I’ve been a Midwife for 21 years, worked in all areas.
In a nutshell: it will give you some of the most wonderful highs where you couldn’t imagine a better job in the world, and in contrast it’s absolutely emotionally and physically draining and the potential to burn out quickly is very real.
It’s physically long hours (longest I worked was 19 hours I think), and during those hours you are giving everything you’ve got emotionally to everybody from every cross section of society (a double edged thing!).
The rewards are great when people appreciate you, or you can see you’ve helped someone and made a real difference and it’s satisfying.
It isn’t about the babies, or even delivering them for me, it’s about supporting women at what can be the most vulnerable time mentally, physically and socially, the role is rooted in enjoying making people feel safe and heard.
I find the pay fair for what I do, and you can make a lot in extra unsocial hours pay, I’m top band 6.
The nhs pension will let me retire at 55, I get 39 days paid leave a year (we don’t get BH as routine), and sick pay is decent - nhs sick policy is brutal though.
Be prepared to work part of every Christmas or NY depending on what role you take, nights and days mostly in the same week mixed too.
Working with teams of competitive people with a strict hierarchy in an all female environment can be stressful, but you learn to filter some things out.
It can be distressing and sometimes downright frightening if you are out alone at night going into homes alone etc, or faced with a very aggressive patient, and you will come into close contact on a daily basis with bodily fluids in most roles.
You will get some of the best, and worst, memories of your life and you have to learn quickly to look after yourself physically and emotionally very very well so you can keep on giving.
The wards can be short staffed depending on where in the UK you are, and you may be caring for up to 12 women and their babies alone frequently. Community is fun, it allows you to care for one patient at a time and fully focus on them.
There are many specialist roles now too - interesting roles.
I would say compared to 23 years ago when I first started training, some things are much better in terms of staff welfare, benefits to access at work, care advances and facilities for women, but some things are not as good as before, mostly due to pressure to tick boxes.
If you can I would try to find work as a maternity support worker, or similar first, even if only on the bank so you can see for yourself what it is and decide.
The role often asks you to work late, and to continually study to keep up to date and registered, we pay £120 per year to stay registered (you can claim tax relief).
To summarise: would I do it all again if I had my time over: yes! Will I be glad to retire as I’m very tired: Also yes!!
Best wishes.