Calm and peace

I just had an interesting comment from a lady tonight. She told me, that even though there were a few people around her telling her how to push and counting and holding her, that it was my calm, quiet voice, that she heard. It made me wonder how and why someone could latch on to something like that in the middle of noise. And how much we really need that.

I know I have never liked the noise of delivery. I had that at only one of my births and I swore I would never do that with a woman in labor. The thing is, when your in labor, you need calm and quiet. You need a peaceful feeling, and quiet reassurances. It's interesting being on the other end of this also. As a caregiver, I find myself connecting much more with a woman in labor when I quietly breathe with her, or focus her attention to my face to work through contractions.

The hard part, sometimes my attention can not be so focused. Sometimes the baby needs attention, sometimes there are medical things I need to focus on. So, I applaud those women who choose to support laboring women..be they doula's, mothers, friends, husbands, or sisters. The work you do is so important and I appreciate the calming influence you have.

And then I remind myself, that this applies to many areas of life. How much more effective are we as mothers when we calmly talk to our children, rather than yell. When we watch for the right moment to speak, rather than interrupt what others are saying. When we focus our attention on what others really need, rather than just being noisy. I know it makes me want to try to much more of a peace maker in my own home.