Employment opportunity: labor coach

I started reading some materials about labor and delivery, because let's face it: I'm clueless about what I'm going to have to endure. Yes, I passed my dad's bio class, but there's no way the curriculum included details about childbirth that sophomores should know. Ignorance is bliss at their age, and maybe it should be at my age too.

My insurance doesn't cover any birthing classes, and I'm not that excited to spend $200 out of pocket for something I'm sure I could learn from books, videos and people. Matt supported my decision and so one day he came home from the library with a couple of westerns (what else?) and some books for me. In his stack was Thank you, Dr. Lamaze and Ina May's Guide to Childbirth.

"Ina May's Guide to Childbirth???? Matt, are you crazy??? This is the book that made me nearly faint!!!"

One day, back in the summer, I accidentally flipped through it and the oh-so-graphic images had me so shocked and worked up that I had to sit down. No joke, I felt the blood drain from my face. Luckily, a nearby newspaper made a great fan. Whew. Blackout avoided. So naturally, Matt wanted to see these "awful" pictures, and then he said "I'm so glad I'm not a woman."

Anywho, my mother-in-law sent me some reading materials that she had read back when she was pregnant with Christopher. The typeface was totally cool and vintage (and hard to read), but this jumped out at me:

Did you see that? Look more closely at the wife's role during the preliminary phase of labor:

WHAT?!?!?! I showed this to Matt and he went straight to work on crafting his menu. He has revised it many times.

Meanwhile, I read Thank you, Dr. Lamaze and watched several videos on YouTube about breathing techniques (for natural birth). What I don't understand is that they contradict each other!

• Book says to keep breaths in your upper chest without moving your tummy. 
• YouTube says to breathe deeply through your stomach, watching it expand and contract. 
• Book says to hold breath and push with everything you've got. 
• YouTube says to push using abs (or what's left of them), while keeping the rest of your body relaxed, especially the pelvic floor. Pushing with all your might means you're tensing every muscle in your body, which doesn't allow the baby's head to come out. 

So here's my conclusion: I'll try anything that feels effective, and I'll listen to the nurses (since my coach will have his mouth full). The baby will come out eventually. Yay for the last leg of this pregnancy!