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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Am I being unfair to my community midwife?

81 replies

BeckQ · 07/01/2020 23:13

I don’t know if I’m being unfair to my community midwife I see at my GP surgery. She is very snooty to put it kindly and I just feel like from day one she has no interest in me or my pregnancy. Now I know I’m just another woman in a long line of women she sees and one of millions of pregnant woman. But I feel as though considering this is my first pregnancy and I have no idea what to expect I have found everything out I need to know from google. I work in a GP surgery myself so I know the strains all to well and do feel for her and never complain when she runs hours behind, although I don’t know how she manages that, she’s always in such a rush and I’m never in there for longer than 5 minutes. She did a home visit over Christmas And after telling me she’d be there at 10M she turned up at 11.10am without so much as an apology! She also dropped my urine sample all over my floor, but that was an accident, I can’t really call her for that. But when I’m asking her questions I feel like she just shrugs them off. She seems to do nothing that my maternity pack says she should be doing, all she literally does is check my urine, measure my belly and say goodbye, I don’t think she has ever once asked how I’m feeling. I have mentioned on a few occasions I’m ridiculously tired (I have a history of being anaemic) to be told “yeah you will be at this stage” I asked her if blood test is needed for her to say “no, your bloods were fine last time (LAST TIME about 2 months ago) . But if you insist I’ll send you for one” when I said nah not if I don’t need one she wrote in my notes “patient declined blood test 😐” I have mentioned everytime I have seen her about excessive discharge and told “yeah that’s normal” turns out I have really bad untreated thrush (I have had no symptoms, no itchiness and no clumpy discharge) I only found out what it was after going to the hospital after my discharge turned green and watery and I thought perhaps my waters had broken. I am 38 weeks and she still hasn’t asked me about a birth plan. She didn’t give me my mat b 1 form. I had to chase her for weeks for it with work on my back. It’s impossible to get in touch with her. I have asked her to check if my thrush has now gone because I am still having discharge (although not green) and it is still very painful to have sex. I got told “we don’t check to see if things have gone the treatment you have been given should (SHOULD) have cleared it.” I don’t like her. But as I only have to see her another 2 times plus the couple of times after the baby is born, should I just put up with her of should I say something? Not sure if it’s the hormones raging, although my husband said he doesn’t like her either, and he likes everyone! 😂

OP posts:
Honeybee85 · 08/01/2020 03:59

Op I had a horrible first appointment with midwife.
She berated me for being too nervous about my (first) pregnancy (all because I said I was worried about toxoplasmosis) and told me that she had 3 children and I should be as relaxed as she were.
She also invited the receptionist in to witness my internal scan without asking my permission (I had to take initiative to ask her to leave) and left me waiting for a long time to come in as she was chatting and laughing with said receptionist.
I disliked her very much and my best friend told me then I don’t need a valid reason to ask for someone else, just feeling uncomfortable with someone is enough reason.

I had an appointment with another midwife during the next check up and told her I did not under any circumstances want to see this woman again.
She understood and agreed and from that moment on I only saw her. She was genuinely lovely, respectful and interested in me and I’m happy I stood up for myself. Please do the same!
You should feel comfortable!

Lilymossflower · 08/01/2020 05:24

I hope you can get a new one or find a doula.
The birth process, the fourth trimester, and especially the first time round, its so, so important to have support and care around you.

Also get a blood test because I had to get blood transfusions in my pregnancy due to anaemia, its better to catch it early

SquishyLint · 08/01/2020 05:58

I also didn’t have a great time with the community midwives, actually started a thread about it at the time under a different name. One of mine (never saw the same one twice) managed to log someone else’s notes with me which I saw on my app, citing stomach pains I didn’t have and appointments on days I didn’t go with test results that weren’t mine. No one seemed to know what had happened. I also had to chase follow ups from anomalies on my scan and was sent for scans I was later told I didn’t need. Overall they seemed a bit disorganised and I hate to say it, disinterested.

I love the NHS and I do know how stretched they are. The midwives at the hospital and all the staff there were AMAZING, I can’t say that enough. But my experience outside of that was a bit disheartening.

Stephminx · 08/01/2020 06:16

Sounds a bit more like a personality clash to me (and I sort of get it as I didn’t like my first one).

But you also sound like you want a lot of handholding from someone who is undoubtably stretched in terms of time and resources. A lot of things here you could be proactive about, therefore minimising their issues to address with her,

You’ve already admitted you’ve found a lot of answers out for yourself. You must be bright enough to research queries and also have a support network to ask. I got most of my information this way so found I didn’t have much to ask her.

You’ve been given lots of reasons as to why she might have turned up late - I have not once had any nhs medical appointment (nurse, midwife, hv, gp or consultant) actually ever be on time, pregnancy related or not. It’s not right, but it’s normal for the nhs and she probably thought you knew this and would understand. An apology would have been nice, but meh.

In terms of care, the appointments are generally basic checks for those that are classed as low risk. Seems like she carried this out. And in relation to the blood test, it was discussed, offered and you did decline. Her notes were factual. If you were that worried you should have accepted it.

Discharge is normal in pregnancy and you’ve said yourself it didn’t present like thrush, so I’m not sure what you wanted the midwife to say to this. It was tested for when symptoms worsened and you were treated. What else did you want her to do ?

We were also given our notes to carry round and it had a birth plan in it - like a tick box to fill in. Why not just fill it in ? What do you want her to say about your preferences, which is what it is meant to contain ? I was told many women just fill theirs in themselves.

My first go round I had a dreadful midwife - never on time, never there (on holiday) and generally dismissive. I measured big and when I wanted to discuss the midwife unit was asked why as “you’ll never deliver there, you’ll need drugs ... which I didn’t btw). But then I wasn’t that bothered as I didn’t actually “need” much from her beyond those basic checks. However, if I wanted something doing, I made sure I asked / pressed for it. If you wanted the offered blood test, you should have taken it. If you wanted your thrush checking, you should have insisted.

I think you were / are both unreasonable here. You in terms of your expectations from an overstretched service (and I’m not saying that is right but it’s not her fault she has no time / resources) and her for how it appears she’s handling it.

cantfindname · 08/01/2020 06:38

I can't even remember my first midwife! Second was ok, but not what you'd describe as friendly.

However for numbers 3 and 4 I had the same m/wife both times. That woman was an absolute angel. No one could have wanted better care. She came for all her arranged visits and would often pop in for a sneaky cuppa on her way back to the surgery. My boys were born very close together and the eldest was a non-sleeper. She came for a cuppa at the end of her shift one Friday and watched my juggling him' feeding two calves and feeding and egg collecting from 150 hens. We got back in the house and she told me to pack clothes, nappies etc for the baby and, bless her, she took him home with her for the whole weekend to give me a break.

There were many many tears shed in the area when she finally retired. The woman was a saint.

Meganc559 · 08/01/2020 06:49

Are you young OP? I was 21 when I was having my first baby and my midwife treated me like a child, she never took me seriously.

Even when I went to the hospital in labour the midwife there tried to tell me I wasn’t in labour and I had to go home! Luckily another younger midwife took potty on me and found out I was 2cm!

I found the older midwives very patronising

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