The Health Visitor Cometh

[ailbhe]

She came, we talked, she apologised for not being my health visitor (my lovely one who retired), and she has now gone away with a list of three things she's going to do for me.

She's going to investigate physiotherapy options for my phsyical issues. She's going to see if I can talk to my community midwife about the last month of my pregnancy to see if any of it was preventable, and she's going to see whether I'm still on a waiting list for PTSD counselling.

And she's going to come again at some point in the next two weeks, phoning first to check I'm in. I am glad I'm going to be checked up on.

She doesn't think I'm going to hurt Linnea. Apparently people who consider calling the police in case they hurt their baby tend not to actually do it. (No, I never actually called the police, yes I considered it on days when none of my friends would have been available to come and nor would Rob. No, I have never struck Linnea).

When the health visitor left, I cried, and Linnea patted me on the head and chirped at me with "OK? OK?" noises until I laughed. It didn't take long. She's so grown up!

Comments

[jennyaxe.livejournal.com]

About the thoughts about hurting Linnea - I heard a programme on the radio the other day where they talked about obsessive thoughts, such as "did I turn off the stove" and "did I lock the door". The doctor they talked to also mentioned that many mothers have thoughts about hurting their child and that these thoughts actually do have an evolutionary value. These thoughts tend to make the mother extremely careful not to do anything to hurt the child and to protect it from hurt from other people and things as well.

So those thoughts are not abnormal and they are certainly not a sign that you want to or are going to hurt Linnea. They are your mind's way of showing you how very important it is to you that she not be hurt!