I’m a midwife. AMA.

[Clappyhapper]

I’ve been a midwife for 13 years. AMA.

Obviously not personal medical advice. :)

[70sbaubles]

I had a really bad pregnancy after leaving dv at 3 months. Spent the next 6 months in bed then had a section for mh reasons
Got Puerperal Psychosis. The whole thing has stripped me of my personality and i feel sick around babies and reminders of pregnancy. Is this common and does it get better?

[norbert23]

Nothing to ask - just a huge hug from me as my midwife was just amazing and I think you all do an amazing job xxx

[thereinmadnesslies]

I had a trainee midwife do stitches. She stitched too deep into my back passage, so the stitches had to be removed then redone by a consultant. By this stage at least there people had stuck their fingers up my bum which was pretty horrible in itself. The consultant told me I couldn’t have a second dose of local anesthetic when she re-did the stitches so it was total agony.
So my question is how common is this - should the trainee have been better supervised? Why couldn’t I have more local Anesthetic? Should I have made a complaint?

[Sweetooth92]

What’s your most memorable experience of the last 13 years been?

[Clappyhapper]

Puerperal psychosis is very rare, I’ve seen it once in 13 years. It must have been incredibly traumatic, and totally understandable to feel sick around anything that brings that time back to memory.
Do you have some ongoing MH support?
Most hospitals have specialist perinatal health teams, this could be an option if it was fairly recent? Otherwise a combination of support via your GP plus accessing a birth reflections type service (most hospitals have these too) could be helpful to work through the experience if you feel able to.

[Shadow1986]

Hi OP,
Are back to back labours really more painful? My second Labour was very painful but I coped in the water and on gas and air but it was a struggle - baby came out face up. We hadn’t known he was back to back.

Also, first Labour I had a epidural that didn’t seem to work very well - the next day I had a yellow liquid mixed with blood come out my back - do you know what this was?

[GrubbyHipsterBeard]

Can I be greedy and ask 3:

Do you notice/care whether women have “groomed”?

Does the novelty of delivering a baby ever wear off?

Has anything a woman has shouted at you during a contraction ever offended you or is it water off a duck’s back?

[GrubbyHipsterBeard]

Oh and one more - are you told to try to talk women out of epidurals?

[PawsyMcPawFace]

What’s the grossest thing you’ve seen or smelt?

[thatwouldbeanecumenicalmatter]

We're always all ears for a Cheeky Fucker story if you have any

[Jenniferturkington]

Would you have a planned homebirth?

I had all three of mine at home and it worked out fine. But, years on, I wonder if I took an unnecessary risk to suit my own idealistic views.

[Namechange8471]

Whats the biggest baby you've delivered? Smallest?

[Peachpebbles]

Have you ever told a patient theirs was the best birth you'd ever seen? And if so, was it?

Also I'd like to say thank you to you & all midwives. You are truly wonderful.

[GinaLinetti99]

Thank you for the amazing work you do supporting women.

How common are category 1 emergency caesareans? Are these classed as fairly serious?

[user1457017537]

How would you personally give birth, planned c section, epidural or other? Hope you don’t mind me asking

[TheRealHousewifeofCheshire]

Have you delievered breach babies (I was told specialists can but are increasingly losing expertise to do this as its now not common place. I was offered EVC or C Sec. Hospital werent keen on natural breach delivery)

[Clappyhapper]

norbert23 Thank you, 99.999% of us try our upmost to make it joyful and safe. The circumstances make this really hard at times.
Thereinmadnesslies
It’s very unusual, but something we check for after every repair as it’s always a possibility. We would directly supervise a student during suturing, however it doesn’t mean the student did a poor job, sometimes it happens despite good care and attention. However, adequate pain relief to correct it should have been given. If the max dose of local anaesthetic had been used and you were in pain our doctors would have offered to repair it under a spinal to ensure your pain was managed. You could always write to your hospital and question why this didn’t happen.
SweetTooth92
Lots of memorable moments!! Many because they were so unusual they would be too identifying for mumsnet im afraid.
Babies are wonderful, they take absolutely no notice of our plans. I’ve had babies born everywhere you could imagine.
Also some very tragic memories of babies born too soon. Taking photos and footprints of tiny hands and toes and trying to make them as beautiful as possible for parents who will only take those home with them. We don’t forget them.

[Drogosnextwife]

This is something I have seriously considered training to be. I'm a mother of 2 and a childminder at the moment, but would love to train to be a midwife in the next few years. There is one thing that puts me off and that is still births. I'm not sure how well I would handle seeing parents go through that on a regular basis. Is it something that you have experienced a lot? Also I know of quite a few unfit parents and think I would also struggle with watching tiny, new born babies going home with people that would potentially neglect them or harm them. How often do you come across problems like that?

[LupinsNotBluebells]

On the internet it says that tongue ties are relatively rare, about 4% of babies but I've met more babies affected than this in my social group. Do you think that they're becoming more common?

[firsttimebabybirther]

Hi OP, firstly thanks for the amazing work I'm sure you do

I had hyperemesis gravidarum when pregnant with DS , now 10 months , I spent a lot of my pregnancy bed bound and in hospital. I have 2 questions if you manage to get around to them.

What are the chances of me having HG again?

How does HG impact the baby? I didn't eat or drink for weeks on end (no exaggeration nothing passed my lips , I relied purely on rehydration drips)

Ok I lied , 3 questions , how common is HG?

[firsttimebabybirther]

Sorry I realise my questions seem like I expect exact answers , I mean in your experience

[scrivette]

The day before I went into labour I had a scan to reveal a footling breech so I had to have an emergency section when my waters broke.

If I hadn't had the scan what would have happened when I went into labour, would it have been spotted or would I have given birth naturally? My previous labours were very fast.

[AnotherOriginalUsername]

Who would I write to regarding the care I received in labour (re: community midwife and hospital team)? I had a complicated pregnancy and delivery due to my own health, delivery went off plan and very quickly turned into an emergency but the care was incredible - before, during and after labour (including a prolonged stay postnatally). The individuals involved have been thanked, but in a time where the NHS (and seemingly midwives in particular!) get such a hard time, I feel like it shouldn't go unnoticed.

[SausageSimon]

With my son I had an emergency c section, the running down the corridor type and I burst into tears looking back at my notes as it said "immediate threat to the life of mother or foetus" is this always literal?

It was early in the morning around 4am and I remember the midwife kept saying I'd be having a c section, then the next minute I wasn't and it kept changing. I assumed this was because they were struggling to get the staff to perform the op? This has made me wonder if my son would've died if they left it as no c section as they said I was 2cm dilated and his heart rate had dropped to how low it goes when they're ready to be delivered?

Looking back, they were terribly under staffed as it was such a busy night and it makes me extremely anxious to look back at it all.

I know this is probably a bit of a ramble!

[TheBabyAteMyBrain]

I'm hoping to have a homebirth very soon with dc#2. What snacks and drinks should I get in for my midwives? I have asked but they won't give a straight answer on preferences. Healthy or just loads of cake and bacon butties?