Has anyone else had a terrible time with their booking appointment? I had mine on Monday (over the phone). She went through the questionnaire and I answered it all truthfully, including when she asked if I'd ever taken drugs, I said on occasion in the past for recreation; and that I had mild anxiety in terms of mental health. The call ended then she called me back saying she had to refer me to social services and a special midwife team because of the drug stuff. She promised me this was routine and that this happened to anyone who answered yes to that question. I got off the phone and googled the midwifery team (Acorn team in Newham) and it's for vulnerable women like ex-addicts, asylum seekers, domestic abuse victims. I called her back and said I think she's got the wrong end of the stick and she told me that the Acorn team was more because of my anxiety and was no biggie.
So I went in later to get my bloods done and picked up my pregnancy book thing and read through it when I got home. It turns out that she'd written all over my file that there were risks to my pregnancy because I have 'a history of substance misuse' and also the anxiety. The anxiety is one thing although I'd have liked the chance to qualify how I felt about it. But the drugs! I was furious and upset and stressed and so called the centre and spoke to the manager who agreed to change my notes as it wasn't routine at all - I had been flagged as a risk against my knowledge. Then I had to still deal with social services and assure them I didn't have a history of substance misuse. The social services person revealed to me that the Acorn team referral is in fact because of the substance misuse, not the anxiety... so the midwife totally lied to me!
Then further to that, the third risk factor she flagged was gestational diabetes based on my maternal grandfather having had late-onset diabetes. But when I researched that further, it turns out that on the NHS website you're only at risk if a parent or sibling has/had diabetes, not a grandparent. I don't tick any of the other risk categories and have low BMI. I've been booked in for 2 glucose tolerance tests for gestational diabetes which she didn't explain to me either and I'm unsure about having as I don't eat sugar as it gives me an immediate UTI.
So now I'm worried that with gestational diabetes written as a risk on my file, it will jeopardise my chances of having the birth I want (free-standing birth centre). Or I'm going to have to fight again to have that changed on my file too and be known as 'that woman'.
More than anything, I'm absolutely shocked and affronted at the interpretation of risk in my context. There wasn't a follow up conversation with me to clarify the past drug use thing if it was concerning here - just a straight referral to social services based on my very vague answer. And then she also inflated the diabetes risk which may now well dog me for me entire pregnancy. It was like a sudden cold shower over my previous pregnancy excitement in terms of feeling that I'm going to have to arm myself to fight ignorance and blind rule adherence at every step of the way. Not to mention, the amount of stress this has caused me.
Im really curious as to whether this is just standard and most people are more accepting of this side of things with midwives or if I've truly had a really bad experience!