Take 2

My new theatre

I am often met by surprise when I explain what my career was before starting my training.  It does seem quite a jump to go from theatre to midwifery, but with half of my family working within the NHS, the change has always seemed more natural to me.

I had a few fears about returning to university for a second time.
Initially, I was reluctant to admit that I hadn’t made the right decision the first time.  I have always been the sort of person to agonise over the decisions I make.  I cried when I had to choose my GCSEs, scared that my teachers would no longer like me if I didn’t choose their subject.  In retrospect this is completely ridiculous, but for a 14 year old the overwhelming fear that the choices I made in that moment would dictate my future was a very real one. 

So when I realised the theatre wasn’t the right world for me, it took me a while to adapt to this. I knew I wanted a career, not just a job, so I was never looking for a quick fix.  It was however quite a

Its not easy to get on to a course!

commitment to agree to complete another three year degree.  Being a student again also wasn’t massively appealing; I had a nice life in London, earning a good salary and going to the theatre whenever I wanted so the prospect of limited funds, deadlines and assignments wasn’t something I was looking forward to.  It wasn’t long however, until I remembered all the brilliant parts about being a student.

I love learning, and from speaking to my friend who was half way through her training, I was absolutely fascinated about the process of pregnancy and birth.  There was also the opportunity to make a new group of friends, something which I am always open to.  Making friends at university is completely different from making friends at school – at school, you are friends because you are in the same form class, or you sit next to each other in Biology, but in higher education, you are brought together by a shared passion and interest.  In my experience, it leads to closer and longer lasting friendships.  It did cross my mind that I would be the eldest in the group, but I soon realised that midwifery attracts people of all ages and backgrounds.

The joys of being a mature student

I also had to consider that midwifery was a completely new subject for me.  I had not studied any science since my GCSEs, some seven years previous!  I also hadn’t always wanted to be a midwife in the same way I had always longed to be on the stage.  My move to midwifery was a considered decision, looking at my interests and personality strengths.  Although I had the bizarre experience of applying through UCAS at the same time as the students I was teaching, returning to study was one of the best decisions I have ever made.  I have never looked back.

What a long week!

Hi All :)

Finally have a chance to get onto the laptop to say hello. Have just finished three early shifts on the ward and a long day yesterday (was there for 14.5 hours). I now have four days off in a row but have decided to have the ultimate lazy day today followed by three days committed to university work before another week on placement.

Wear good footwear for the standing

My second week on the ward has gone smoothly. I was previously on a care of the elderly ward which is very fast-paced and hard work, and am now on a ward where I find the pace and patient group completely different. Now I am looking after patients who usually go home within a few days of admittance, so there is a lot of focus on organised discharges. There is also a lot of pre-operative and post-operative care, which wasn't present on the last medical ward. I had the opportunity yesterday of following one of the patients from ward to theatre to recovery, which I found interesting. Some people aren't keen on watching procedures, but I find anatomy far easier to learn and understand when it is visually in front of me, so to speak!


Or weekends...

I know a lot of the 'normal' university students have probably just returned to study this week or maybe next...who knows, as unlike a typical university theory based course we do not get the same time off. So I'm afraid no months and months off sorry, just seven official leave weeks scheduled.

Hope the prep for university is coming along well for you all :)

Chat to you next week!
Em x