Oh, no! I missed a call!

[CMcC]

I fell asleep in my DD's room last night without plugging my phone in beside my bed. : I woke up and saw I missed a call from my client (4 hours earlier!), but there is no voice mail! I've called both parent's phone, but no answer! (Which isn't unusual for them not to answer, but now I'm worried.) She visted the hospital a couple of days ago...so I'm really paranoid I missed the birth. :

Have you missed a call in the middle of the night? Missed a birth? My head is just spinning....

[courtenay_e]

Not yet, but I sure do have nightmares about it. Call the L&D and ask to speak to her room (if you ask if she's a patient there they won't tell you, but if you directly ask to speak to her, as if you KNOW she's there, they'll connect you if she's there--unless she's asked to have no calls put through, but if that's the case, they'll tell you that that's her request, and you'll STILL know she's there). If she's there ask about the situation and then ask if you can come and lend a hand.

[CMcC]

I called the L&D's around town (she hasn't made up her mind which she is going to use). She wasn't admitted. They finally called this afternoon, everything is okay. She had had 3 hours of contractions this morning. I'm hoping they use these warm ups to prepare for the real ones. (They have not done any preparing for labor other than have me talk to them during prenatals. Think they got the wake up call.) One thing is for sure, it was good practice for me. My phone will be my constant companion from now on.

[MidwifeErika]

I would remind them to leave a message next time as well, so that way you aren't worried.

I tend to check my phone every morning when I wake up because I have had bad dreams about missing calls and missing births.

[Reha]

Originally Posted by hotwings640

I tend to check my phone every morning when I wake up because I have had bad dreams about missing calls and missing births.

: I also find that when we have a mama who we are really thinking will have her baby any day, that I never am able to sleep very deeply, every little sound wakes me up, as I am on edge to make sure I don't miss the call (even though my phone is plugged in and sitting on a little shelf above my head. )

[courtenay_e]

Oh, yes, lennon! The first thing I do every morning is check for messages! I have a new phone with a ring tone I'm not QUITE used to yet, and I'm really worried that I'll sleep through it ringing. Not that I would, but I still am horrified that I might. The fact that it's fewer than 12 inches from my ear should mean that I feel a little more secure about it. But apparently I don't, because it's the first thing I reach for in the am. Even before my glasses!

[homebirthing]

I had a dream just last night that I missed a birth! Being an apprentice has only added to the fear of that!

[purplevega]

Do you give your clients your home #. My doula gave me her home # and told me to call that 1st if labor started at night.

Kim

[3daughters]

I definitely tell my clients to call my home first during the evening & night. I'm not likely to miss a call that way. When I'm on call the last thing I do every night is make sure that the phone is in its cradle and not on the bed or on a different floor of the house .

The first sign that I am post-call is that I don't have to go through that routine at night!

[CMcC]

Yeah, my client now has 3 numbers to reach me. But I'm still most likely to answer my cell phone. But my cell phone has now been permently attached to me.

[Charmie981]

I have actually gotten up, dressed and out the door once based on a DREAM that I got a call. I don't know what posessed me to check my phone, but when I did, the call I had dreamed wasn't in the call log. I was so annoyed with myself, but could have been so much worse if I had driven the 1.5 hours to their house to wake up my very pregnant (and not in labor) client in the middle of the night!!

I missed calls during my apprenticeship a few times, usually because I was required to have a pager and I just couldn't seem to keep that darn thing on me. I never missed a birth because of a missed call, though, as *something* always caused me to hunt up my pager "just in case." I've never missed a call from a client, fortunately.

[MidwifeErika]

Originally Posted by Charmie981

I have actually gotten up, dressed and out the door once based on a DREAM that I got a call. I don't know what posessed me to check my phone, but when I did, the call I had dreamed wasn't in the call log. I was so annoyed with myself, but could have been so much worse if I had driven the 1.5 hours to their house to wake up my very pregnant (and not in labor) client in the middle of the night!!

LOL! That is soooo funny!!! I could totally see myself doing that!

[happyartmama]

This happened to me as well....not good! I had put the regular home phone in the closet in the afernoon when I was taking a nap (still had my cell phone near by), and them forgot to get it back out again at night. Meanwhile, I was recharging the cell phone downstairs, went to bed without bringing it up, and with the humidifier and fan running in our bedroom with the door closed, didn't hear EITHER phone! Went downstairs at 7 am to find 5 messages from my clients trying to reach me. Fortunately, they were in WAY early labor (first time parents a bit nervous), so I joined them and was there for the birth, etc. But I felt awful and kept imagining how I would have felt if I had missed the birth altogether.

[tlcdoula]

Originally Posted by purplevega

Do you give your clients your home #. My doula gave me her home # and told me to call that 1st if labor started at night.

Kim

I do not give my clients my home number only because I have a six year old who is learning how to answer the phone and there are six other kids in this house who might answer. I find it too complicated to say "if you are in labor at night call this number, but if it is day call this number." It is just easier to tell them to call my cell. I asked them for their home number and cell numbers and then program them into my phone with a ring that is a siren. If the siren goes off I know it is a client.

[dynamicdoula]

Oh how I hate the limbo!! You don't know what's going on, if they're mad, etc!

What I can tell you is this:

A client will call you more than once if they need you. If things move too fast for them to call, then just leave a message with your note of "I'm here, here's the best way to get a hold of me!" and wait to hear that the baby was born, fast and easy and without you! That's not a bad thing.

Oh I can't stand that anxiety..... I feel like I can't function until I know what's going on!

[Peppamint]

Originally Posted by tlcdoula

I asked them for their home number and cell numbers and then program them into my phone with a ring that is a siren. If the siren goes off I know it is a client.

That is awesome!