The power of an exhale

I discovered something this weekend.

But first, a complaint. My hips hurt this time of year, normally. Whenever a cold front comes through, I start aching like a 90-year-old woman who has never heard of calcium. Now, add 30-40 pounds of weight and loosened joints, and it's just downright painful. The worst is as night, because every time I shift in my sleep, the pain wakes me up. And, rolling from one side to the other is agony.

But then, I remembered that concept of just breathing out, keeping your face relaxed, keeping your body relaxed to deal with pain. And, it works. Seriously. Crazy how effective it is. I wake up in pain. I force my face to relax -- although that sounds like a conflict of terms. I take a big breath in, and I exhale as I roll over. It still hurts, but more like a stubbed toe than an knife in the foot kind of pain.

I'll add that to the list of things to remember during labor.