This week I met my maternity consultant for the first (and probably last) time. I had been referred to the consultant for two reasons; the first being that I had a 'relatively' complicated assisted birth experience with Lara who at 8lb 12 was 'relatively' large. Nothing out of the ordinary, but enough for my midwife to feel that I needed to be referred.
The second reason for referral was the series of gyno- and non-gyno- issues that I experienced in the 6 or 7 months following Lara's birth which have put me off the whole idea of childbirth this time around.
The consultant obviously felt I was wasting her time and pointed out to me that 8lb 12 is a small baby and that most women experience complications after birth; she tried to point me towards the door. I looked at her blankly and asked why the midwife would have felt it necessary to refer me and her answer was that she probably has misunderstood my symptoms.
She rushed through my notes and entirely missed the bit which documented that a cyst had been discovered at the first scan (she grudingly agreed to a blood test) and that there was a history of diabetes in the family (she signed me up for a glucose tolerance test) and then sent me on my way. Maybe I had invalid expectations - I was expecting to be able to talk about the birth options available to me, and to receive some sort of comforting offer of support through what would hopefully be a less traumatic experience this time around. Er. No.
Ah well. I'll live.
In other news, I've been really suffering from insomnia this week. I was a little unwell at the weekend and it caused me to wake up in the night for several days - after waking, I just couldn't get back to sleep. It's rubbish to be awake at 4am when you have a full day at work ahead of you.
The second reason for referral was the series of gyno- and non-gyno- issues that I experienced in the 6 or 7 months following Lara's birth which have put me off the whole idea of childbirth this time around.
The consultant obviously felt I was wasting her time and pointed out to me that 8lb 12 is a small baby and that most women experience complications after birth; she tried to point me towards the door. I looked at her blankly and asked why the midwife would have felt it necessary to refer me and her answer was that she probably has misunderstood my symptoms.
She rushed through my notes and entirely missed the bit which documented that a cyst had been discovered at the first scan (she grudingly agreed to a blood test) and that there was a history of diabetes in the family (she signed me up for a glucose tolerance test) and then sent me on my way. Maybe I had invalid expectations - I was expecting to be able to talk about the birth options available to me, and to receive some sort of comforting offer of support through what would hopefully be a less traumatic experience this time around. Er. No.
Ah well. I'll live.
In other news, I've been really suffering from insomnia this week. I was a little unwell at the weekend and it caused me to wake up in the night for several days - after waking, I just couldn't get back to sleep. It's rubbish to be awake at 4am when you have a full day at work ahead of you.
