I was thinking almost the opposite of dear Santosha!

I had a moment of absolute clarity during DS1's birth ... it had been going for a loooooooong time by this stage, and I was in a lot of pain. But I had a moment of stillness in amongst it all, and I thought: "This is my body. And this will be over tomorrow."

So no matter whether it's hurting and you're exhausted, at the end of the day, that is your body. And the next day, you will be clinging onto your body, not pain or a gas breather or the bed head ... because every contraction you have is one which is soon over, never to return.

You're not giving up, you're accepting it for what it is, and getting on with it.

You can do anything for one day.

You will be fine.