Last week I was particularly down - why? Because I'd been on the NHS side! Whilst I agree that our NHS is a wonderful thing anyone who has spent anytime in hospital knows that they operate to different rules and time zones to those of us who have things to do, people to see, kids to get to and from school, etc., etc.
I'd had a standard letter from the hospital to turn up for a consultant's appointment at 9am. Along with the letter was a sheet with several notes saying that I would be seeing the consultant until my 'condition' was resolved. I'm not ill - I'm pregnant. As I usually do I got worried - I'd not had to see a consultant with my son, I'd been told all my tests so far were fine - what was wrong. A chat with my midwife didn't put me at ease - she pointed to a colposcopy I'd had in 2002 and streptococcal infections I'd had in 1997 and 2007 - but these were conditions I'd had before my son's birth in 2004 and hadn't rung alarm bells then.
In order to get a parking space we arrived at the hospital at 8.30am - unfortunately not early enough for a parking space near the maternity entrance (in fact I saw a woman, clearly in labour, making the 10 min walk from the 'overspill' car park). We stood in a corridor until the receptionist finally deigned to open her blind (after chatting loudly with a colleague, ordering tea, ringing her mum, etc.) at 8.55am. It then took her 10 mins to boot her computer up and get us booked in. Ten minutes later I was called in to see a nurse who told me what was going to happen at the appointment with the consultant and told me that because of my BMI they were going to have to keep a close eye on my weight gain and my bump size - not done with my son, granted I am a couple of stone heavier than I was before I had him and I am overweight but I did feel like great sirens had gone off when I walked through the door.
Back to the waiting room and I was eventually called in to see the consultant at 9.45am who sat down and asked me why I was there! 'erm I got a letter telling me to come to an appointment'. He then SAT AND READ MY NOTES, disappeared out of the door - a nurse came in and spoke to the student doctor who was observing (I wasn't asked if that was ok) and I discovered he'd gone to speak to another doctor, then came back with a purpose - to put the FEAR OF GOD into me.
As a result I now have to have a glucose tolerance test as I may be diabetic (if I had £10 for every diabetes test I've had done over the last 10 years ...). This involves no food from 10pm and only being able to drink water, a blood test at 8.30am followed by a horrible glucose drink - and still no food - and a 2 hour wait before another blood test to check how well I tolerated it.
I also have to have extra scans at 32 and 36 weeks to check the size of the baby as I'm at risk of having a bigger baby - especially IF I'm diabetic (I must point out that after all those tests I've had in the past I'm not even borderline, or close to borderline, diabetic). I know because of the streptococcus I will have to have a hospital birth rather than a home birth but I was saddened by how medicalized it will probably be - after being induced and unable to get out of bed with my first I wanted it to be different.
The most frustrating bit was that he asked me to book a scan for 32 weeks (New Years eve as it happens) and then book another appointment to see him immediately afterwards. This should have been straightforward except that the appointments clerk on the ultrasound unit had other ideas 'Oh you don't need this - they keep sending people up here to book 32 week scans but you've got one at 20 weeks and you wont need another'. It was only after both my OH and I had explained slowly that the consultant had told us that we did, and another at 36 weeks, and that we had to go back down to make another appointment with him which we couldn't do without the date and time of the ultrasound - she realised that we weren't leaving her office without one that she grudgingly printed off an appointment - still adamant that we'd have to cancel as we 'wouldn't need it'. I made a complaint with the consultant's receptionist - who also said 'oh we keep getting people saying that - I don't know what's up with her'.
I also went to the local MSLC (Maternity Services Liaison Committee) meeting that afternoon and told them all about it too. Felt slightly better but still more anxious about this pregnancy than I was a few weeks ago.
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