Giving birth is one of the most difficult, yet rewarding, times in a woman’s life.

On one hand, for those of you yet to experience labour, you may conjure up an image of serious pain, deafening screams and writhing around on your bed in agony until the moment your newborn decides to show their face.

An image as relevant today as it was 100 years ago.

One things for sure, chances of your picturing in your mind a group of calm mums-to-be sat relaxing in their hospital beds sharing a nice meal, may be rare indeed.

But that’s exactly the image one expectant father shared on social media recently, an image that was liked and shared many times over.

At an obstetrics and paediatrics hospital in the north, the photo resembled more a group of friends tucking into a pot of food rather than young mums about to go into labour.

One woman, saying her own different experience, commented on the photo:  “Why are you so self-controlled to eat? I remembered that I craw on my bed because of serious pains, I cried and roared like a cow.”

“I also shouted at my husband and pulled the hair on his head,” she added.

Another woman said she could only manage a morsel of soup while anxiously waiting to give birth, never mind the feast displayed in the image.

It seems the women photographed have become the talk of the Gulf of Tonkin and also an inspiration to those about to give birth who may be feeling a little nervous.

Relaxation is the key to a better pregnancy, and these women here are as cool as cucumbers.

“Now can someone please pass me the rice, I’m still a little peckish. After all, I’m eating for two.” — VNS