labour pain

I am being honest and logical. I never look down upon someone else while giving out my point of view (am never categorised anyone as narrow-minded for their opinion). Opinions are subjective. Now I would like to share something on labour pain. See how you are going to counter that.<:o>

This whole approach to talking about pain in labour during pregnancy needs a radical overhaul. Begin with an explanation about the nature and purpose of the pain itself, the role of endorphins and then explore the instinctive measures that women have used for centuries to make labour more comfortable: being upright, moving about, keeping eyes closed, being in a dark place, companion of choice etc. An emphasis on the impact of drugs on the baby, their effect on breastfeeding and potential side effects for the woman must also be part of the story.

The books that women buy in their bid to fully prepare themselves for birth and parenting (as if this is possible from a book!) may also be feeding into a woman's lack of confidence. Take a look at any book about pregnancy and birth on the shelf in your local bookstore. Tucked away in an appropriate chapter will be found messages about "learning how to breathe" in labour and the importance of learning how to be relaxed if birth is to be easy and the pain bearable. The very idea that women need to learn "how to breathe" in order to give birth well is an insult that affects confidence. There is no evidence that "the breathing" works to relieve pain - it is just another form of intervention. Are the authors of these books reflecting the muddled thinking of those midwives whose need for control over women during birth also extends to those mantras heard in labour wards ("just give us another little push", "push, push, push ... now puff, pant, pant..."!) in second stage?

A common complaint from midwives is that ‘there is no time' to spend with women in labour supporting them through the process. Being "with women" during birth often requires very little of the midwife. Giving the woman more space and privacy and doing less rather than more gives a woman a chance to realises that she can do it "by herself". Giving drugs and using complementary therapies, instead of easing the midwife's load, actually increases it, as she will need to constantly check for adverse effects and monitor the impact they are having on the normal birth process.

If we are to change women's belief systems about pain in labour we need a consistent message from all sources: the books written for expectant parents, the messages given during preparation for birth classes, the behaviours of midwives around women in labour and most importantly...We also need insight into why we are so scared of pain in labour that we will go to almost any lengths to remove it as much as we can.

<:o>

commitment

We had a new director last week. I can feel she looked at me and some of my colleagues as the big cheese in her division. She trusted me with one after another huge tasks and am afraid I will be wound up in this big pile of works forever. I was burning the candle at both ends by all odds because some guys are only dragging their heels in the team.

I am a mother of two and a wife to my husband (yeah, of course..). It wasn't easy at one point of time where all of them were down with a disease and I was stucked in the office over the weekend to work. I have to set my priority straight.

later.

nice

i'm sick of being nice.
but i have no other choice.
a man is known by the company he keeps.
period.

XL vs XS

I can’t help but to listen to one unhealthy conversation last two days. They were looking at the photo with one big size guy in it and these are the part of their says :
“He is the first thing I noticed when I see this photo”
“Wow! That is a very huge tummy!”
“Oh, pity him. I heard he is easily worn out just by walking around the office…”
“Am going to tell his wife that her husband needs to put off some weight..”

I met a lot of sensitive BIG SIZE people. And I met a lot of inconsiderate SKINNY people. These inconsiderate people always making fun of the big sizes because they feel their size is ideal and better. They can’t help laughing at the big sizes, saying they should put off some weight, they should control their meal intake, big people smells bad, they should exercise more, bla bla bla (and the list goes on). Do you think it is easy for them? I have many big size friends and I am sure they didn’t ask for that. Does genetic factor brings any mean to you?? I am not writing here to comment on their efforts or to support their existing lifestyle. I am writing to tell people out there, STOP BEING MEAN. Period.

office

I will lose one of my best staff. Someone advised her to transfer to other unit (I know who you are). I can feel she will go for that. I want to do that long time ago but I decided to stay because I love them so much. We made a very good team regardless the agonizing moments we have to face everyday.

I gave her an OK mark for her annual appraisal. She is good in her work but lack in other field. Balance in all fields will guarantee a high mark. That’s the best I can do and I will not just simply upgrade out of sympathy. She should fight for herself more and she should improve in many ways. I can’t always be there to fight for everybody.

A person sees us differently. We might think we’ve done a good job, but for them, we didn’t meet the expectation. I realize that when I received my own mark. Thought I had done so much, but somehow, no one sees it. I really fight for it and I got a better mark afterwards.

But, really, sometimes we just have to make do.

packaging

I am glad Ribena had shifted their heavy and thick glass bottle to plastic bottle. SUNQUICK, you are next!! The curve is no longer attractive. Rebranding exercise is a good thing to consider. Add more flavours.

Chicken, fish and meat at the market should be cut, clean and packed to save meal preparation time and to reduce our domestic organic waste. I’d trained my 2-years old son to plant a tree and soon, I will teach him about composting. Everybody should do composting out of their organic waste. Ask yourself this question everyday : What is my contribution to the environment today?

Authorities, please ban plastic bags in Malaysia. Thank you.

All food/snacks should use re-sealable packaging to increase its storage life. No more tying with rubber band or use staplers. That cloth pegs-like thing to seal the food package is not practical. Air still goes in. So does ants.

Backstabbing 101

So far so good.
Two days in this new year, I only ACCIDENTALLY talk bad things about 2 person. Phew. What an achievement!

This morning was quite hard. I don’t like being too hard on my staff but some of them fell into underachiever category due to my lack of firmness. I had to fill up appraisal forms for each one of them and I have to call them one by one and justify why I gave such mark. It was easy for younger staffs but hard for the opposite. I need to be more firm from this point forward.

Judging people is not the field I am good at although I did that unconsciously several times per day. Everybody does that. But putting numbers on others’ discipline level, competencies or proactiveness and those numbers will have a big impact in their future… well, that is the complicated judging task I’m talking about. What if I give a wrong number? What if she actually deserves bigger number?

Why can’t we use merit system for this purpose?