Call the Midwife - a step too far?

I’ve just caught up on this special. It might be twee (the saintly Dr Turner) but I found it enjoyable. The mother who lost so many babies made me tear up. I remember someone my sister knew having that magic stitch to save her babies. It seemed like a miracle.

I also admired Peter Davison’s role. He’s a fine character actor, isn’t he?

I am watching it again from series 1, I worked in a convent for
several years and admit I think ‘she is so like Sister Im’.

I watched on boxing day - have always been a great fan. I had forgotten how it always seems to make me feel a bit tearful - not quite sure why that is...

Thought it was just awful so switched it off.

I enjoyed it,and Nurse Crane on the trapeze was one of my favourite moments,she was fulfilling a dream,and she looked good in the costume too.We saw a different side to her,also we saw a different side to Miss Higgins from the doctor's surgery.We have to think of the time that Call the Midwife is set in,life was different then.I also thought how nice a character Reggie is,I look forward to seeing more of him and Fred as newsagents

I find Trixie very irritating and the problem is she appears to be like that off screen too

My eldest (born 1969) in a stand alone maternity home (Closed in 1970). Waters broke, so went in on Wedesday. Nothing else happened, and they intended to start things off on Thursday, but ran out of drip stands!!! So, by Friday things were starting off slowly of their own accord. I gave to the midwife my hunsbands phone number at work as he wanted to be at the birth. She never did use it!!!!!

Put on a drip by a student doctor doing his few days maternity stint. Within no time I got the most excruciating back pain. When he came in to see me to ask if anything was happening I said 'No' (knew nothing about back labour then), he turned up the drip. Repeated half an hour later. Then he called in a midwife. She turned the drip off completely as I was by then well on my way to second stage.
Although my son was small, I did tear and then had to wait over an hour before a Doctor was available to stitch me up (with help of gas and air).

This building had about 20 post natal women and just two baths, no showers whatsoever. All first time Mums HAD to stay in for a minumum of ten days, and all first time muims HAD to breastfeed. If baby needed any specialised care, then it was taken to the nearest main hospital - usually leaving the Mum behind.
The following year I had Baby number two in my own home - this was a truly wonderful experience with great midwives.

After my own horror story in 1971, my first thought was “Damn, I’ll have to do it again”. The reason was that the baby was a boy, and I desperately wanted a girl. So I did it again (with an epidural!) and had another boy. It is not done to admit to these thoughts.

I am used to it now, and my two sons are wonderful. I now have a granddaughter!

I enjoyed it. There is so much rubbish on lately, we've resorted to watching old films.
Did anyone watch The Clown last night? Amazing.

I watched it last night and it was a bit of gentle escapism. Loved it.

Purpledaffodil Tribute to DD’s courage that she had DGD 8 years later!

Brave young woman, Purple. I hope she had an easier time. After my own horror story, and the mess made of my undercarriage after 2 episiotomies etc. I was advised not to have any more babies as I had managed to have the requisite two .... one of each.

I didn't need that advice as it was the furthest thought from my mind.

VioletCloud Your mention of shaving reminded me that mine was done by a student nurse who said 'I've never done this before'. She cut me in the process. My baby was also taken from me for a couple of days due to her being jaundiced. They didn't give her to me after she was born, they just whisked her off.

I find myself empathising with some of our mums on here who had their babies in 'the good old days'. As a young 20 year old, the birth experience with my first son at our local cottage maternity hospital was horrendous. The obligatory shaving, the enema, being made to lie flat on my back throughout 11 hours of labour, no dads allowed, the immediate removal of my son to the nursery for over a week, (due to a traumatic forceps delivery) only to see and cuddle him at regimented feeding times, for which I was drugged with a sedative beforehand due to breast pain (the maternity sister 'disagreed' with bottle feeding, even breastmilk). I love watching CTM, however it does fail to reflect some of the more negative practises and attitudes during the era in some maternity units.

Sorry, should have said; my question's for Ashcombe who said that Trixie didn't seem like a typical nurse.

What's 'a typical nurse '? As a retired one I'd be most interested to know.

Loved the books but thought it went downhill a bit when they stopped using them for story lines. Christmas special was escapism but a tad formulaic. Sister MJ had yet another health emergency!
Not sure all is sweetness and light in maternity services now, daughter had a very inexperienced midwife who kept reminding her that her birthing plan involved a natural birth so no epidural. But birthing plan was written in total ignorance of realities of child birth and that the baby would be an eleven pounder. ? This was followed by a sharp tongued sister who assured her that she was making a fuss and the stitching wasn’t hurting her and a subsequent two litre haemorrhage. Tribute to DD’s courage that she had DGD 8 years later!

The trapeze scene was a bit ludicrous and my husband kept saying “is she dreaming? Is it a dream? Is it?” ???

I do find the whole Call the Midwife, sugary music and 'There, there dear" attitude a bit over the top. But found Nurse Thingummy up on the trapeze was quite believable.

I had a very straight-laced un-married teacher at school who seemed quite an innocent who'd never been anywhere or done anything, but she was a lovely lady and popular. When she died many years later, several of us went to her funeral. Her French son (!) stood up and spoke long and eloquently about her early life. I never judged anyone by appearances after hearing all she'd done before she became a straight-laced teacher!

I watched it yesterday and really enjoyed it. The unbearably sad storyline of the bereaved mother had to be offset by the nonsense of the circus and the lightness of the dating agency.
I have gone back to series 1, episode 1 so have plenty to watch for the foreseeable future.

First birth in 71 and wouldn't say it was the best experience with 32 hours labour. The Drs were wonderful, the nursing staff not so good but were very busy in the big London hospital and I put it down to that. Second 30 months later was totally different as I was in-patient for 6 weeks before delivery. Got to know the staff and they were great. All went pear shaped once in labour. Midwives hadn't picked up on brow presentation holding up proceedings. I did keep complaining I thought something was wrong DH backed me up . After 9 hours 2 Drs called in to sort out and deal with. First twin brow presentation, second twin who was then a breach birth. Medical staff were fantastic, delivery suite just a bit too "I know it all" but they did need to eat humble pie on that occasion. Home births were the norm in the 50s and living conditions and health were a lot worse than nowadays. I think midwives had to appear to be in control in order to manage all the different standards. CTM is of course a dramatisation not a documentary.

Just loved it, I guess lots of us have a hidden dream and it might have been daft but it made me smile ?

I had a "horror" midwife and also a "horror" husband (now ex).

The midwife told me off because I groaned, and said "Use that energy for pushing out this big baby for goodness sake!" My son was too big for me, and was coming out like a battering ram. I had to have loads of stitches afterwards and was known in hospital as "the lady with the bruising" because I had to sit on a rubber ring, and the next day I found I had burst all the blood vessels in one eye and down the side of my face and neck from straining to get him out.

Whilst lying there waiting to be stitched, my husband said "If you were in China, you'd be back out in the paddyfields by now".

The sharp-tongued midwife swung round and said to him "If your wife was in China, she'd be dead!"

So at least she was as sharp with him as she was with me. Reader ... I divorced him 6 years later.

Tweedle:

"“Explain to the patient what you are going to do’” "

A simple instruction from a sister tutor is an example of how empathy can be taught by an understanding teacher.

I am really sad to read these horror stories about treatment (or lack of) in hospital,

As a nurse for 40+ years, I can only hope that my care was a good deal kinder than that received by some of the posters.

Yes, I agree that some nurses are in the wrong job. I can only speak for my training when I say that compassion is taught from the very first day. Our Sister Tutor was remembered for her, “Explain to the patient what you are going to do’” before doing anything for or to the patient. A huge % of marks was knocked off test papers if the patient was not put first when carrying out a procedure.

As for having students (or anyone else extra in the room), without asking the patient’s permission first, that would soon get stamped on by any of the ward sisters I worked with.

Having said all that, medical and nursing staff are human and nobody is perfect but, I do hope the majority these days have higher standards than those described.

I really enjoyed it. Loved that Phyllis got to realise her dream by riding on the trapeze. She is a rebel at heart. I cried at the story of the woman who had lost all the babies and smiled at the inevitable outcome of Trixies dating agency story. The programme is a drama based on a novel and I don't take all of it seriously although it has dealt with some serious issues over the years.