Be Present!
"Wherever you are, be all there!" -- Jim Elliot
Be all there.
It's simple to think, "Obviously, I'm all here, I'm in the room, aren't I?" And yes, your whole body is present if you show up in the birth suite. But the questions beg answered: Where is you mind? Where is your heart? Where are your emotions?
Did you have to leave work to meet her at the hospital? Did you leave work at work? Do you have your cell phone on? Are you more engaged in the social media accounts of your friends than the experience of labor in the moment? How about your fears, concerns and anxieties? Are you so tied up in the horrible possible of this experience that you cannot fully engage in the process in the moment?
A laboring woman does not just need your hands - she needs YOUR HEART!
So anything that could be distracting - work, other friends/relationships, family checking in, or your own emotions about the experience may take a critical piece of you away from her.
Birth is transformative - and you have to be grounded and fully present to it to experience the incredible strength you will witness in that space!
Look at her - really look at her . . . the way her muscles are working, hormones flowing through her body, baby rotating through bones, muscles and tissues stretching to make the path for baby's entrance.
Engage with her - ask what she needs and be proactive to get involved.
Attune to her emotions - bear witness to this woman in front of you being born into a mother. It will take everything she has, and at the end when she seems to have lost the last bit of herself, you'll discover the depth of strength and beauty that was there all along.
Leave work at work.
Turn off the Cell phone (or at least put it on silent)
Be by her side!
You might just be amazed by what you see!
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