How are maternity services during the pandemic?

[MontyFALD]

Hi all!

I'm looking at TTC but nervous due to the pandemic.

I want to know how your experiences have been! Have you felt supported? Missed out?
Have you got the help you needed when you needed it?

Would you advise against TTC during this incoming second wave?

Are you worried about support once the baby arrives?

Thanks so much in advance!

Things are better now. But I didn’t see a midwife from 11-28 weeks which wasn’t great.

Things were fine for me, they are still there if you have any problems. I had a stillbirth in April, and had full support, all the appointments I needed on the lead up, with investigations when they spotted a problem. The only negative was that I was alone when I found out he had died. Partners are not allowed at appointments, so if anything goes wrong you will be facing it alone. But care was still good. I'm not sure about new early pregnancy appointments yet.

Every area is different. I'm due at the end of next month, I had my booking appointment over the phone, my 12 week scan alone, no 16 week appointment at all but i had DH there for my 20 week scan (we're lucky and could afford a couple of private scans so DH can be there).
Since 25 weeks i've seen a midwife in person every 3 weeks which is better than some women have had , these again have to be alone and has been a different person most times but i haven't minded that and I've had an easy pregnancy so haven't needed to ask for help outside of my appointments at all.

I live in lancashire so been under local lockdown and until last week women had to be alone in labour until 4cm including inductions and the ward visiting was very restricted which was terrifying me but they've changed it so it's much better now, so i m cautiously optimistic.

Even if you check the situation for your own trust it could change in 9 months so i think it's just about being prepared that you might not quite get the pregnancy or labour experience you would like. However since i've not seen family or friends for 6 months and have worked from home it's so easy not to do things when i've been uncomfortable in my pregnancy.
I think you also have to bare in mind, how would you feel if you did wait and you had some issues getting pregnant and then waited even longer to find out and get any treatment for it.

Depends entirely on your situation I think, I have been very fortunate to be able to keep my job and wfh so for every downside like partner not being able to attend scans and less time face to face with midwives, there’s been a silver lining for me like not having to commute or have too many social plans which really helped with first trimester tiredness. I know not everyone is in that position though. I’m also lucky that so far things have been relatively plain sailing for my pregnancy so attending scans alone hasn’t bothered me apart from feeling sad my husband was missing out. We could afford a private scan so he could come, which I know not everybody is lucky enough to be able to. My heart breaks for women who’ve had to find out bad news alone at their scans. For the most part the support so far has been great, telephone appointments with the midwife have at least meant he can listen in when he wouldn’t have those appointments under normal circumstances. Of course we wish things were different but we knew what we were letting ourselves in for when we decided to keep trying, and it has at least given us something positive to focus on and talk about other than COVID! Wishing you luck whatever you decide x

I had my 12w scan the week before lockdown and DH was able to come with me. Since then, I’ve had to go to every appointment and scan by myself.

All of my MW appointments have been face to face and exactly as I would expect. I’ve been very lucky. I went in for monitoring last week due to reduced movements and DH couldn’t come but I felt very safe.

I’m now 40 weeks and waiting for labour but I’m not worried about going to the hospital or anything. DH is allowed to stay during labour and has visiting hours of 11am-7pm post labour.

Should add - not suggesting anyone in different circumstances shouldn’t TTC! Just different things to weigh up x

This is my second and I'd actually say I've found the care I've received to be better quality than last time. No big wait times to get seen at any of my hospital appointments, no men and other children taking up all the seats in the waiting area, I've been able to contact my midwife easily when I've had the odd question via phone. That said I appreciate I'm lucky to have nothing bad happen and to not suffer with any anxiety around my pregnancy.

So sorry for your loss @Cleozeta. Sending love x

Definitely depends on your area, however I'm due in less than a month and I've had every appointment face to face with my midwife since my booking in appointment at 8 weeks, and my home visit still went ahead. My partner hasn't been able to attend scans/appointments with me but we did book a couple of private scans so that he could be involved (he was allowed for the home visit). Good luck! Xxx

I'm currently 15weeks with my first, they seem good to me- first 2 midwife appts were over the phone, but the rest will be face to face. My husband could also come to my 12 week scan. Midwives are at the end of the phone if you have questions aswell. I can't compare anything to a pre-covid experience but I'm happy with it! X

Hi all

Thanks so much for your responses. Truth is it's what we both really want. We just want everything to be the best it can be pregnancy wise and as first timers we are scared that we / baby will miss out!

I like the idea of private scans that's a fab thing (will look into prices!)

I had a MC before and I'm worried that I won't have any support if this were to happen / I'd have to do it alone but that's a risk I'd have to take.

Have any of you had any experience of people being negative towards you because you've become pregnant during this time?

@peachypetite do you mind me asking why you didn't see anyone during that time? Congrats and I hope everything is going well!

@Cleozeta I'm so sorry to hear that, that can't have been easy for you. are you trying again? :)

@1990shopefulftm thank you so much for your comments - you're right there is a positive to everything even This Covid! Yes we are concerned that we may have troubles conceiving due to past MCs but that's part of the reason why we want to TTC ASAP :) huge congrats to you and I hope everything goes well for the birth! And that is sounding very positive with visitors etc :) do you feel like you've "missed out" on anything during the pregnancy because of Covid?

@emilyvictoria17 congrats to you too! Again another positive is that you do have a positive thing to talk about other than the C word :) I'm glad to hear from you that your appointments have been going well and are still going ahead. Yes a private scan is a good idea :) do you feel like you're "missing out" being pregnant during this time? Or missing out on a normal pregnancy? Not sure if that makes any sense!!

@BeingATwatItsABingThing that's so exciting, I really hope it all goes well for you all! How are you feeling about restrictions on visitors to your home once baba is here? I hope you don't mind me asking!! You must be so excited xx

@Disappointedkoala that's such a lovely thing to hear! So glad to hear a positive :) silly question but when you get a BFP I assume you then contact your GP who will give you details of your midwife!? Is that how this works - you can tell I've never had a BFP!! And congrats to you :)

@whistler2020 how exciting - congrats to you :) so glad to hear it's been positive for you. Private scans sound the way forward!

@Charlotte2020 honestly that put a smile on my face! I'm glad to hear it's positive :) and congrats!! How are you feeling about entering into a "second wave" does it concern you with visitors to your home etc? Hope you don't mind me asking!! Glad to hear midwives are at the end of the phone - I don't know how the system works once you get your BFP I assume you get assigned once you talk to your GP? How exciting for you all :)

@MontyFALD thanks for the congrats! I don’t feel like I’m missing out really, more my husband / other people like our families not getting to share in the excitement. Not being able to hug my mum when I told her etc. But it is what it is, and I can accept the situation. Scans are about £50-60 where I am if this helps! X

@MontyFALD I mean there were things I wanted to do like one last staycation and a baby shower in person but apart from a few days were I ve gotten a bit down about, I m just grateful to have had an easy healthy pregnancy. No one's been negative towards me but I got pregnant in February so it d be strange if they did say anything

Very sorry to hear about your previous MC @MontyFALD - would definitely look into getting an early scan so you can be together for (hopefully) some reassurance. And I forgot to answer your other question - had no negative responses whatsoever, quite the opposite, seems baby news is universally uplifting - or at least to everybody we’ve told. Forget what anyone else thinks anyway - just do what feels right for you x

Hi OP, as previous posters have said it's a different for different trusts. I had my booking appointment split so everything they can do on the phone they did, but I went in the following week for bloods, weight and a bit of a chat. All my other appointments are due to be face to face (mask to mask!) with my named midwife. Partner currently allow for 12 and 20 week scans but not any growth scans though that might change nearer the time.

Pregnant Then Screwed are keeping track of what's happening in different trusts - there's a link to a sheet on their Instagram if you want to see what's happening in your area.

The only differences for me are partner only allowed to scans and hospital visits (he only came to a couple more than that last time anyway) and the first appointment is on the phone. I feel perfectly happy with this. After the birth I'm not sure how it'll work yet. I'll miss the baby groups that likely won't happen and I hope we can see family. The early weeks were hard last time and I really needed to be out and about everyday.

I conceived the week before lockdown so all my scans were alone with DH outside - they did say that he could come straight in if there was bad news.

My midwife appointments have all been face to face, and since mid August, DH has been allowed in too.

Our trust have just announced that partners are allowed in for 12 & 20 week scans, as well as all the way through labour & afterwards.

Having known no different, I don’t feel like we’ve missed out. We paid for one private scan at 24 weeks (everything near us was closed until then) so DH could see him, but I’ve quite enjoyed the waiting rooms etc being very quiet and women only. Apparently normally they are packed with multiple people coming to attend the scan, and there are signs everywhere saying how busy it gets so please offer a pregnant woman a seat. I think I would have found that quite stressful while waiting for my scans.

@MontyFALD depends on your area - here you just call the maternity hospital and arrange your booking in appointment, I know other areas you do it via the GP so worth googling.

@BeingATwatItsABingThing that's so exciting, I really hope it all goes well for you all! How are you feeling about restrictions on visitors to your home once baba is here? I hope you don't mind me asking!! You must be so excited xx

We are really excited. I’m getting so impatient now. My first DD was 5 days late but I was really hoping this DD would be earlier. I’ll have to just wait and see.

In terms of restrictions, it’s quite gutting. On the one hand, it’s quite convenient because DH’s family have not been very good at social distancing so it will be an excuse to put them off for a bit. We want them to meet the new baby but not with so much risk. On the other hand, my parents have socially distanced completely and followed all rules (haven’t been anywhere apart from a few shops and haven’t seen people apart from in gardens) so I will be really disappointed if they can’t meet her properly straight away. They will be looking after DD1 when I give birth so I don’t care what the rules are. They will be having cuddles.

You asked as well about people’s reactions to being pregnant during the pandemic. My baby was conceived at the end of December and people are still calling her a Covid baby.

I'm 30 weeks on Friday. 38 year old FTM and ive seen a midwife face to face once (at 28 weeks and alone). It was a student midwife too!

I had a scan at 12 weeks and 20 weeks. My partner was able to attend 20 week scan as they changed the rules a week before. The only way I knew about that rule change was by following the maternity ward's FB page!

Other than that I've had two 5 minute phone calls (booking in and 16 weeks) each with a different midwife.

I have no named midwife and have suffered with sickness through the whole pregnancy so it's been quite rough to be honest.

I have a big list of questions to ask but havent seen a knowledgeable midwife yet, fingers crossed for my 32 week appointment!

For me, it was pretty rubbish over lockdown. I had one phone call and one appointment between week 9 and 28, which I wouldn't usually mind, but I couldn't even get through to the urgent maternity line with an issue, and my GP had no midwife full stop. Now that I am 34 weeks I have found it feels back to normal appointment wise. There are still restrictions with inductions and visiting with regards to partners being there.

Its not an ideal time, but it is worth it. Babies are more than just a pregnancy.

As everyone else has said, it’s very dependent on where you are located. I really don’t feel like I’ve had the best experience but I’m sure other people have had worse!

• Booking appt - 9 weeks, over phone (March)

- First scan - 12 weeks, no partner, bloods taken and BP/urine checked Second scan - 20 weeks, no partner, whooping cough vaccine First meeting with midwife - 28 weeks, no partner, BP & urine checked

I’m now 34 weeks, midwife was meant to call me last Monday to schedule in an appt that week (my 32 week appt but being held a week late at 33 weeks). Finally got a call back on Thurs after me chasing it up since Tue morning - was a different midwife to tell me mine was off that week so would call me this Monday. It’s now Wednesday night and I’ve heard absolutely nothing. I have no direct contact with my community midwifes - have to phone a regional hub who email over a message to them and they get back to you whenever suits 🤷🏻‍♀️ No idea what I’m supposed to do if she doesn’t get in contact soon 🤷🏻‍♀️ Doesn’t seem very safe to me to not be getting checked more regularly in the 3rd trimester 😓

@MontyFALD just because the trust implemented phone appointments for 16 and 24 week appts, not the same and felt very tick box. Has both scans alone too.