The Art of Midwifery

I am sure it is of no surprise that whilst partaking in a midwifery degree, there is no longer (was there ever?) endless time for pondering, idle wandering or anything else that sounds slow or rhymes with the above. Joining a society is not impossible but with a diary which can change weekly, integrated placements and study means managing a work load of seminars and practice. No week is the same (how boring that would be) and life is busy. However…all work and no creative hobbies was a little disappointing, Midwifery here at York is a Bachelor of Arts after all.

My creative outlet

By complete accident, whilst lost on campus (common occurrence, I should just look at a map), I came across the art department (Active Arts) by wandering into the cafe next door ( being lost requires a muffin) and I learnt that for a small fee yearly or per term you can have free access to the studio, so if at 2am you fancy a little printing, painting or ceramics you can. The department also offer courses run weekly and I have been enjoying learning different printing techniques over the Autumn term. The classes are small and friendly and as a strange co-incidence the printing is also taught by a wonderfully talented woman who taught me during my art degree. So I tentatively re-learnt some Lino printing techniques and volunteered an image or two for the Midwifery Society.

Midwifery Society

The Midwifery Society at the university has only recently been born but is already a fantastic addition to learning. It’s run by students with lots of opportunities to get involved, volunteer or just partake by attending one of the many study days offered throughout the academic year. The most recent event investigated the impact of mental health in midwifery practice. The society arranged for a range of speakers to attend and the event was a success – unlike my poster which was intended to be a pregnant woman with a mind full of the infamous black dog, used as a metaphor for depression. It has been mentioned (I won’t name names), that perhaps my black dog was perhaps a tad more seal like. I have to say I did agree and perhaps more practice is required. However, I think some quiet time printing my seal/dog did improve my mental health by allowing some reflection time. An essential for the art of midwifery.