“In the lower orders of the animal creation, the pangs of child-birth are altogether unknown. The same should really be the case with perfectly healthy women. In fact, most women in the country regard child-birth as quite an ordinary matter; they continue to do their normal work till almost the last moment, and experience hardly any pain at the time of delivery. Women employed in labour have also been known to be able very often to return to work almost immediately after child-birth. How comes it, then, that women in towns and cities have to endure so much pain and suffering at the time of child-birth?”
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About this quote
The wider thought is that how we live shapes what our bodies can handle: constant ease and distance from physical work can leave ordinary demands feeling harder than they need to. It reads as an observation about conditioning, not a medical rule — a body kept active and unpampered often meets strain with less struggle.
When to use it
- Someone who walks and lifts daily finds moving furniture routine while a sedentary friend strains and aches.
- A hiker used to long trails barely notices a climb that leaves a deskbound colleague winded halfway up.
- Kids raised doing chores handle a demanding camp with far less complaint than those never asked to help.