't focus on it anymore, but
it was definitely not just 20 more (lol).

A while after giving birth, I learned that
contractions from induction are different from natural ones.

I wonder what all that studying was for, haha.
I wonder what all that desperate counting was for, haha.

But I still think it was a good thing.

The mindset you have going in is completely different when you 'know' versus when you 'don't know.'
The resolve I felt from knowing the mechanism and thinking, 'I might be able to fight this,'
is something I still believe supported me through that long time.

Knowledge becomes an amulet.
More than anything, it was the best partner to help distract me. Haha.

Since I was a huge scaredy-cat, I can say for sure that I'm not wrong.

To those about to give birth, even a scaredy-cat like me could do it, so please hang in there.