Listen to me

My daughter often asks me to 'listen to me mummy' or 'talk to me mummy'; often getting it the wrong way around, and expecting me to talk when she asks me to listen, or listen when she asks me to talk.  It's endearing.

What isn't endearing is medical professionals not listening to their patients.

Throughout my pregnancy with Little Man I tried to raise my concerns.  Noone listened.  My medical notes at the GP show this clearly.  I'm described as a GUM nurse, a Health Care Assistant and a Senior Registrar.  I'm none of these.

The registrar I saw the week before Little Man was born didn't listen.  Even when I tried to explain, she tried to look 'big' with her medical student there, and point blank ignored my comments.  I was 32 weeks pregnant.  I'd had multiple episodes of high blood pressure.  I wasn't being monitored properly, but the lovely pregnancy complications unit were looking after me as well as they could (informally).  The latest instructions (after an attendance to the labour ward with raised blood pressure) was to increase the medications if my blood pressure remained high.  My appointment my blood pressure was high.  The response, increase the meds if you're BP is still high next time you're checked, and come back to clinic in 4 weeks.

'4 weeks?!'  My daughter was born before 4 weeks were up.  I asked for a earlier appointment, and was denied.  I explained my reasons, but no, 4 weeks it was.

My medications were increased the next day.  I had my son 10 days later, emergency c-section for pre-eclampsia, at 33+5 weeks.

My consultant listened.  She was shocked, that someone like me had pre-eclampsia again.  There are no obvious reasons why I am at risk of this condition.