Well its been a year....

kathfisch

Mrs_Sparkle wrote:

Kath I think you're being a bit hard on yourself. At 22 I was nowhere near as responsible as you and didn't have any strong career urges at all. Tustastic suggested going to some NCT groups which I think is an excellent idea for you. You could also have a look at some of the baby forums- certainly the one I use has a couple of midwives on there and I'm sure if you asked they'd be more than happy to tell you more about their experience. I use "Baby Talk" on hitched.co.uk.

Does your uni do careers counselling for graduates? I know mine did- I only used the service once but I really should have gone more! But anyway, changing your mind about a career and taking a second one isn't the end of the world. I don't intend to do what I'm doing for the rest of my life- I really want a second career.

Keep us informed x

I'd love to just find out a bit more about what the job entails, from those who do it. My best friend works in a doctor's surgery and he said he'd chat to the midwife there, see if she'd mind chatting to me or something. Can't hurt to ask can it!

My uni does do careers counselling but, honestly, from what I saw of the department whilst a student, I don't really have a lot of confidence in them. Its not a personal thing, and maybe I'm being unfair, I don't know. In a way the problem is not that I don't know what I could do, its that I don't know what I want. I need a proper counsellor, not a careers one!! :rotfl:

Mrs_Sparkle

That's an excellent step- talking to someone in midwifery can't hurt at all. And if I can help at all with my experience of midwives from the other side just shout. I wish you the very best of luck and I'm sure you will be a huge success in whatever career you pursue- you have EVERYTHING going for you

kathfisch

Tustastic wrote:

Gotcha! I can sniff out parental instincts from miles away!:rotfl:
a) a partner - it is your job to get out there and get with various people to find out if they are potential longterm partners. Seem to remember it's called dating
b) gender of partner - IMHO important thing is having two of you to make a stable loving home for a baby. People will always contribute DNA.
c) getting life experience is fine as long as you get specific about what it means to you, and set about doing it. If you decide to wait till you've grown up, you'll be needing a pacemaker, not donated DNA:p - that's a dig at all of us, not you personally!

So would you say that being drawn to the profession through maternal instincts (which have made me more interested in pregnancy etc) is not a good motivator? I mean, would you warn me against it given that I've been sniffed out!! :rolleyes:

a) well that's getting into a whole other discussion!
b) I completely agree well I would, wouldn't I?! but there's a sizeable proportion of people, it seems, who don't. Its not impossible, there are always donors as you say, but its another aspect to consider.
c) Ha ha, I don't intend to 'grow up'!! :rotfl: Really, it doesn't mean a heck of a lot to me except having a career and being in a position to be able to support a family. And to have done a few of the things I dream about, places to visit, that kind of thing. But I'm not holding out for some kind of magic experience that fulfils all my dreams and makes me totally 'experienced', if that's what you mean?! There'd be no point in life if I'd experienced everything!

gallygirl

Hi Kath, just wanted to add my 2p worth.

I work in an office with a total of around 100 employees. I would say around a dozen are doing the job they really want to do. The rest of us are 'just doing this till I decide what I really want to do' - a typical comment from our discussions about the future, and that includes profesionally qualified people. Our Chief Exec wants to give it all up and sweep floors at Paddington Station!!!

So, if you're lucky enough at 22 to have even an inkling of what you want then go for it!!!!

As for the degree - love/knowledge of fine art will always enrich your life, so no regrets there.

At the ripe old age of 45 :eek: :eek: :eek: I regret the things I didn't do, not the things I did do.

duncans-mum_2

Firstly I would like to say Happy MSE Anniversary!

I would agree with what ali said above. At the age of 31, I have still never realised what I really want to do. My job is fine but I always feel I could be doing something worthwhile with my life, but as yet have had no idea what. So.. what I am trying to say is, yes, follow your instincts, you are lucky to have a goal/career path to aim for. You seem to be trying to research it well enough, and by the time it comes round to starting you will hopefully have more information to make the choice. You will never know if something is for you or not unless you try it. If it isn't then doesn't matter, if it is then you will be rewarded with a career that you love.

In_Search_Of_Me

Congratulations on a year as a DFW!! As for the job just go with your gut -nothing ventured....I had a simular experience when I finished my first degree and didnt know what to do and "felt" social work was the right thing. Resisted for ages (lets face it we dont get the best press & its often a thankless task!) and 6 years ago started ANOTHER degree (ahh 11 yrs ful iem stufy in all!!) and love it! Its challenging, heartbreaking, wonderful, joyfully happy & sometimes gutwrenchingly sad but cant imagine doing anything else! Never a dull day! I would have done midwifery (even applied!) but my bad back put pay to that!
Be cautious though about your own motivations - if you're broody & going into a job where you're surrounded by women having babies could get you down quite quickly..
Big hugs & hope you resolve this for yourself soon but mostly well done on your first year!

LookingAhead

Hi Kath.

Happy Anniversary for a start!

I can't really add too much more to what has already been said but I totally agree with Ali about if you have even an inkling of what is calling you - then you must check it out!

It's absolutely true that you regret the things you don't do! (In fact I think I want that chiselled out on my tombstone!)

Good luck with your future pursuits Kath. Even if you change your mind 6 months down the road after doing some research/talking to people...it doesn't matter. What matters is you will have checked it out.

Otherwise you will always wonder.

If something else crops up along the way - then so be it. As long as you follow your instincts about the right thing to do, then IMHO you can't go far wrong.

Hugs!

peterg1965

Kath

Good for you and well done on turning your life around in twelve months. May I ask a question? Where can I find out about matched betting, and do you recommend it?

Thanks.

themaccas

Hi Kath
Well done on your first year as a DFW! I think, like everyone else has said, you should go for your dreams. Midwifery is a wonderful, challenging, rewarding profession - different to nursing (which is wonderful too) in that you work as an autonomous practitioner. Delivering babies is about 1% of the job, everything else is about ensuring you have that end result, it is both an art and a science. Don't worry about the journey it takes to get there, many midwives will have gone a round about route to get there too! You could try another website - student midwives sanctuary (google it and you should find it). I am sure they will have a lot of info for you too.

Best wishes, it sounds like you have found where you need to 'be'.

Mrs_Sparkle

peterg1965 wrote:

Kath

Good for you and well done on turning your life around in twelve months. May I ask a question? Where can I find out about matched betting, and do you recommend it?

Thanks.

See this thread for a good introduction to the principles http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=325861

Personally I recommend it as it's given me a few hundred £ (and counting) for not much effort. You do have to follow the instructions to the letter though as you don't want to make any big mistakes. Have a read of the above thread and don't worry if it seems daunting at first- it's actually very simple but it takes most people a few reads to get the gist of it. If you have any questions the "newbies" thread on the Gambling Introductory offers board is the best place to ask... there are people a lot more knowledgable than me.

HTH!