Olympic Clock- If Only…
A little known piece of Olympic lore(at least where the US national team is concerned) is that at the Olympic training center in Colorado there is a clock(actually several, one for each sport) that counts down to the commencement of competition for one’s given sport. This serves two primary functions. First it is a constant reminder of how much time one has to prepare. Second it helps alleviate stress.
See when there is an end in sight people know that they only have to continue at a set level of stress/output until the timer hits 0 and then it is theoretically over(unless you decide to go on to another Olympic competition). Like a Marine Corp drill instructor I know likes to say about Calisthenics, “What makes them hard, is no one but me know’s when they are going end.” When there is no definitive end in sight, the human mind can play some amazing tricks on you. When you don’t know if if your fiftieth pushup is the end, the middle, or just the warm up, it is considerably harder.
That’s where my wife and I are now with her current pregnancy. She is overdue… whatever that means. She’s being having contractions, sometimes as little as three minutes apart for five days now, and exhaustion is starting to set in. Especially as know one knows if the next one will be the start of actual active labor, if we are half way to that point, or if this is just a warm up(I actually know a lady who went through this for 3.5 weeks). Add to that the foibles and problems of the Israeli socialized medical system, and it gets to be a bit… overwhelming. There is the emotional and physical toll, that just keeps adding up with no definitive end in sight. If only there were an Olympic Clock. So that on D-Day, H-Hour, M-Minute you know that it will be over. If only…
I seriously advise you to contact a refloxologist to give your wife a session – in order
to avoid having a doctor inducing labor – which brings about very very intense quick labor – but makes it hard to breath along with it.
Appointment already set.
Bshaah tova
B’sh’ah tova u’mutzlachat!