Gave some thought to pain in the last week.

Had to drive S to the dentist suddenly, as his root canal the day before had flared up and given his intense pain. All of a sudden, the pain shot through his mouth, his jaw and throbbed into his whole head. He took his prescribed narcotics in hopes that they would kick in as soon as possible.
I dropped what I was doing, packed the tiny baby into the car, got yelled out because I wasn't going fast enough, and rushed to the office before the dentist left for the day. We bypassed picking up the bigger baby from daycare because the pain was too great, the time too short. I could go get the baby after I dropped S at the office.
As he pounded the side of the car with his fist and groaned in pain, I found it really hard to not think about my experiences with being in labor.

And this is what first came to mind: Why is being in labor a less acceptable time to feel out of control with pain? We're told to breath through it, to hypnotize ourselves to ignore it, to be present for the experience. We question whether or not we should get pain medicine, as if getting pain medicine is some kind of failure.

But I ask this: would anyone ever question S for taking pain meds for his toothache? Should I have sat next to him in the car and urged him to breath through it? Would he have felt disappointed if he didn't get to have the full experience of the pain? NO!

It's so ridiculous all the stigma we place on childbirth and labor. And how little prepared we are for pain in all other circumstances.