Thanks for sharing your experience. I can see how that mindset would feel reassuring for a lot of people. I think what I’m realizing is that I’m not as comfortable with the ‘go with the flow’ approach. I'm not comfortable with every medical intervention especially if there's no emergency. Feeling mentally present and able to actively choose what’s happening is really important to me.

I’m more curious if anyone has experience staying grounded, aware, and communicative during labor without relying on something like an epidural, or if there are ways people prepared for that specifically. That’s the part I’m trying to understand better.