Well that was fun......not

After a lovely morning meeting a lovely pregnant friend I realise that not only was baby still very quiet but I was also feeling increasingly uncomfortable. A quick call to the hospital and a stupidly expensive taxi journey I was at the delivery suite to get checked out. First I had to wait 10 mins to be let in and told to wait in the waiting room. After another 40 minutes a midwife finally came to ask who I was and to see my notes. Another 30 mins before she checked my temp and blood pressure. Finally got hooked up to a monitor. Babies heartbeat was thankfully strong but dipped slightly when I had a tightening . The pains were certainly not strong enough to register as contractions but strong enough to make me uncomfortable lying on my back for 40 mins. Midwife finally returns to tell me all is fine but I need to see a doctor before she can let me leave. Doctor has back to back c sections so no idea when I'll get seen! I waited another half hour , then an hour . Finally I asked for my notes without seeing the doctor as I was starting to feel very stressed. Glad baby is ok but to be honest the trip felt like a waste of energy. The maternity hospital seemed woefully understaffed. No receptionist , one midwife manning triage on her own ( there was 6 or 7 other ladies there by my count) and apparently just the one doctor. The triage nurse was not only dealing with all the pregnant women alone but was also answer the maternity helpline and answering the door. I felt stressed from the moment I arrived and I feel more certain than ever that a homebirth is the way to go. Less than 2 weeks til I am classed as full term and while I am happy to wait for baby I will definately breathe a sigh of relief when I am in the home birth safe zone.