midwife's muse

Daughter - 'I feel  really calm. It's as if silk has been poured over me.'

Her sister took one look at the scan photo and said it looked like an alien, that's a nice way to talk about your niece/nephew. Daughter does know what sex it is, I don't want to know but can take an educated guess. Hopefully it will now all be plain sailing regarding her pregnancy,  her partner goes in on Bank Holiday Monday to have his bowel resection, lets hope that is plain sailing as well.

Work has eased slightly in that we are not having to incorporate shifts on labour ward into our lives, but the pressure remains high elsewhere. Postnatal visits have been cut drastically and the women are still expected to attend the hospital if they need seeing over the weekend. Some local G.P's have re-thought their refusal to conduct newborn examinations, discussing the situation with the senior partner at one of the surgeries I work from lead him to comment about his abstaining colleagues 'awkward bastards'.

I'm trying to reduce the number of 'specials' I'm involved with. These are women who are not my caseload, usually family, friends and colleagues. It's really difficult to say no though so, having just seen V's baby into the world and announcing that I was stopping my extra's after friend with cholestasis and daughter have given birth, another colleague, who I cared for last year, and one of daughters friends have asked me to provide care. After them I really am stopping.

This morning I decided to listen to Led Zeppelin. Immediately I was back sitting in friends bedrooms, lava lamps sluggishly erupting, joss sticks giving off a sweet, sickly smoke (hoping to mask the smell of grilling banana skins and Players No6), everyone liberally daubed with patchouli oil and drinking cider or Double Diamond. Those were the days!  

19.8.06 12:34