First steps when pregnant

[Leleophants]

Please forgive me as I'm new at this. First time pregnant and want to know when I need to make my first appointment and with who. My GP surgery can be quite dismissive. I don't have any friends I can ask.

It varies hugely by area I'm afraid.

Have you google your local maternity services? They should have a website, it might be part of the hospital website?

In my area you make an appointment with your GP, they then refer you to the midwife. In other areas you can self-refer to the midwife. The website should tell you.

I doubt your GP will be dismissive - just ring them and ask them how you register with the midwife and they'll either say self refer or make a GP appointment depending on their local process.

I had no idea how it worked so I just rang GP as a starting point.

I'd call your surgery and ask what the process is as sometimes they will book you in with a midwife, others you need to see a gp who will refer you and others you can self refer online.
Otherwise try online and see if your NHS Trust have guidance for how the area deals with things.

You can just ring your GP and ask what to do/how to get referred to midwifery services in your area. It will be either have a GP appt or self refer online.

No massive rush. I usually waited until 6 weeks or so to make sure the pregnancy is likely to stick. Nothing really happens until 12 weeks when you are dated - some areas do the booking in appointment from about 8 weeks but this is just history taking and form filling.

Totally up to your area. Just phone your Drs surgery and they will advise you

Hi if you Google your hospital or Trust name and Self Referral Form Pregnancy- you should find a form. Fill this out. It will tell you where to send it. My area you leave it with the GP surgery receptionist and ask for a community midwife appointment (they come once per week to my health centre) but the form should go to your hospital of choice and they send out a Booking In appointment- this is with a midwife who will go through all your medical history take bloods weigh you etc. Then you'll get another appointment for your first scan around 12-13 weeks.

Congratulations good luck!

Meant to add - I saw GP at 5+1 and had booking apt at 6+1
I have my 12wk scan next week.

My area seem to be well resourced though, most people have booking apt at around 8 weeks - but they also vary. Mine was 2hrs long and involved urine and blood samples as well as form filling. other areas do the bloods and urine at a different apt.

So basically it is as clear as mud!

But this is a useful guide to roughly what should happen www.nhs.uk/conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/antenatal-appointment-schedule/

Thanks so much.

GP appointment first for me, I phoned the surgery to ask and reception just said oh it's us that refer, and booked me in to see GP. Not that he did a lot but it had to be him that triggered the referral to the midwife service. Then got a letter from the hospital with 12 week scan, and one from the community midwives for my booking appointment. It gets easier once you're in the system and had an appointment or two, I found.