Is Epidural Necessary?

Answer

Many husbands feel a bit useless when it comes to helping their expectant wife. She is the one that carries the baby in her womb, rides the rollercoaster of pregnancy, and experiences the ordeal of childbirth. He cannot help much with any of this. But he can be a support. He can try to pick up the slack and do whatever possible to ease her burden and make her feel he is there for her. One thing he can do is to pray. Pray for an easy birth, a healthy child, and quick and full recovery for the mother. And there is no better time to pray for this than when the ark is opened. This is one of the most powerful moments of the synagogue service. The doors of the ark are like the gates of heaven, and when they open it is a moment of openness above, when the heavens are open to our prayers. And as the Torah is revealed from behind the curtain and then brought out of the ark, divine blessings are revealed and come down with it. When a husband is the one to open the ark and deliver the Torah, it elicits extra blessings for his wife's womb to open at the right time and the baby to be delivered safely. Now there may not be scientific evidence to prove that women whose husbands open the ark have easier births. After all, over one billion children have been born in China, and hardly any of their fathers opened the ark even once. Nevertheless, each child that is born is a miracle, and each mother that gives birth is a hero. We need to pray for them, and open the heavenly gates of blessing in any way we can.