"How I gave birth" stories are kind of like "big fish" tales. With each retelling, you get more hardcore. First time around, you gave birth drug-free. Second time? Drug-free with one arm tied behind your back. And so on. But did you give birth in absolute silence at home?
This one mom from Jerusalem kept quiet during the whole OMG, ouch labor and delivery process. And then, the woman who happens to practice the Jewish faith also managed to sit, quiet and patient, with her newborn still attached to her via the umbilical cord, until sundown! She didn't even get to coo over that sweet little pumpkin!
The new mom had taken a vow of silence for the Jewish Sabbath day, and she refused to give up ... even when her rabbi called the paramedics. According to a report in The Huffington Post, even the idea of a rabbinical tribunal to relieve her of her vow didn't make the mom budge.
Yikes!
I would have thought that the fact that the rabbi actually called upon the paramedics would have given this mom a break, but I'm not Jewish, and as such can't really comment on how these sort of rules of the faith work. I don't know why or how or any of it. So I'm not going there, OK? It's too easy to criticize when you aren't well versed in someone's culture.
I can comment on what it takes to be 100 percent silent during the birth of a baby and after. I'll tell you right now, I know I couldn't do it! And I don't know many women who could!
We don't scream when we're in labor because we're wusses (contrary to certain male opinions). We do it because it's in our nature: scientists have proven that there is actual pain relief to be had when we swear or shout.
I remember lying in the labor room (at that time my hospital moved you to another room for the actual delivery), listening to women up and down the hallway screaming their lungs out. I wasn't a screamer, but you can bet your sweet bippy that I was making some noises while I produced a human being. My version was repetition of a certain curse word muttered under my breath.
As for after the baby's born, all I wanted to do was talk to my daughter! I was cooing and telling her how beautiful she was, and I probably did not shut up for a good hour or so ...
How about you? How long could you take the silence?
Image via futureshape/Flickr
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Comments 47
I had my babies with a midwfe (not in the hospital), they were both natural births. I was pretty quiet with both. With the second I was almost silent the whole time. Once you get to that place deep within, you enter a whole other world. you're in such a focused zone that any sound can disrupt the peace you've found. It's total surrender & concentration, there's no noise that comes with that. It's amazing.
With my Son I was quiet
i didn't scream but i did a lot of holding my breath, groaning and squeezing my dh's hand.....pretty much to numbness....lol....i did let out a pretty "OUCH!" on the episiotomies though....lol.....thankfully they were really quick.....my first one delivered within 50 minutes of my water breaking (would have been sooner but my doc wasn't there so they wouldn't let me push!)......second was a 3-ring circus delivery but he still delivered within 36 minutes of my water breaking.....we were a bit nervous when we found out we were expecting number 3!.....lol.....but he ended up having to come by c-section.....i really don't think i could have stayed totally silent!
I was quite. When my doc spoke to me I had to ask what? I never really spoke.That was after 55 hrs of labor.Yes, 55 hrs. I was tired. I had my epidural 5 hrs before I gave birth.I still had spots where I could feel everything. I had to mentally block everything.I was so into blocking out the pain I was not listening to anyone.I never knew I could do something like that.I never said anything mean or yelled.I cried but never raised my voice or said anything bad to anyone. :") I would say I was quite.
As a Jew, I can say this is not the norm. I have never even heard of this "vow of silence."
That said, I was not screaming during any of my labors. That actually makes labor harder when your screaming. Take that energy you use to scream and push instead. It works. But I was also never silent, just not screaming bloody murder. lol
I never screamed in pain during the births of any of my kids. I will admit to crying but it wasn't for the pain. It was because my babies all came early and I was scared for all of them.
I was screaming "she's gonna come out I can feel her" most of the time because they had not given me my epidural yet lol