'Something hurt, a bodily invasion
This was not a happy occasion
I could hear them having a conversation
Something about a complication?
Fear now danced with trepidation
How I'd love a mild sedation!
Suffering now from dehydration
I wanted an end to my gestation
Only three centimetres in my dilation!
I couldn't hide the pure frustration
Pangs of agony, nurse rotation
Hours and hours of preparation
Then it happened - activation!
Too late to make a cancellation
Several tries at inhalation
The midwife helped with navigation
And with resolve and determination
I saw the results of my creation
All I felt was tribulation
And settled down for relaxation.'

Suzanne Morris' poem was inspired by Every Birth It Comes Different (1980), published by Centerprise.