#based upon a common scenario where i take up all the space in the bed by spreading my limbs out. Starfish maneuver

[marbleboa]

(narrator voice) This is one of Sakurai's Special Moves, where he Drops That Bony Ass

#mob psycho 100 #mp100 #sakuyama #sakurai yusuke #koyama megumu #marbleart #based upon a common scenario where i take up all the space in the bed by spreading my limbs out. Starfish maneuver #my partner loves it :]

[themilky-way]

as the hours pass {loki odinson}

gif credit: littlemisssyreid

pairing: loki odinson x fem!reader (might be considered gender neutral, though)

summary: he afraid of what he feels, so he does the only the thing he knows how to do: lie. based on this ask.

warnings: super shitty angst lol cuz it was 9 pm and my brain cells were FRIED. i think that’s it?? fluff at the end tho so we good 

author’s note: this took me a whole mf week to write which isn’t that bad but i have no time now and it’s kinda scary. yolo tho lol 

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when tony had initially proposed a weekly movie night for the entire team, not a single person would’ve imagined anything like this. a large projector had taken the place of the regular flatscreen television, consequently lining up in all the four corners of the penthouse windows. couches and reclining chairs compiled in a large circle instead of being adequately spread out amongst the common room, and they’d all been filled by at least one avenger. to those wishing to participate, jobs and duties had been assigned the week prior, the list ranging from making popcorn to dimming the lights. it was organized-sophisticated, in a way-how it had all been brought about, and to say the majority of the residents living in tony’s multi billionaire penthouse were surprised was quite the understatement. 

over the course of a few weeks, everything began falling into place. reminders didn’t need to be set anymore, and the designated tasks weren’t viewed as chores. natasha made sure to pop three full bags of delicious kernels- ensuring thor’s bowl had just enough butter to lick his fingers clean when he finished-while steve arranged a variety of pillows and blankets around the seating space. soon enough, fading shades of purple would ignite the obscurity of the living room-all due to the led lights binded to the borders of its ceiling-and either a horror or comedy film would commence. 

in such a manner, your spot could always be found on the same peculiar couch, next to the same peculiar individual. god, at that. to literally go to hell and back, to get placed in a home that wasn’t his home with people who wanted his head wasn’t particularly an easy life to lead. he wasn’t a man of sentiment, either, nor one who engaged in communal activities, so you took your part as a good samaritan and kept him company. the seat next to loki had been unreserved, with not even thor to take its place, and you shuffled away from a very frightened wanda to settle beside him. he'd been neutral, annoyed perhaps. if a stranger came to sit next to you out of the blue, wouldn’t you be, too? 

“mind if i sit here?” a mild pause signaled a response, and the shrug of his shoulders gave it away. “i’m not really enjoying the movie, and the space looked kinda cozy,” you added. 

after you had thoroughly felt the soft cushion of the seat and all its comfort, it was rather difficult to stray away from it. every friday evening, the striped bedding of the couch awaited your presence, and a pillow of an identical design lay by the armrest. loki always got there first, a bowl of ice containing two ice cream bars in his grasp, and if the belief that he had ever been remotely inconsiderate damaged your reasoning, the chocolate chip cookie he gifted you at the start of every night proved you wrong. 

if loki truly had to be honest with himself-his father, if he was peering down from above-the companionship you bestowed upon him didn’t upset him as he presumed it would. he half-expected his cold and antisocial nature to speak for itself, to grab hold of the kindness of your heart, crush it, and scatter its pieces so your blind hands would have to search aimlessly for them. for him, the opportunity would’ve been so effortless, so relieving in its own wicked sense, but you had already known that from the minute the tips of your sock-clad toes had walked right up to his. your words had been honey to him, simple yet profoundly eloquent that had dripped away every vowel on his tongue. the warmth that encircled you caromed over to him, and then his icy fingers became regular fingers, and his wintry complexion no longer overpowered the person he strived to be.

the thought alone of developing a kinship alarmed the presumably mischievous man, and when time, the most rewarding elements of his beloved universe, presented him with such a miraculous creature, he went into a comatose. the object of his interest was no longer an object, it was a person, an individual that appeared to envelop his nonexistent grace as if they depended on it. so his beautiful, virulent mind, as plentiful of wisdom as it was, conceived what it regarded to be the only correct answer. 

the seconds of long anticipated hours grew legs, and urged fragments of minutes to run off. solitude embraced the area loki used to adore being in, and his absence planted a seed of confusion within the person always seated beside him. the following nights were mindless for you, even when wanda had selected your favorite films to view, your headspace drifting off to the god who wasn’t watching it with you. interactions between your team lessened. refusing a handful of thor’s popcorn became a habit, and although he questioned you about it, he never brought it up again. then, a month flew by before you could cognitively process it. loki’s eyes hardly ever witnessed daylight now, or you for that matter. more often than not, his ear perked up at the soft squeaks of sneakers before their shadow halted in front of his door. the air in his lungs would almost escape from him entirely, lips pursed so tightly he felt them turn white, before mere seconds later distorted voices trailed your feet away from the barrier that separated him from you. foolish, he’d been foolish to deceive you so childishly. what could he possibly tell you now, that wouldn’t lead you to scurry away from him?

tonight, the best remedy to get some rest was to fix some tea. a good read seemed suitable enough, too, so a copy of The Scarlet Letter decorated your pillow. you trusted your weary legs to navigate you to the kitchen while your brain busied in forming unrealistic scenarios, as silly as it sounds, and you were doing fine and dandy until a conversation reeled you back in. an all too familiar voice-one you hadn’t heard in so long-was speaking, ranting, about things that bothered him? yeah, that was it. 

it was wrong to what you did at that moment, your dear mother had taught you better than this, but the never ending words spewing from loki’s mouth had glued the soles of your feet to the chilling tiles. 

a heartbeat shriveled to nothing, a weighty ache engulfing it in all its mighty glory, and everything you ever came to know became deception. “...ridiculous! i’ll tell you one thing, brother, and that is that they’re absurd for thinking i’m better.”

a booming retort-thor’s-defended you. “you’re ridiculous. they’re good to you and you’re going to throw it away because you’re afraid?” he neatly placed his mug on the counter before his firm hand landed on his brother’s shoulder and squeezed in reassurance. “if you keep pushing people away, you’ll outlive centuries-worth of joy.” loki flicked it away. “do they truly matter to you? enough for you to stop hurting them?”

the wall pressing into your shoulder obscured the visual of loki nodding his head. the tea you craved for now sounded disgusting, and no matter how hard you blinked your eyes, a puddle threatened to hover over them. you began toying with the sleeves of your sweater, hating the emerald shade you chose for it, and your head drooped down to focus on its marbled designs. odd shapes helped center your emotions, too much that you missed a figure passing by the entry. 

did you jump? yes. did loki jump? also yes. 

“what-why are you-why are you standing there?” his voice was shaky, concerned. he looked at your figure over once, his nervous glare lingering a little too closely at the pigment of your shirt, before he focused on you. it was hard for him to miss your anguish. the question his brother had previously asked him looped in his head, and by odin yes-yes, you mattered to him. 

“did you hear what i said?” he gulped. “all of it?”

your pupils were fully dilated, mouth inconceivably dry, so you muttered a tiny “yeah.”

“it’s alright, though. i’m not-i’m not mad, or sad, or whatever. i get it.” with enough strength, you pushed your body away from where you’d been cornered and started your leave. a tightening on your wrist stopped you. 

“please don’t go.” loki never begged, and he always trusted his ego to prevent him from doing it, but he’d inflicted grief on his most treasured midgardian, and he’d have to remedy that. “please.” 

“loki, hey it’s alright. i’ll leave you alone if that’s what you need.” he held you tighter before pulling your palm up to meet his chest. “what are you-look, i’m sorry-”

“you’re sorry?” he cut you off. “i’m sorry, don’t you see what you do to me?” the pad of one of his own hands moved to cover the back of yours to push it further onto his covered heart. it was beating faster than godly possible. if he were anyone else, maybe he was nearing a heart attack. “i do believe you’re the first one to do that.”

you ceased touching him before beginning to speak, but he knew your apologies, your questions, before they even escaped your lips. he fumbled on his words for some time, thorough confessions of his feelings never came as easily as he hoped, but he managed to get the point across. his obsidian, curly locks drizzling over his tiresome face distracted you, and his enticing features, his slurred attempts to achieve your forgiveness forced a tiny grin onto your mouth.

“it’s okay, honey,” you extended a hand outward in greeting. “let’s just start over, yeah?”

he choked on a breath at the name, and then two clammy hands melded into one, and everything was alright for once. “i’m loki, and the pleasure’s all mine, darling.”

#loki x reader #loki angst #loki fluff #loki odinson x reader #loki fanfiction #loki odinson fanfiction #loki laufeyson x reader #loki laufeyson fanfiction #loki odinson #loki laufeyson #my writing!

[wri0thesley]

Hey what’s uP Nat! 😄 I was wondering if you could do a scenario where Mista’s fem s/o has been very bratty and Mista makes her touch herself for him?

"Come on, babe," Mista says, his eyes dark, his mouth swollen, his gaze focused on you as you squirm on his bed. "You were so eager to let me know how you were practically beggin' for it earlier."

"Mista," You grumble, "You know that's because I wanted you inside me--"

"Oh," Mista says, and there's a flash of the gangster that he sometimes is - the man who holds a gun like he was born with one in his hand and shoots a bullet as casually as doing anything else - in those liquid dark eyes. "But babe, brats don't get what they want."

Well. Heat flares low in your stomach as one of Mista's big hand goes to encircle your hip, keeping you pinned against the bed. You blink up at him, your own eyes blown, your breath coming in short little pants.

Perhaps you did tease him a little too much today. You'd worn your shortest shorts in the hot, oppressive Italian sunshine - but when you'd seen Mista looking and appreciating the curves of your ass and the softness of your thighs in them, you hadn't been able to resist showing off a little for him. Wiggling your hips with every step. Brushing yourself against him when you were waiting to be seated at the restaurant. Trailing your hand over his thigh when you'd stepped away from the table to go to the powder room and check your hair and makeup. Eating the ice cream you'd ordered for dessert with perhaps a little more tongue than was strictly neccessary--

But Mista was so cute when he was riled up. When his teeth dug into his plush bottom lip and one of his knees bounced under the table and he couldn't tear his eyes from all of the places on you that were bare skin. Your boyfriend can be adorable, goofy, superstitious and silly--

But he's also perfectly capable of being stone cold. And it's the stone cold Mista who had grabbed you about the middle as he'd locked the door of his apartment behind you and carried you - corded muscles obvious in his forearms even through the obnoxiously printed cashmere of his sweater - to his bed, tossing you on the coverlets and pushing your knees apart with strong hands, staring down at you so that you shifted under his unwavering attention.

"Mista," you try again, fluttering your eyelashes - and Mista hisses through his teeth, the hand not on your hip moving to undo the button of your shorts and tug down the zip.

"Take 'em off, babe," he says. "C'mon. You've been dyin' to show me all day."

You oblige, wiggling out of the undone shorts, letting them dangle on your ankle for a moment before they fall off the edge of the bed and you're before him in just your underwear - underwear that is showing itself as being embarrassingly damp. Mista doesn't miss this. With the hand not on your hip, he brings one finger up to the space where your thighs are parted, deliberately dragging it through the dip of your sex's lips, feeling where you're wet for him.

"Oh, babe," he says, all dangerous low mock-surprise. "Have you really been this needy all night? All for me?"

"You know I have," you pant back at him, looking up at him with pleading eyes. "Please touch me more, Guido--"

"Hmm." He stays his finger, just over where the throbbing, swollen nub of your clit is, and you desperately try and grind up into the calloused flesh just to get some much needed pressure on your sex. "But babe. I've told you. Brats don't get what they want."

"What about what they need?" You say, voice shivering and shaking with the effort of how much and how badly you want him to touch you. "If you don't help me come, I'll die--"

He has the nerve to huff out a low chuckle at you, smirk pulling at those full, gorgeous lips. He blinks down at you - and all at once, he pulls his hand away from both the apex of your thighs and its grip upon your hips. He takes one step back, his eyes caressing the length of your helpless body on his bed.

"I'm not gonna help you when you got yourself into this mess," he comments, although as he looks at you, you notice that his chest is moving faster, and there's a distinct dryness to the words spilling from his throat that you recognise as one of Mista's tells; he's horribly turned on, just by looking at you and knowing how much you want him. "If you really wanna come, you've gotta do it yourself."

"Mista, please," you say again, voice pitching. Your shirt feels hot and sticky against your skin. The underwear you're still wearing rubs uncomfortably against where you feel sensitive and swollen. "I'm sorry for being a brat, I promise I'll be good--"

"Uh-uh," Mista says, bringing up a finger and wagging it at you. "If you're gonna be a good girl now, you're gonna have to show me. Show me what you want me to do to you. Show me how you touch yourself, babe, and if you do a good job . . . Maybe I'll help."

"I want your fingers," you say, pathetically, lip wobbling. "Mine aren't good enough, Mista--"

He grins down at you.

"Shoulda thought about that earlier," he says, cheerfully. "Your fingers are plenty good enough for me. I'm gonna enjoy watching you use 'em on yourself. So if you really want me to touch you, and you wanna make up for being such a brat earlier . . ." He gently pulls himself down, folding himself onto his knees, resting his arms on the edge of his bed and resting his chin in turn on his folded arms. His eyes stay very focused on the space between your legs. "You're gonna touch yourself for me, and I'm gonna watch you, and tell you what to do if you don't do a good job. Understood, babe?"

That hard voice again - the one you imagine he uses when he's taking down targets. Your boyfriend's profession should frighten you. What it does instead is send hot bolts of arousal through you and leave you prickling for more of his attention and harsher words. Desperate for him to show just how much control he can really take over you.

"U-understood," you whisper. "C-can I take off my underwear?"

Crooked grin - the way Mista smiles always used to make butterflies flap their wings in your chest. It hasn't lost a whit of its power, since you and he became official - but now, the butterflies are anticipation of something entirely different than a snatched kiss or a brush of hands.

"I'd be sad if you didn't," he says, "'specially when my view from down here is so goddamn good."

You want nothing more than to take off your underwear and slide further down, pressing your slick centra against Mista's inviting mouth. That mouth is already slightly parted as he watches you pull the lacy underwear down your thighs, the fabric going the same way as your shorts - and Mista growls as you open your legs again, his lust palpable in the room.

"I'd love to be touchin' you right now," he growls to you. "Such a pity you had to be a brat and ruin it, huh? I'll just have to get off watchin' you touch your gorgeous self, huh?"

"You don't have to," you breathe, as one of your hands wanders down, parting the lips of your sex, gentle fingertips brushing your clit so that your hips jerk. "You could always . . . just touch me yourself . . ."

"Where's the lesson in that, huh?" He asks, and his tongue darts out to moisten his lips, his eyes rapt with attention as your press your fingers over your clit again. "Put one in, babe."

Another circle of your clit, already feeling the soft sparks of pleasure going off in your core, and you oblige Mista once more - you're wet enough to that your finger fits in to the second knuckle without any kind of resistance save for the slick noises of your body accepting. You push it down to the base, wiggling your hips a little as you do so, looking for the spot on your inner walls that Mista's cock always hits and makes you feel like you're going to pass out. Your finger isn't thick enough, though, and you add a second.

"Good girl," Mista breathes. "Look how gorgeous you look with your fingers in you. Look how cute you are--"

A moan escapes you at the compliment, your cheeks flushing, as your other hand comes up to toy with your clit whilst you try and establish a rhythm with the fingers inside you; alternating between the thrusting and the rubbing, the circling as the jerking.

"That's right," he says, enthralled. "I wanna hear you, babe. Wanna hear you come apart for me, and tell me how much you wish it were my cock inside you--"

"I wish it was," you breathe out, hitting a sensitive spot inside you with your fingertips that leads to a full body shudder. You're not going to last long - not merely because you know your own body so well, but because having Mista's rapt attention is heady in how intoxicating it is. The way he's breathing deep as if he can drink you in and watching you like a wolf watches his prey and praising how pretty and how good you are for him all muddle in your mind, with one thing in common: they're helping push you over the edge even quicker.

"Faster," Mista demands, and you try and obey - the two fingers inside you burying themselves to the hilt and then pulling out, thrusting as desperately and wildly as you wish Mista were doing. The fingers on your clit pinch and roll and circle, the nub swollen to attention with need. "Come on, babe, I wanna see how gorgeous you look when you're coming for me."

"M-Mista," you gasp out, "Mista, please, I need your cock--"

"Just a little more," he says, and your pace reaches a frantic crescendo, and the hot fire in your stomach overflows and spills out of you in white-hot waves as you wail out a final cry of Mista's names and your body pulses and contracts around your fingers, clamping you tight as a vice. Your eyes squeeze shut, but you hear the noise Mista gives out - a groan and a moan as your body goes limp and your vision blurs.

When your eyes open again, you blearily see Mista, still at the end of the bed, still staring down between your thighs. You can feel wetness underneath your thighs and you know you must have made a mess when you came, and you wonder whether these bedsheets are salvageable.

You meet Mista's eyes again, at once sated and not sated at all. Your fingers are all very well, but you'd really rather have something else inside you--

"Again," Mista demands.

"Mista--"

"If you're gonna be a brat," he says, his voice forceful - and ooh, that force makes you fair shiver and would leave you boneless if you weren't already laid akimbo on his bed. "You've got to learn a real lesson. I wanna see you come again. And maybe then, maybe, you'll deserve my cock."

"Mista," you protest weakly, but your hands and fingers are already going to where your thighs are slick and sweat-soaked.

You never could deny him. Or yourself--

Maybe, if you come again, he'll finally fuck you like you need him to.

#jjba #writing #not sfw #afab reader #fem pronouns #guido mista #Anonymous

[seulserenity]

Under the moon - Tiffany scenario pt 1

[a/n] I started this on Tiffany’s birthday because heck that girl deserves all the love. Have some fluffy Tiff everyone in a Hogwarts based au :) The prompt was “Shh. Stop fussing. I’m just braiding your hair”

Tiffany wasn’t quite sure how she’d ended up in this predicament; she was slumped over a black leather sofa with her head propped up by disturbingly green velvet cushions. 

She could tell she was in the Slytherin common room, dungeon like gloominess hung around and each wall bore gargantuan misted glass presumably from the lake water. The stone columns screamed anything but hospitality and while it may be homely to the Slytherin’s it sure as hell wasn’t to her. Yuri, her closest friend at Hogwarts, was leaning uneasily against the arm rest of the sofa and looking out at the shifting figures of the Grindylows that passed by the windows. 

“Yul” Tiffany croaked out. “Why in Merlin's name are we here of all places, you hate this place.” 

“I know Stephanie so could you please shake off your pathetic Slytherin rescuer so we can skedaddle back to our own respective dorms!” 

“Rescuer? What? Yuri we talked about this,, I need context.” Tiffany whined as she thudded her head back against the cushion violently. 

“Ouch, the cushion doesn’t need your abuse. I saved your life and you wanna take it out on my houses’ furniture; tch and they say Hufflepuffs are the sweetest wizards and witches you’ll meet.” A voice echoed as black shoes tapped against the stone steps. 

“Alright y/n, Tiffany’s awake now and she seems perfectly a-okay to me so can we please go back to our own common rooms?” Yuri drawled, slightly adjusting her stance in the presence of a Slytherin. 

Y/n too equally stood up straighter and stared back at Yuri; before words could even leave her now open mouth Tiffany interrupted. 

“Are you not even going to explain why I’m here? Either of you? Because Merlin knows I did not come here willingly and Yuri definitely wouldn’t take a joy trip down here.” The sixth year Hufflepuff seemed ready to list off several reasons why she wouldn’t come to this “dark and gloomy trap of a home” in her words but you had no time for her chatterbox tendencies. 

Jessica’s nasally voice called out to you “Y/n, why are you still not in bed. We have earliest practice for Quidditch tomorrow because the other houses are all fucking dicks.” 

“She gets cranky with little sleep.” You excused, although frankly you didn’t know why you were excusing her, she was the ice queen for a reason. 

“On that note, we’ll leave you and your courteous friend to sleep.” Yuri muttered already halfway up the staircase with Tiffany’s wrist in hand. It would be a long time until you invited other houses into your common room you thought; house guests were not the politest you thought and it would be hard to even tolerate them let alone entertain them next time one popped round. 

It would turn out that next time came around a lot sooner than you’d thought it would. Tiffany and her friends, different ones this time thank Merlin, were stood outside the blank wall waiting for an unsuspecting Slytherin who they could tag onto to get into the common rooms or at least overhear the password from. Jessica was the unlucky victim they spotted and they soon shuffled along the corridor slightly pretending to be lost in an attempt to eavesdrop. What they hadn’t anticipated seemingly was that you would be walking with the cranky Slytherin. 

Immediately Taeyeon rounded on Tiffany in hushed whispers “You mean to tell me we were going to sneak in and just loiter, loiter Pany, in the common room of our best friend’s ex’s house until your ‘rescuer’ showed up and magically explained that night to you. Are you insane, Tiffany? You say you’re brighter than jewels but right now I find it hard to believe you’re brighter than anything other than a rock. I mean for Merlin's sake is it all just a game to you or-” 

“Well well, what do we have here?” Sneered Jessica, her eyes gleaming with mischief as she eyed the trio. Taeyeon, Tiffany and Sunny (an unlikely trio you knew) used to run in the same circles with Jessica, once in fact before your friendship with the ice block Jessica had even dated Yuri. Jessica was one and the same as these not so stealthy idiots who merely breezed through classes and social circles alike but as soon as she and Yuri split the hostility had flown in. Now it seemed neither group could move on from their grudge and so the two huddles of sixth years were reduced to snide remarks and constant avoidance of one another. Of course this was impractical, especially on nights like the one where you had supposedly saved Tiffany; that night you had momentarily discarded any loyalty to Jessica for the sake of Tiffany. Don’t read into this or anything but you simply felt that having no involvement in the friendships/relationship of Jessica before it was only by default that you begrudged the misfits so you had no real reason to deny the poor Hufflepuff help. 

Only now did you realise that you should have carried that loyalty through as Tiffany was getting harder and harder to shake off; she was almost like a house elf that was hell bent on being freed and she would stop at nothing to bug you until you ‘freed her’ of the curiosity. Knowing the trio had probably only eavesdropped to come and pester you at ungodly hours made you feel slightly uneasy at Jessica’s attitude but it wasn’t your place to interfere and so you merely observed from behind Jessica. Tiffany, not one to back down as you’d learned over the past few weeks, pushed in front of Taeyeon to speak. You vaguely knew the three who stood before you because of various clubs and classes, Taeyeon was a beater like yourself and both of you had exchanged bludgers often in Quidditch matches from which you’d observed her and she seemed rather meek. Ravenclaw’s and Slytherin’s had no real rivalry and so of course you’d never really seen her fully stoked up for a game so perhaps she had a hidden wild side but given her house you highly doubted it. 

“Shouldn’t you be somewhere by now Jessica? Perhaps with Ok Taecyeon studying?” The lilt in Tiffany’s voice warned you that Jessica was being baited, you knew her as well as she knew herself and she would rise to the challenge most likely so you decided to intervene. At this point you’d be saving Tiffany’s life so many times that she might as well be paying you back in cash for it. 

“Jess, why don’t you get started on the strategy plan for tonight’s Quidditch practice and I’ll catch you inside? Please?” From the surrender in Jessica’s eyes you saw that she understood your please was not begging but rather a command and so she spun on her heel and proclaimed “Serpentine” so loudly that you thought even people in the Astronomy Tower could hear.  “She just loudly exclaimed the password and so anytime I want in I can just use it, whose the dumbass now huh?” Tiffany challenged. 

Jessica’s head popped around and one hand clung onto the serpent knocker as she simply said “It changes tomorrow, dumbass.” With a slam the door closed and the serpent knocker briefly shuddered against its metal, clanging softly in the background. Taeyeon nudged Tiffany in the side with her wrist as if to say I told you so, Tiffany seemed to take no notice and for that you admired the girl. She was defying your expectations of a Hufflepuff and it sorta drew you to the girl, not that you’d ever admit that though. Tiffany cleared her throat and began a rather hurried and nervous sounding ramble. You couldn’t even precisely hear everything but to summarise it went something like “My friends and I, different ones because Yuri is an ass who won’t stop moping, decided..hm no. We stumbled upon this blank wall and wondered what it was for seeing the snake though when people were going in and out, which by the way I still don’t see how it is possible but as we saw the snake we deduced it was Slytherin’s dorms and shit and well since we kinda wanted to see you, I did I mean, well I wasn’t trying to follow you but just I need answers and Yuri won’t tell me and curiosity killed the cat you know so even though this might kill me I might also die by the hand of curiosity like it’s burning inside and just please answer me instead of avoiding me as you have recently?” 

Tiffany smiled at you and her eyes curved up in the most peculiar way but it was endearing to see, fuzzy warm feelings emanated from within as if someone had given you some pepperup potion. You felt guilt building up all of a sudden that you’d been avoiding her for a few weeks as she technically had done nothing wrong, heck the poor girl was being treated like a hindrance when she’d only acted the way you would had you been in her place. Berating yourself mentally for letting yourself soften, your expression must’ve slipped as well because as you looked straight ahead at the trio and saw a flicker of a smirk on Taeyeon’s face that mocked you. You reminded yourself of the fact that rescuing Tiffany from her predicament had been an inconvenience let alone the manners or lack thereof shown to you by her ridiculously rude friends even when you’d risked being caught in the common room with outsiders. Oh and to really add fuel to the fire you remembered that it wasn’t any Gryffindor and Hufflepuff that you’d brought in but Kwon Yuri, your best friend’s ex and the one girl you’d sworn to never talk to. 

With such words spinning around in your mind you had to get away, spluttering an excuse about needing to help Jessica with the plans you spun around and charged into the common room. The rest of the week neither you nor Jessica spoke about the girls outside your common room nor did you acknowledge anything was wrong. This led to tension and for the entire week you’d been high strung, thank Merlin Tiffany seemed to know (she must have Legilimency or something) and had left you alone the past week. All this space from her though hadn’t helped and it almost tempted you to visit her, almost. You had resisted based on the fact that a) you had no clue how to even find her alone and b) you were too proud to even try but it was after Quidditch practice on Saturday at 10 o’clock when you finally gave in. Tiffany was resting against the bleachers with her windswept hair around her shoulders, Ravenclaw were just beginning their practice and Tiffany had already sat through 3 hours in the bitter cold and wind and seeing her dozing off in such conditions tugged at your heart. On your way out from the Quidditch pitch you passed by her sleeping, you grabbed Taeyeon’s coat nearby and draped it over her before combing through her hair with your bare hands and pulling it into a braid so the wind couldn’t knot it again. 

“Wha-?Wait y/n?”

““Shh. Stop fussing. I’m just braiding your hair”

She lay still and let you do your thing, whilst braiding it seemed the soothing motion had lulled her back to dreamland. 

Slipping off silently back to your common room you hoped she would soon forget about it and that your craving to see her had been satisfied. 

[a/n] Stay tuned for part 2 

#hogwarts au #tiffany scenario #snsd scenario #snsd #fluff #reader

[ebjow301]

Evaluation.

At the very beginning of this project, I had envisioned my work as being a carry on from second year by exploring the same ideas just in different ways, I had left my work at a finished stage but with much more to learn. At the very end of year two, I had started to touch upon Psychogeography, I wasn't aware that the work I had been producing fit perfectly into this topic, so this is where I picked up for 301. 

I got off to quite a rocky start, I didn't really know the direction that I wanted to head in, only the topic that I had in mind. Combine this with the Covid-19 situation that carried on roaring. I found it a real struggle for the first couple of weeks due to the uncertainty of the circumstances. As the second lockdown was announced, I decided to pack up my things and more away from Plymouth and back home to Barnsley with the hopes of being able to return in the following month. Being back home finally gave me some reassurance and I felt much more comfortable to be able to dive into my studies. I started out by learning the basics on Psychogeography, which mentioned that this was normally practiced outside in open areas, which I think is where the challenge began. From here on out, I decided that I was going to begin my project based upon my movements made within the home, this allowed me to contrast my previous work where I studied my movements made outside of the house. Lockdown helped me in this scenario as I wasn't travelling outside as much, especially now that the weather was dropping cooler. 

I had to gather up new materials, having left all of my own in Plymouth, so I went and bought all of what I was imagining I would be using; charcoal, chalk, acrylic paint, watercolour paints, oil paints, wood and canvas. 

Right now my key focus for the work was Psychogeography, but I was also looking into my immediate surroundings; noise, light and key items that were around me on the daily. Along with the routines and rituals that I did within my everyday life which incorporated into the movements that I was making. 

Life drawing sessions were important to me at this stage as they were the only things keeping me motivated to carry on being creative. I started to take inspiration from my life drawing studies, in particular the quick studies where my work was much more fluid and instinctual. I carried this on within every session and worked on this aspect more by focusing on line, I started making fluid coloured ground to work upon to see how they would look with work layered upon them which is where my first influence for my 301 specific project started. After exploring a great list of artists to help me along the way, I was super inspired by the works of both Giuseppe Pinot-Gallizio and Richard Long, two very different artists that I drew ideas from in different ways. I was in awe at Pinot-Gallizios ‘Industrial Paintings’ where he worked on large scrolls with a combination of hand drawn and machine drawn marks in a variety of different materials. As a result, I ordered myself some rolls of paper. I stuck these down to the carpet in areas that were the most travelled within my home; the front room and the top of the stairs. Keeping these down for a few days, the paper slowly became work and marked as more and more paths were being walked upon them - much like how Richard Long religiously walked upon strips of grass to compress it. Once complete, I hung these up outside to allow the sunshine to shine upon it which highlighted the most marked areas of the work. I began to work upon this watercolour paints, charcoal and oil sticks building up layers of my mediums to identify and enhance these areas, this created a whirlwind of lines and paths crossing one another. The outcome was very much like the contours shown on maps to show the reader the height of certain areas. 

I became engrossed with the idea of depth and studied different ways of how I could apply this into my work. I experimented with clay, layers of emulsion, textured paint and ultimately polyfilla working mainly with items found within the home. This integrated into my ideas of the work itself being home orientated. Polyfilla became my final medium and was the most effective for what I was trying to show.

Throughout this experimental period, I began to completely eliminate colour from my work. I initially started with my common colour way of white, pink and black but felt that people were drawing connection to the colours which isn't what I intended. Working with white, as Robert Rauschenberg has stated, allowed for the work to be viewed as a blank canvas. I was really happy with the work that I had just produced and had envisioned placing more paper down around the home, but the one issue that I was having was embodying a sense of self within my work. Living at home, I had three people walking upon the paper, along with two dogs, I thought about putting the paper just in my bedroom but this still wouldn't be just my own marks. I was thinking ahead to how this piece could be displayed within my room and strung up onto my bed, which is when I moved to printing my body onto the paper instead. This one print changed many aspects of my work. I started to move away from mapping my movements made around my home and was focusing on areas that I would commonly visit; my bed, the sofa and my studio chair. These became my focal point and I started to map my bodily movement via the use of my body being printed, now looking more at one fluid movement captured in time. I created multiple of these prints in all of the areas stated and experimented with the comparison between prints made into the same space as there were clear similarities between these, and also with printing multiple times onto the paper over and over again. I integrated this into my everyday routine taking the prints as I got into bed at night, as I sat on the sofa for my morning coffee and when I moved into my studio to begin a day of work. 

I loved the prints alone and they looked amazing when strung out onto the washing line outside as the bright light enhanced all of the creases that my body has imprinted into the paper. But I knew that I wouldn't be happy until I had worked out a way to carry this along into paint. Polyfilla became my new best friend and was the perfect medium to achieve all of the depth that I wanted into my work. I used a wallpaper scraped to apply my polyfilla in straight lines along with drag out the filler to create smooth connections to the wooden grounds. 

Coming full circle, I started to incorporate my first pieces of work into my resolved pieces by tearing and sticking the paper onto the ground of the work using layers of paint and duct tape. I wanted these to be ever so slightly visible when the work was done to show the progression that I have made throughout the module. 

At the time when I thought that all of my work was complete, I had my final crit and was given some constructive criticism from my tutor. Some of white I took on board and others that would have completely disregarded the concept behind the work that I have worked upon throughout this module. The main two being an exploration of other paints and colour, and also to apply something to the paintings that would contrast them to allow there to be balance. I didn't want to explore other types of paints as the household paints were all a part of the concept in the works foundations, was comfortable knowing that emulsion paint changes and fades over time and that is simple part of the art works progression, I also didn't feel that the exploration of different shades of white would support my work in any way at this time as I am not material based, I also didn't have time on my side. However I was willing to attempt to work something into my painting to accentuate what was already there. We spoke of colour and differing textures within the crit, maybe something like another panel to go alongside it. 

I collected my ideas for a little while and decided that I wanted this ‘thing’ to be a part of the actual work and to link in with the idea that I have created. I bought myself some timber and sanded this down until completely smooth, working onto the wood in acrylic paint. The hardest part here was adding colour again, I wanted something that was going to pop off of the painting which, luckily for me, was white so anything goes. Working with the theme of self, I went with what felt right for me and painted the wood in the complementaries pink and turquoise. I combined this with fragments of colour, negative areas, sharp lines and a matte finish, all of which contrasted the work that it was to sit upon. I applied the wood to the painting in areas that I felt were clear paths within the work I had already made, I did this using a drill and screws. Due to the texture of the polyfilla, it allowed for a gap between the ground and the timber which I really liked, it added a completely different side profile to the work. I left the screws slightly protruding from the work as I felt that this signified the difficulty that I had coming to terms with adding something new into work that I had previously considered finished. I view the wood as myself making the print onto the paper which was the start of this work. 

I feel that I have made some very important steps within this module to help me excel as an artist, and also within my next studio practice module. My work took lots of turns but I feel that I have led a clear path and thoughts to show where/what all of my ideas evolved from. I have left this body of work as resolved, but also at a stage where I still have plenty more things to explore. I am feeling very comfortable with the decisions that I have made throughout. 

#assessmenttask1 #resolvedwork

[podabang]

The Debate Over Acinetobacter Baumannii

Acinetobacter Baumannii - the Story

45 of those 52 genes are observed within this island. What's more, other research has proven that Acinetobacter baumannii were proven to be resistant to all antibiotics 58 percent of the moment. Further studies are necessary to recognize the other efflux pumps that may impact carbapenem resistance. It may also be due to the excretion of exopolysaccharide, creating a film of high molecular weight sugar chains behind the bacterium in order to move forward. www.wdrugs.com/?s=diamel

In the emergence of XDR microorganism is important to think about the access to old antimicrobials that could add to the treatment of this infections aside from the new betalactamics along with betalactamse inhibitors drugs. The sulbactam monotherapy is not advisable for serious infections. The prevalence of MDR-A is presently unknown. Take your antibiotics till they are gone, even if you are feeling better. You are more inclined to obtain an infection from Acinetobacter baumannii if you've got a disease like diabetes or COPD.

It can result in pneumonia if you are in the ICU or whether you are following a ventilator. A ventilator is a machine which provides you with oxygen and breathes for you once you can't breathe well all on your own. Normal signals of infection don't always occur. Treatment will fluctuate depending on the origin of the infection. Lymphedema Treatment for lymphedema is dependent upon where it is and the harshness of the swelling.

Once determined to be the reason behind infection, A. baumannii is hard to treat with antibiotics since it is so resistant to multiple drugs. Last, we didn't evaluate the results of A. baumannii infection at various body websites and systems like pneumonia and bacteremia on mortality. The disease might be a complication of pneumonia, or pneumonia could possibly be a complication of pleurisy. Acinetobacter causes a number of diseases, which range from pneumonia to serious blood or wound infections, and the symptoms vary based on the disease. Effective therapy remains likely once the organism is shown to be susceptible. A number of these infections may respond to older kinds of antibiotics which are rarely used today.

Actually, A. baumannii is currently accountable for as many as 20% of all intensive care unit infections in some areas of the world with pneumonia being the most frequent presentation. In order to stop the spread of superbug infections and diseases, it will help to be aware of the common superbugs to be on the lookout for and how to limit your exposure. The authors declare they have no conflicts of interest. https://www.womenshealth.gov/a-z-topics/bacterial-vaginosis

The world should be committed to supporting the development and application of new diagnostics. Anyway, a number of the current reports offer inadequate info to come to safe conclusions. Forward-Looking StatementsThis announcement includes forward-looking statements.

The Pain of Acinetobacter Baumannii

A possible pathogenic role has to be evaluated through an infectious disease specialist. All episodes of VAP brought on by A. baumannii during the analysis period were included. Trying to enhance control Analysing and isolating numerous A. baumannii strains from hospitals, it's been proven that most have integrons.

Bacteremia due to A. baumannii is a standard nosocomial infection in critically ill patients. Moreover, OmpA is thought to be an important part of the mechanism by which A. baumannii invades epithelial cells. Within this hospital, A. baumannii is now an endemic nosocomial pathogen which hasn't been eradicated from its principal reservoir.

The end result is obtained in under 2 hours, although other techniques currently available require no less than 24 hours, most frequently 72 hours. The truly amazing ability of Ab to come up with resistance is a worrying matter. Additional refinement is required to help place this approach in the right clinical context.

Finally, observed results suggest that a few measures of isolation precautions as well as standard precautions are necessary to prevent outbreaks of Ab. Although the process of resistance is a little different, these sorts of pathogens are rising in healthcare facilities,'' Muto states. This critical condition has forced hospitals to reassess their hygiene standards in order to safeguard the patients they attend to.

Ideas, Formulas and Shortcuts for Acinetobacter Baumannii

Caregivers may provide you medicine to make you drop feeling in a little region of your back. If visitors have questions about what things to do to put in your room, they need to report to the nurse's station. Carry your medicine list beside you in the event of an emergency.

Prevent falls by calling someone when you escape bed or should you need help. Discuss treatment options with your caregivers to choose what care you wish to get. See your physician if you suspect this condition in order for your doctor can ascertain the underlying cause and start treatment. Learn about your wellbeing condition and how it can be treated.

Whatever They Told You About Acinetobacter Baumannii Is Dead Wrong...And Here's Why

Specific guidelines for the constraint of A. baumannii are essential to assist hospitals enhance their control activities. Please be aware that the Culture Collections can't be held accountable for any inaccuracies in the data supplied by the depositors. Contact precautions are always an important burden to staff members, particularly when it's not merely a couple of patients, but a whole 15-bed unit.

A Secret Weapon for Acinetobacter Baumannii

In other words, these methods might be very helpful tool for clinicians concerning treatment decision-making. And though the identification procedure takes under an hour, susceptibility tests might need to run separately. But if my pronunciation is incorrect I want to understand. Generally, a mix of typing methods is advised for unambiguous strain identification in local scenarios.

A couple of the clinical isolates retained an amount of pure transformability much like that of the reference strain. We also can't deal with complexity of single versus combination chemotherapy. Ultimately, additional studies including more isolates will be needed to boost our understanding of these 2 species. Several combinations are tested and the outcomes of the majority of them show synergy and even the capacity to stop drug-resistant strains.

These strains were found on hard surfaces in addition to on the hands of health care personnel. There's a capillary space between both membranes that's full of fluid. Approximately 85 percent of women over age 20 have some sort of cellulite. The exact same case occurs when they touch surfaces which may have ESBL.

Garlic will bring down the temperature together with the pulse and respiration within two days. Purchase an electric temperature probe and make certain all meats are appropriately cooked to temperature before eating. Eventually the full leaf turns brown. Acinetobacter is a sort of bacteria that may be seen in many sources in the surroundings, including water and soil.

As with any other viral infection, pleurisy can happen in modest epidemics. There are 3 different Acinetobacterspp. Infection is whenever the bacteria has started to result in an infection in it's host.

Ethanol has been shown to stimulate the virulence of A. baumannii. Only the very first isolation was considered. The absolute most resistant strains are susceptible simply to the so-toxic-we-put-it-back-on-the-shelf-decades-ago antibiotic colistin. These hospital-adapted' strains of Acinetobacter baumannii are occasionally resistant to a lot of antibiotics and the infections they cause can therefore be hard to treat.

[millenniumfae]

Asexual Sex-Ed: The Dom

When it comes to aces and sex, there’s these huge discussions going left and right. Every ace has their own feelings about sex, and having sex with other people in any context. I’ve talked to many aces (and partners of aces), and I’ve often said that being in a ‘dom’ role can really help reduce sex repulsion and anxiety while also offering sexual stimulation.

Asexual sex-ed is virtually non-existent, which means that aces are often left with limited information, and therefore limited options. But options exist. BDSM with aces may seem like a surprising match, but when you think about it, it really isn’t. 

Aces being active in BDSM isn’t without precedent. Kink is especially alive and kicking in the lgbt+ community as a whole, and BDSM in particular is known for being therapeutic. It’s common for those who’re living with trauma to pursue BDSM as a way to cope. And for aces who are sex-repulsed, and/or struggling with their sexuality and libido, BDSM can be an excellent choice.

So I’ve written a BDSM post about asexuality and doms, which is almost completely based off of my own experience of being a dom. I encourage everyone to pursue this information, regardless of their own sexuality or feelings on sex. This is information that needs to be more readily available to the community.

You can also check out my other asexual sex-eds - on masturbating, consent, sexual health, and mental self care. I’m no licensed doctor - I’m writing based solely on my own experience. My words are just one voice in what hopefully will soon be a menagerie of ace sex ed.

(Be warned, pictures to explicit imagery will be linked. This text post contains no explicit imagery.)

What Is A Dom?

Short answer; a ‘dom’ is the other half of a dominant-subservient sex powerplay. It’s a heavily narrative role that uses acting to make a fake scenario of someone being under the ‘control’ of the other. 

A BDSM coupling can manifest in several different ways, depending on the party. For some, it’s just their normal sex routine, except with a few ‘yes, mistress’’s thrown in. For others, it’s being encased in a latex bodybag, and left to lie still for several hours while your dom does their laundry and buys their groceries.

That diversity exists amongst aces, too. As you meditate and practice your sexuality, you’ll learn what works for you, and what doesn’t. For allosexuals, their preference for BSDM is heavily dependent on what gets them off. For us, it’s more about what makes us feel safest.

Setting Up For The Dom Role

Every sub/dom session starts with words. A lot of them. If you want to play the dom role in a sexual situation, you can’t just bring it up in a casual conversation, and then leave it at that. Even if you’ve done it before. Even if they’ve done it before. Even if you’ve known each other for years. Even if you feel like they’ve ‘got’ it. A BDSM session requires a lot of planning and consent beforehand.

A good, solid script for a sub/dom session goes something like this;

Asking whether your partner interested, or willing, to partake in a submission role.

Exchanging possibilities and scenarios that you’re both interested in.

Exchanging limitations and no-nos.

Exchanging aftercare methods (more on aftercare below).

Laying down a plan, or a schedule, for the session. AKA, you begin with (this), then continue to (this), and end with (this). The more thorough the plan, the better and safer (and smoother!) the session will be.

As a sex-repulsed ace, I only take booty calls from dating sites or from acquaintance referrals. And since I insist on only allowing BDSM sex, I have gone through multiple versions of these scripts throughout my dating experience. And no one has ever reacted as if I was being too finicky, or particular, with this consent process.

Even with some random Okcupid date, I will insist on a Skype call or a facetime, so the sub will see my face outside the domspace (more on domspaces and subspaces down below) as we lay down the rules. 

For example; I got a message from someone that literally only said; “will u beat me up sometime pls thx sorry”. This message was from someone who was a) my age, b) also trans, and c) was a 97% match. So of course, I responded with a solid; “are u looking for a dom? (being serious)”.

And as the conversation continued, my date went on to describe in several paragraphs what they wanted. 

someone who can stuff me into a hole intellectually {...} and is good with manipulating power dynamics. not necessarily trying to fuck, mostly looking for the psych bit and some nonsexual physical stuff / seems like there'd be a lot to work with given your lack of interest in sex generally if you decided intercourse was appropriate. what's really important for me (turns out, maybe this is where i've self sabotaged before) is not having to tell the person how specifically to force my submission. very much would prefer dom to be able to figure that bit out given whatever volunteered biographical-type information was exchanged beforehand.

In the BDSM community, you’re much more likely to find people who will gladly write pages upon pages of what they want, in explicit (and often poetic) detail. Which can be very annoying if you attract the attention of white cis men in their 40′s who want to be the next Christian Grey. 

But that’s good news for you lovelies. As an ace dom, you’ll have very little trouble with bluntly listing your limits and desires, or finding partners willing to partake. I’ve never met a willing sub that was put off, or unaccepting of my asexuality.

Tools, Toys, And Tricks - For The Asexual

You’ve probably seen the wooden paddles and braided ropes and satin blindfolds. Many of them have been carefully designed to minimize injury while also maximizing physical sensation. Spanking with a paddle, for example, will often start with a soft, small model before continuing into using a hard wooden one. This is to make sure there’s adequate bloodflow to the buttcheeks to increase sensitivity, while also reducing the pain.

But to an ace perspective, those leather handcuffs aren’t just to tie up your partner and excite them, it’s also a good way to constrain their hands so you don’t have to deal with their touch on your body. A blindfold will give you privacy. Mouth gags will prevent any intrusive dialogue that might make you uncomfortable.

As with all things involved in the bedroom, you first need to make sure that the tools are body safe. There’s no government regulation on sex toy materials, which means you could potentially end up with bacteria-laden silicon, or toxin-infected plastics. Buy from trusted brands, or reputable suppliers.

Especially useful bondage tools include restraints that go under the bed, flexible velcro cloth handcuffs, and ropes made out of soft, natural cotton (instead of itchier polyester).

Another BDSM tool that is particularly helpful for the ace are chasity toys. The chasity BDSM subculture is essentially orgasm denial with powerplay. And to an ace, it’s a good way to limit the use of sexual organs. Chasity toys are usually geared towards penises, in the form of cages that prevent erections. Vagina equivalent are usually belts that block the entire pelvis. 

Like with all sex, toys and tools aren’t limited to one niche. Instead of buying brand-name fluffy handcuffs, you can very well make do with a random piece of fabric tied loosely around the wrists. In my experience, using bondage tools are a reliable way of reducing sexual contact while also pleasing your sub partner. 

Your Relationship With The Sub - What Is ‘Power?’

At its core, a BDSM session is mostly for the sub’s benefit. While there’s real elements of control, ultimately a sub/dom coupling is done to please the sub primarily, rather than the dom. That’s why people hire dominatrixes - some white-collar lawyer may not even be touched throughout the entire session, but they’re really into being whipped and verbally degraded during their lunch break. Meanwhile, the dominatrix is thinking about which curtains they should use for the living room.

The same goes for ace BDSM. Regardless of your reason for partaking in a scene, the sub is your center of attention. This means you can’t, like, just go through a BDSM session and come out feeling like you mastered your repulsion once and for all. And no amount of amazing sex will ‘cure’ you of asexuality.

For aces, the appeal of being a dom is a way to partake in sexual activity while minimizing discomfort. Even if you aren’t sex repulsed, aces often struggle with our ability to consent to sex. Being a dom is a way to have power over the situation.

But as said, the sub/dom relationship doesn’t involve complete power. The idea of a dominant sexual partner is a facade. That’s why BDSM is enjoyable - the sub’s wrists may actually be tied up and cemented to the bedpost under lock and key, but a dom is completely under the will of a sub’s consent. If that sub decides to release their hands from those shackles, you have no power to overrule that.

Being a dom isn’t about envisioning your repulsion as tied up and subdued, and going through this therapeutic night of whipping your problems into shape. Most of the time, being an asexual dom just means that you have a good excuse for leaving all your clothes on, and not allowing yourself to be sexually stimulated. 

We all have our reasons for wanting to have sex. Perhaps, as a sex-repulsed ace, you actually do enjoy sex but experience anxiety afterwards. Or perhaps you’re struggling with hypersexuality. Regardless the reason, you can’t expect BDSM to be a fix-all anymore than you can expect any possible method of therapy or socialization to be a wondercure.

Sub/Dom ‘Space’ - For The Ace

Entering a ‘subspace’ is basically shorthand for ‘entering a heightened state of emotions due to getting really into the scene’. When you Google ‘subspace’, you’ll get a diverse collection of descriptions of what it means to enter subspace. Everyone’s subspace is different - for some people, subspace is when your body is over-stimulated, leaving you cloudy-headed and weak. For others, subspace is a very psychological sensation that’s akin to dissociation, or a hypnotic trance.

On the other end, there’s ‘domspace’. Like subspace, it’s an altered state of mind where you experience yourself differently. Some describe their domspace as like an emotional high, or heightened emotions. Some describe it as a spiritual experience that channels a reservoir of power. 

For those familiar with BDSM practices, subspace and domspace are words to describe what might happen during a scene. Some people trigger their space with practice and with enthusiasm, some never experience a state that they’d describe as either.

For the ace dom, experiencing domspace is a real possibility. But it’s more dangerous for us; a lot of the time, having sex as an ace means consenting to a language that you don’t share with your partner, and therefore the laws of consent are bent. In that scenario, entering an altered state of mind isn’t an ideal state to be in.

An ace’s domspace wouldn’t be something to retreat towards, it’s something to closely reign and keep in check to make sure you reduce any confusion. You don’t want to lose your sense of self while in a dangerous situation.

I’ve personally never experienced anything like a ‘domspace’, but the idea alone has made me think long and hard about my asexuality and its relationship to being a dom. It’s something you should think about to, if you chose to pursue it.

Aftercare And Self-Care

‘Aftercare’ is big in the BDSM community. And in the sex world in general. Aftercare is the term to describe ‘caring’ for your partner after a sex scene is over and done with, to ensure good mental health and physical wellbeing. Sometimes, that just means snuggling and soft words of comfort. For BDSM, that could mean bandages, ice packs, and so on.

Aftercare is essential in a sub/dom scenario, and its common for the aftercare to last longer than the session. Without aftercare, all parties risk huge health risks, not limited to physical injuries, mental trauma, and emotional stress. You can’t go overboard with aftercare.

For a basic rundown of aftercare;

The first thing people usually need is water. Often, people will drink water throughout the session, but sometimes people get so into it, they don’t realize that their throat is actually parched until it ends.

Give yourselves time to retreat from sub/dom space, and back into your social selves. You drop the tone of voice you’ve been using, you relax your acting postures, you quiet down from shouting so much, you remove all restraints and tools, and so on. Conversation shifts back to normal, and you get a rest from any physical exertion. 

Check yourselves and each other for injuries. You may have been aware of some bruises or rashes being formed during the session, and here’s the chance to take a good, closer look. Small things like cuts and abrasions can get nasty infections, bruises and chapped lips can be irritable and painful. Any pelvic pains should be noted and examined when you have the chance. It’s better to give medical attention to chafed nipples or stubbed toes now rather than later.

Keep up conversation. When you ask, ‘how are you feeling?’ The answer might change by the minute. Keep an eye on everyone’s feelings, including your own. Rising stress can be leveled by removing yourself from the space and otherwise preoccupying yourself. Tensions between partners best be addressed before things grow out of control.

Take part in other enjoyable, stress-free activities. For some, it’s taking a bath together. Or cooking a meal. Or getting some drinks and watching funny cat videos in bed. Having a happy aftercare will do wonders to reduce any discomfort and anxiety.

Aftercare extends beyond the bedroom. It’s common to drive your sub home, to ensure that they won’t get into any accidents due to a distracting subspace. And someone still woozy from BDSM might forget their jewelry, or their bag. It’d do no harm to dote on each other, so to speak. 

The Aftermath: Recovery And Healing

Unfortunately, good aftercare can’t ‘solve’ everything. No amount of cuddling can solve a bad BDSM session. And for those who are sex-repulsed, the situation is even more aggravated. Asexual people are very susceptible to sex-borne trauma, which means that our self-care goes beyond most.

Any anxiety from the sex probably won’t go away the next morning. And it might lie dormant until your next date, in which you’re hit underhand with a reminder of why you actually don’t like sex. And it’s normal to have enjoyed the sex, but dread it at the same time. 

It can be very confusing to feel lost and hurt from a situation that wasn’t harmful at all. But that’s part of sex-repulsion, and part of asexuality in general. Being a dom means minimizing any triggers for this kind of anxiety, but it probably won’t avoid all of it.

As with any trauma aftercare, it’s important to maintain a sense of pride regardless of any intrusive thoughts. You’re not weak or broken for feeling the way you do. You’re a brave and brilliant individual, who faces the things you face. It’s not about eliminating or ‘curing’ this part of yourself, it’s about coming to terms with them.

A lot of the time, I don’t contact any dates ever again. It’d be too difficult to repeat the events. And that’s ok, that’s one of the ways I take care of myself and make sure I minimize trauma. And it definitely helps to document your feelings as time goes on, and also to share your feelings with a trusted friend. Going at it alone is one thing, with support it’s much easier.

I almost never go on dates knowing that I have plans the day after. It’s important that I have several hours to meditate and calm myself down after a dom session, away from my partners. I enter asexual spaces and remind myself that I am valid and strong.

Remember; the power of being a dom might be fictional, but your power as an ace is forever.

#asexual sex ed #sex education #asexuality #asexual #actuallyasexual

[jobsearchtips02]

Is travel safe? Professionals on hotels, flying and more

When you purchase through our links, we might make money from our affiliate partners. Find Out More.

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Alyssa Powell/Business Insider.

As parts of the nation begin to reopen, some tourists are considering future vacation strategies with an eye towards safety and danger mitigation.

Nevertheless, prior to scheduling an inexpensive flight or hotel offer, it is essential to think about the threats associated with flying, renting a cars and truck, staying in a hotel, or reserving an Airbnb during COVID-19

We spoke with professionals including physicians, travel market professionals, agents from Airbnbs, major hotel brand names, the air travel industry, and more for assistance on dangers and finest practices if you’re thinking about travel anytime soon.

If you decide to strike the road, we’ve also assembled local locations within the United States that are well-suited to outside activities with socially-distant accommodations that gets rid of the requirement for worldwide travel.

As states raise restrictions around the unique coronavirus, a lot of us are eagerly questioning: is it safe to travel right now?

The answer depends upon numerous variables, specifically, how you plan to do so, where you wish to go, the rates of infection in your chosen location, and your anticipated habits when you show up.

For example, driving your own cars and truck and leasing a house where you’re the only occupant is quite various from entering a congested airport, boarding an aircraft, and checking-in to a large resort.

Ultimately, resuming travel without a vaccine will come down to the level of threat that makes you feel comfy. And it makes certain going to look a lot different.

Insider Reviews connected to professionals consisting of contagious illness and ER physicians, cleaning experts, travel industry professionals, and agents from major rental cars and trucks, hotels, Airbnb, and transportation organizations, to expose both the risks and finest practices connected with different forms of travel and lodging during an ongoing pandemic.

We also talked to travel agents and tour operators, to learn how they’re advising and preparing travel for customers later on this year and in2021 And if you do reserve a trip that is eventually postponed or canceled, it is very important to understand your cancellation policies and consider choices for the best travel insurance coverage

Obviously, this is an evolving scenario and it’s important to follow guidelines and advice set forth by companies such as the CDC and WHO, and practice safety measures no matter where you go, consisting of wearing a mask, cleaning your hands, and preserving social distancing.

Below, our professionals deal with popular questions and issues around each mode of travel, and significant brand names share their upgraded cleaning policies, so you may make totally informed choices about where to go. And if you need concepts on socially-distant places, we’ve got some inspiration for that, too.

Are rental automobiles safe?

Are hotels safe?

What are hotels’ new cleansing policies?

Are Airbnbs safe?

Hotels vs. Airbnbs: Which one is more secure?

Is flying safe today?

How travel representatives and tour operators recommend clients to book travel

Socially far-off travel: safe trips during COVID-19

” Keep in mind that many of the transmission of the coronavirus is respiratory– it’s not through inanimate things,” says Dr. Russo.

When it comes to the vehicle itself, the danger is reasonably low.

In addition, rental vehicle companies are taking rigorous brand-new cleaning measures under recommendations from different health authorities to sterilize crucial high-touch locations.

Alistair Berg/Getty Images.

After all, checking-into a hotel means mingling with other guests and staff in common spaces like the lobby, elevators, pool decks, medspas, and golf courses. When it’s time to consume, there are busy dining establishments to think about, which’s all presuming your own guest space is tidy and sanitized.

In the latter, items and home furnishings are shared and reused by visitors, often with only hours in between. Is it safe to stay in a hotel right now?

Dr. Russo states the response is extremely individual. “If it’s a trip that is very important and required, I feel fairly safe utilizing the appropriate protective measures like using a mask, distancing, sanitizing, and hand health.”

We likewise asked him about the worst-case scenario, in which an infected person remained in your room hours prior to you. If the housekeeping team cleaned and sterilized according to standards, would you get away threat?

” The answer is probably yes,” Dr. Russo states. “that’s not an ideal situation.” You ‘d be much better off specifically asking for a room nobody has actually remained in for a day or more.”

He likewise adds, “Use a mask throughout the check-in procedure, entering the elevator approximately your room, or perhaps the stairwell. I’m a big fan of mask use because this magical six-foot zone is based upon possibility. The closer you are to someone, and the longer you’re close to someone that’s contagious, the most likely you are to get contaminated.”

Check out the complete story on whether hotels are safe

The majority of significant hotel chains have announced wide-reaching brand-new cleaning policies made in combination with health professionals. These policies also focus on social-distancing and contact-free transactions such as virtual check-in and out, digital keys, limited dining, and more.

Dr. Robert Quigley, who works as the senior vice president and regional medical director of worldwide medical travel danger management company International SOS, invested four days and four nights transforming an Upper East Side hotel into a practical home base for healthcare workers on the cutting edge.

Martinedoucet/Getty Images.

” We can be found in and transformed what was an extremely high-end, really luxurious hotel into a lab with the goal to secure the health and wellness of the workers that were willing to come in and work.”

Now, that work is being reproduced in hotels for routine guests, placing innovation at the leading edge. In addition to adhering to strict CDC guidelines on health and wellness, some brands consisting of InterContinental Hotel Group (IHG), Loews, and Finest Western are adopting American Hotel & Accommodations Association’s(AHLA) StaySafe campaign to help facilitate everything from how to perform a contactless check-in to a new set of cleaning requirements and protocols.

In Addition, Marriott Bonvoy hotels rolled out the Marriott Global Cleanliness Council, focusing on dealing with high-touch area with hospital-grade disinfectants, providing disinfecting wipes in each guest room, and lowering person-to-person contact by getting rid of furniture and installing hand-sanitizing stations. More than 3,200 Marriott hotels will now enable guests to use their phones to check-in, gain access to their rooms, make demands, and order space service without contact.

Similarly, 4 Seasons worked with professionals at Johns Hopkins Medicine International on its new Lead With Care program for cleanliness and security. The program assures that restaurants and bars will operate with reduced capability to enable social distancing, and the hotel will take advantage of innovation for safety, by way of its Four Seasons app and chat.

Here are the new plans and precautions being drawn from major hotel brand names around the globe

Simply as some people have actually constantly preferred hotels, others select Airbnbs to take pleasure in more area in residential-style homes or homes that are appropriate for longer getaways, or household and group stays.

These days, they might seem particularly appealing provided the reality that you are frequently reserving an entire home that is secured from interaction with any others. However, cleaning practice differ by residential or commercial property, where everything from kitchen area utensils to bed linens were utilized by previous guests.

Airbnb has, however, revealed strenuous new procedures including a program called the Cleaning Protocol, which includes standards on individual protective equipment for hosts or cleaners, as well as only using disinfectants approved by regulative authorities. Furthermore, these listings are needed to preserve a 24- waiting duration after a guest checks out before getting in to tidy, followed by another 48- hour waiting period prior to a visitor may check-in.

As a 2nd measure, hosts may instead decide into a new feature called Reservation Buffer, which imposes a longer vacancy period of 72 hours in between stays so visitors may feel more safe and secure knowing there has actually been no activity aside from cleaning up the residential or commercial property.

And third, hosts can likewise choose to do neither of those things.

Airbnb.

Dr. Russo estimates that staying in a personal Airbnb is likely to be safer than reserving a hotel, offered there is generally less direct person-to-person contact.

The medical professionals we spoke with agreed private Airbnbs, however, are likely more secure than hotels because they come with fewer person-to-person interactions.

” While there is no concern hotels are working diligently to keep their hotels clean and sterilized, Airbnb has a huge benefit provided that the occupant is normally the only one occupying the residential or commercial property,” said Dr. Brown.

PeopleImages/E / Getty Images.

But while these functions help reduce threats, they do not eliminate them. Industrial airplane travel still suggests flying in a confined space with other people. Another guest’s droplet can easily attack your individual area even with no one in the middle seat beside you.

Says Dr. Russo, “Once you’re on the flight, you’ve been dealt a hand. Ideally, everyone around you isn’t infected, but you simply do not know for sure. A longer flight is going to be a higher risk despite the fact that the air is handled quite well due to the fact that it’s a close space, exposed to other people, and the time of direct exposure is longer.”

If you must fly, use your finest mask, sanitize all surface areas, and try to avoid eating, drinking, or utilizing the lavatory.

Check out the complete story on whether flying is safe right now, consisting of a sample of airline companies’ current COVID-19 policies

How travel agents and trip operators advise customers to book travel

While numerous tourists previously reserved travel independently, some are returning to travel representatives. These seasoned specialists have invested years in business and are fully equipped to help clients determine feasible areas with vetted, versatile policies. They might likewise have much better insights into new practices at specific hotels to help identify how tidy and safe they will be, and whether facilities and amenities may be affected.

Their advice is to prepare now, travel later (most of their customers are wanting to travel between March and May of 2021), book refundable alternatives, understand cleaning policies, try to travel locally or near to house, go with socially remote places, make the most of deals, and evaluate your own convenience level with danger prior to reserving.

Read the complete story on key takeaways to learn from travel representatives and trip operators about how to book travel right now, and into next year

As noted by numerous specialists, no matter your location, your threat of infection largely depends upon aspects such as whether you’ll come across other people, the strength of such encounters, and if the place is experiencing high rates of infection.

While absolutely nothing can be guaranteed safe 100 percent safe, if you follow expert suggestions, take required precautions, and make informed decisions led by CDC and WHO guidance, you may be able to check out the world again soon.

If you discover yourself in such a position, think about these locations within the United States that are well-suited to outside activities, use socially-distant-friendly lodging, and remove the requirement for international travel.

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You can buy syndication rights to this story here.

Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the Insider Reviews team. Email us at [email protected].

Do you have a personal experience with the coronavirus you ‘d like to share? Please e-mail [email protected] and inform us your story.

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Weston's birth Story

Where to begin!?

First of all, finding the time to write this is next to impossible with three children (do I actually have THREE kids?!) which is why it’s taken me over four months to even attempt it. But as I find myself with only one kid this morning for a short while, it seemed like a good opportunity to at least try to get my brain functioning enough to string proper, adult words together to tell Weston’s birth story.

Let me start by saying I was pretty darn nervous for this delivery. With Greyson it was a fear of the whole thing being unknown but I also pretty much knew I’d be getting an epidural which made the whole thing less daunting of course because that meant no pain (which as most of you know, I now regret and will never choose to do again). With Hudson it was the fear of the unknown of natural, unmedicated labor and delivery since I had never experienced that before, but I also had a fiery determination that trumped all of that. I researched a ton, prepared my body and my mind for many weeks, and was really confident going into it with just a small amount of nerves. I also hadn’t actually felt the pain so I didn’t truly know what I was in for. If you’ve read that birth story, you know it went PERFECTLY and above and beyond my hopes and prayers. The Lord truly blessed me throughout the whole thing in little and big ways.

This time around, I may have been the most nervous of all. For some reason I would let myself get worked up and psyched out on occasion, not always, about it and worried I would totally lose my cool when the time came. Of course I knew I was capable and was going to accomplish the task (assuming everything went as it should with both me and the baby), but I was fearful of the pain and fearful of how I would respond because ideally I wanted to have another peaceful, relatively calm experience. This time around I knew contractions were completely doable for me; it was the dreaded “ring of fire” I experienced with Hudson’s VERY large head last time that had me so scared.

I also didn’t prepare much this time, mostly because I had already done it once before with a relative amount of ease and also because the tools I used to prep last time I didn’t actually implement when the time came. So all that to say, I was nervous for the big day but of course looking forward to it as well.

On the morning of December 11th, a Sunday and 12 days before my due date, I woke up at 6:30am to a sensation in my abdomen that felt strange. Somewhat familiar, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I thought maybe the baby was pushing on my stomach in an odd way so I moved my body and it went away. Less than 2 minutes later it happened again. By the 3rd one it finally dawned on me that these were contractions. I went to the bathroom to see if that would make them stop and got back in to bed. They kept coming. I got out my timing app and soon realized they were very short in duration but coming about 90 seconds apart. I woke Justin up and told him what was going on and that I was going to take a bath to see if that would get rid of them. The bath did nothing to slow them down and they were feeling pretty darn intense, much like they did when I left for the hospital with Hudson (and he was born less than 3 hours later). I texted Justin and my mom to let them know this was the real deal but I wasn’t sure when to leave. I was confused because typically there is more of a warning/slow build up in labor and contractions usually start out short and spaced out, getting longer and closer together as time goes on. Mine were really short (sort of signalling early labor), but very close together at 1-1.5 minutes (signalling full on labor). I wanted to mostly labor at home, but also didn’t want to deliver my baby in the car and needed a round or two of antibiotics before we was born.

I got out and called l&d. The nurse was very calm, as was I, and said she’d suggest I gather my things and head on in, but there was no sense of urgency in her tone or words based on what I had described. At this point, I called my mom to let her know it was time to get ready to leave. Justin got up and started getting the boys ready, collecting last minute things, and I got dressed and attempted to put on some make up. At this point, the contractions were so strong that I had to pause, close my eyes, be completely still and silent during each one, and could not actually apply makeup to my face but in short, broken up spurts. I now knew things were getting serious!

We made it to the car after taking one last picture of me and the boys, dropped them off with my dad and sis, picked up my mom, and headed out on our 40+ minute drive to the hospital. The car ride went well! Thankfully and amazingly, it’s pretty common for labor to somewhat slow down in the car. It’s your body’s way of helping you make it to the hospital so while the contractions were growing more intense, they spaced out a lot and I didn’t have a ton while we were driving.

At one point, I did tell my mom and Justin something like, “I know I’m not making any noise or showing any signs that things are progressing, which is intentional, but this is definitely getting more intense and I’m starting to feel pressure down there. Just an fyi.” I continued to remain silent, still, and focused during each contraction and was really glad for that!

When Justin rounded the last corner before the hospital I said, “Thank the Lord we made it!” I was relieved to know we would not be having a car baby which was something I had been nervous about since having Hudson so quickly upon arrival at the hospital. By the time we got to the ER, I was starting to need to breathe heavier through each contraction and feeling more pressure but was otherwise coping the same.

The people at the ER desk had little to no sense of urgency when getting me checked in, couldn’t find my pre-registration info, and could not figure out how to spell my last name despite me telling them several times. I remained calm and kind but I was in a lot of pain during contractions at this point and knew I was getting close so I was really frustrated with this process that did not need to take so stinkin’ long. Thankfully, they finally found my paperwork that I FILLED OUT IN ADVANCE TO PREVENT THIS VERY SCENARIO (🙄) and we headed upstairs.

They weighed me, brought me into my room, and I got changed which proved to be difficult at this point because having to move and break my concentration made things much more painful. I remember being in the bathroom thinking “I could so easily start to fight this pain right now, but if I do that it’s going to be so much worse so I need to stay calm, relaxed, and let my body do what it needs to do.” That is, in my opinion, the KEY to unmedicated labor: giving yourself over to the process, relaxing your muscles, and letting everything happen as it should rather than tensing up and fighting it. It seriously makes it so much more manageable and doable. It better allows for the adrenaline and natural endorphins to kick in to help your body do it’s thing. I never once got to the point of thinking “I can’t handle this!” or totally freaking out.

Once I was changed, we let the nurse know that I was feeling pressure and felt like I was in transition. She said, “Well, you very well could be. Let’s get you on the bed and check you.” It took me a few minutes to be able to get onto the bed. Standing and leaning over the bed helped a lot with coping and I was not ready to lay down whatsoever. When I finally climbed up, I sat fairly straight up while she checked me and sure enough, “You’re a stretchy NINE!”

Much like with Hudson (first check I was an 8), the room suddenly got very busy. They got me hooked up to a monitor to check babies heart rate and my contractions, they started getting my IV hooked up to give me my antibiotics for group b strep. I was on my hands and knees on the bed at this point which helped a ton. But let me tell you, if you’ve yet to experience it, getting an IV put in when you’re basically 10cm and ready to push out a baby is…very interesting to say the least! 

Once they got that in, it was just time to wait for the doctor to arrive. This wouldn’t be my doctor that I see every appointment and love so much, but I felt at peace with that. At one point when the baby’s head was pretty dang low I asked the nurse, “Do you guys ever have to deliver a baby without a doctor?” She said, “Well, we really try to avoid it but it happens.” To which I said, “I’m glad you can if you have to!” thinking the doctor may not make it. I was assured she’d be there any minute though (nevermind she was at home sleeping when I arrived!!!). 

They continued to get the room set up and I continued to labor on my hands and knees on the bed with Justin by my side while my mom took pictures and videos and updated close family/friends. I had Justin squeeze my hips together a few times which really helped with the pain. I was still continuing to remain focused and still during contractions but I was starting to breathe heavier and would moan every once in awhile, just from the pressure of it all, not the pain (which is a sign the end is near!). 

I was so relieved when the doctor walked in! She got her gear on, checked my cervix (only my 2nd check), and said I was complete and ready to push whenever I wanted. The nurse said something like, “Go ahead and turn around and get in a comfortable position whenever you’re ready.” As in…get off your hands and knees and sit on your butt. She was nice about it, but I definitely was not going to be doing that haha! I replied, “Oh, I’m actually going to push on my knees and leaning up against the back of the bed.” She looked at the doctor, unsure, and asked, “Is that okay with you?” I found that rather funny. At that point, I was going to deliver my baby however I deemed comfortable and right and they could either help me or I could do it alone. The doctor had no issue with that though which of course I preferred. 

We raised the back of the bed so that it was nearly straight up, I leaned over it, and waited for my next contraction. I actually had a solid 3-5 minute wait before the next one hit and I totally welcomed it. They had been fairly close together the whole time so it was nice to relax even more and breathe easy for a few minutes before I began pushing. I just “sat” there on my knees and we all chatted and waited excitedly. 

When the next wave came, I began to bare down. I didn’t give it everything I had at this point as you typically don’t on the first push. I just wanted to ease my way into it, not forcing my body to do anything it wasn’t ready for. The nurse encouraged me to squat a little more though which I did as I continued to hold out this one long push. I think I sort of took another breathe and pushed again with the same level of intensity (or lack of) and the ring of fire hit immediately. I knew I needed to keep pushing because I did not want to get stuck there, but thankfully this time it hardly hurt at all. Very different than with Hudson. I screamed with him, but remained quiet this time. I pushed through it with this same, long push, felt his head come out, and the rest of his body dropped out into the doctors hands (since my pelvis was elevated above the bed). I reached down, grabbed my baby, brought him up to my chest, and was in complete awe of him and what my body has just done. It was SO “easy”. I was so grateful. My mom kept exclaiming, “I can’t believe he just came out in one push!” I couldn’t believe it either. There is an immense sense of peace and relief that washes over you when the baby is finally in your arms. I know it’s that way no matter how you deliver your baby, but for me it’s magnified when I’ve done it completely unmedicated and nearly unassisted.

I held my boy close to my chest and turned around to sit down. We began skin to skin immediately and he continued to cry very loudly for a good 10 minutes or more. I think he was just as shocked by his entrance into the world as we were. The doctor proceeded to deliver my placenta (which I saved and had encapsulated!), stitched me up (I had hoped to not tear which is why I didn’t push very hard to begin with but my body had other plans of extracting him speedily with or without much help from me), and everyone in the room cleaned up and left us to rest and bond.

He didn’t want to latch for the first little while. He continued to cry off and on for some time which was really sad to hear, but eventually I got him latched and he has nursed like a champ ever since. During this time, we also officially decided on his name. We had been so unsure of what to name him the entire pregnancy and at this point we both kind of knew it would be Weston but still had a hard time committing because we didn’t initially LOVE it like we did with the other two boys. But he needed a name and Weston was our only real option so we went with it and I couldn’t imagine anything else!

We continued to rest and do skin to skin for a couple hours before I got up, cleaned myself up, and put on comfy clothes. After I had changed, my nurse walked in and gave me a strange look. She said, “Oh, there you are! I was wondering where my patient went.” At this point I was in my own clothes and looking more refreshed, no longer like the typical hospital patient. And that’s the beauty of natural birth (and I’m sure some other medicated births! Just not the case with mine which was horrendous!). You aren’t a typical hospital patient. You’re just a woman doing what her body was designed to do in a place where there are people to help you should the need arise (and if you choose - there are obviously other great options for birth locations!).

Then it was time for my dad, sis, and the big brothers to visit! When Grey first walked in, he was very cautious and shy. Surprise, surprise. He did a lot of fake yawning which he was really into at the time to cope with his nerves and kept his distance from the baby. Hudson was excited to see him and very interested in such a tiny little person. He sat on the bed next to me and took it all in. It didn’t take long before Grey joined him and soon they were both enamoured. Still are. They are two of the best big brothers I’ve ever seen and I just love them for that. Weston brings them so much joy.

Everyone eventually left and it was just Justin, our sweet new boy, and me in this new, surreal world that comes with bringing another life into the world. It never gets old or any less magical and miraculous. I just love it.

We had a few more visitors that evening and a fairly decent night of sleep. Weston did great but I was really uncomfortable in the hospital bed and also battling the horrific after birth contractions that get worse with each child! Boy, do they take your breath away.

The next morning they ran all the standard tests, were very kind and supportive when we turned down vaccinations and other things that were unnecessary at that point, and then ran the final test which was for jaundice. We KNEW he would have it since the other two did but were hoping and praying it wasn’t so high that we couldn’t leave. Thankfully it wasn’t and we just had to keep an eye on it for the next couple days. We left about 27 hours after we arrived, headed home to our two other sweet boys, and the rest is history (and well documented on my Instagram because I can’t stop, won’t stop taking pictures of them)!

Born at 10:09am, my labor was 3 hours and 39 minutes start to finish, and we were in the hospital room for about 30 of those minutes. It was fast and wild, but I never felt frantic or panicky or out of control. When I prepared for Hudson’s birth, I watched many women give birth on YouTube that remained still, nearly silent, and so calm through the whole thing and was in complete awe and bewilderment that that was even posssible. I came close to that with Hudson, but the ring of fire caught me off guard and I screamed so it wasn’t quite as peaceful 😉. This time around, from my perspective, I truly felt like one of the woman in those videos, start to finish, and I finally understood.

The woman’s body is so incredible, to say the least. The way it creates, carries, and nurtures human life is a complete miracle orchestrated by our Creator. Then on top of that, assuming all things go to plan (which isn’t always the case due to our broken world), the fact that this same body can birth a child with relatively little help just blows my mind.

It’s so extraordinary and yet so very natural and ordinary all at once. It’s beautiful and magical and powerful and intense. It’s proof that we were created intricately and intentionally by the Father and that He loves us so very much.

It’s crazy to look back to 5 years ago when I had Greyson. I couldn’t even dream of giving birth unmedicated. I had a low pain tolerance, I was terrified of the thought, and didn’t even have much knowledge about it and therefore lacked the desire to do it. I just knew I could never accomplish such a thing and would never try.

But NEVER say never! I’ve now done it TWICE and both times I’ve far exceeded my own expectations and come out on the other side so proud of myself and grateful to God for His hand in it all and the ability to be able to be apart of something so beautiful and in its intended state. I feel unworthy of that, given that so many women don’t get to experience that and for those who wish they could, my heart desperately goes out to them. ❤

Of course, I can’t forget my husband through all of this. He was and is my rock. During my pregnancy, any time I brought my fears and worries to him, he always reassured me of my ability and strength and that everything would be okay. He made me feel comforted and like he had my back. During the actual labor, he never left my side and did everything in His power to encourage me and let me know I wasn’t alone in it. I’m so grateful for his love and his heart for his kids. He’s a wonderful man who I feel incredibly unworthy of. Thank you, Lord, for such a gift!

I now feel more confident than ever about childbirth and what I can accomplish through it. I will not be fearful next time of the pain or how I might handle it. I will rest in God’s love and His peace and trust in Him for any and all outcomes. And desperately pray, assuming we choose another hospital birth, that I make it there in time! 😄