Pregnant Woman Refuses to Give Birth at Local Hospital Where Husband’s Ex Works
One woman has chosen to go to a hospital located far away to give birth, all because her husband's ex works at the nearby hospital and she doesn't want to see her.
"I'm pregnant with our first child and me and [my] husband were discussing where I'd give birth. There is a smaller hospital quite close to us (10 min drive) which has a good maternity unit, alternatively there is a hospital around 40 mins away which is also good (city center very large hospital)," she wrote via parenting forum Mumsnet.
Explaining why she doesn't want to go to her local hospital, she continued, "My husband's ex is a midwife at the local hospital! They have a child together, my stepchild. We do get on okay, she knows about the pregnancy even and has always been perfectly pleasant toward me. I'm not her hugest fan for a couple of reasons but all in all we rub along very well."
The woman noted she told her husband "there's no way" she'll give birth at the local hospital, as she would feel more comfortable somewhere else, but he wants her to go to the local hospital despite her concerns.
"He thinks I'm being silly," she wrote, adding, "She wouldn't be able to be my midwife anyway because of the connection (don't know how true that is but I'm sure she'd request not to be anyway!) so there's no big deal. It doesn't matter to me though, I'm nervous as it is. The last thing I want is it playing on my mind that she will be there or whoever my midwife is ends up being her friend or something. It's a vulnerable time and I just don't want the stress of it."
Users rallied behind the pregnant woman in the comments section.
"Go with the big one where you feel confident," one person wrote.
"Logically, you should choose the nearest hospital, but if you’re not comfortable, then it benefits no one," another commented.
"I'm pregnant and would feel the same as you. I don't think you're being silly. Your [husband] can't guarantee who definitely will and will not look after you, especially if the maternity unit has staff shortages due to sickness, etc.," someone else weighed in, while another user quipped, "Doesn't really matter what your husband thinks, you are the one giving birth not him."