#NaNoWriMo Day 8.

And here we are again. Another update on the process and another day spent writing a little. 7467 words more to be exact. And this means:

I've crossed the 50000 words threshold today. Yippee, no more stress, no more pressure. Only the pressure I put on myself, which obviously continues. 'Diary of a Female GP' is well underway and half-way to completion of the first draft, I estimate.

So, now my target has changed. 50000 is no longer the target I work towards, after all I have already gone over at 52553 today, but I aim to complete this novel this month. So, all the words this novel will have eventually I want to be written. I also want to have a first edit of the book done, so I can look at re-edit and second draft by the end of this month or December at the latest.

And then? Then I will need to find some beta-readers for advice and then re-edit, final draft and publish. Perhaps this can be done by the end of January.

Of course, 'Growing Love' is still waiting to be completed as well. I'm working the last few chapters of the book and hope to be done with the first draft by the middle of November.

Now, for those of you who are waiting for another peek, here is another little excerpt from 'Diary of a Female GP', the work in progress for #nanowrimo2018.

Claire agreed and left and after signing a few new electronic prescriptions and grabbing the box of prescriptions I already signed, I got up to leave my room.
At that moment there was another knock on the door and Carly walked in, "Can I have a word?"
What now?
"I'm so sorry, Dr J, but I have just had a call from Dr K. Dr K won't be in this morning due to illness. We have a problem. All Dr K's appointments for this morning are already fully booked, what should we do?"
That indeed is a problem, the nightmare already starts before the first patient even enters my room. 
"It can't be helped, we'll have to do what we can and cope. If you girls try and rearrange the appointments you can, I'll see the ones who can't be rearranged or turn up before you have had a chance to reschedule them. We'll just have to fit them in where we can. We've done it before and have managed. We'll do it again. I'm sure we can cope if we just work together like the great team we are."
Yes, I hope we will. Personally, I am not so sure, but I have to keep the morale up. A lot of the practice lays on the receptionists' shoulders. Without them doctors would be nothing and could do nothing. In reality it is not so much the doctors who keep the practice running as it is the receptionists. Well, we really need the entire team. Together we can be strong and deal with the pressure put on us, unless that pressure becomes too much. Will it be too much today? Time will tell.
"But I'm so sorry for you, Dr J, it seems like you always end up with these situations."
I'm sure that's not entirely true, it must happen to my colleagues on occasion as well. Although I don't call in sick very often. In general, I will even get to the surgery if I have to hold myself up on the walls to make sure I don't fall down. I hate letting anyone down and will drag myself in to work even if I don't feel well. On occasion I have had patients tell me, "You don't looke well, doctor. You should see a doctor." Which, of course, I do every day. Either at work or at home.
I hand Carly the prescriptions and make my way upstairs to get ready for the nightmare that will be today.

Joni

Day 7 of #nanowrimo2018

Time for another update.

Today I have taken it easy, it's my birthday after all. Still, I have written 4183 words on the project, bringing the total so far up to 45086 words. Not bad over seven days I think. I have so far not written anything on my sixth book yet, but I have also published another book review on a book I've read.
Other than that, I have also baked a cake, it's my birthday after all.

I hope everyone else taking part is doing well too.

And here is another little excerpt from the work in progress,

Now I continue with the electronic prescriptions, signing them and signing a few of the prescriptions in the box I brought down with me as well. Once the electronic prescriptions have been dealt with, I move to deal with the tasks, but notice there is another patient awaiting to be dealt with on my screen. In the bottom of the screen on the clinical system, several coloured squares show, which contain numbers. Some are for the results, showing how many results there are in total, how many there are for me and how many there are with no clinician assigned. 

Next to that it shows the letters in much the same way, total number of letters with next to it number assigned to me. 

The next line of coloured squares shows all my appointments for the current session, the number of patients seen, the number of patients awaited, the number of patients who have arrived and the number of patients waiting for me. 

The following squares show the total number of electronic prescriptions, and the number assigned to me.

The last group of squares relates to the number of tasks, total number, tasks assigned to the group I belong to and tasks assigned to me.

In the square of patients awaited, there now shows a number one. Another patient has been added to my list. As I don't want any patients to slip through the net through either my own or someone else's mistake, I return to the appointment screen and find another ringback waiting on my screen. Why did no one alert me? Or is this again a ringback added in error?

When I open the patient's notes and check details of the ringback, it only states "Personal problem. Patient wants to speak to you."

Oh, yes, it is Eleanor, a forty-nine year old lady who only wants to see and speak to me. For some unknown reason, she only trusts me. We have patients like that and I suspect there are patients like that in every GP practice. Usually she wants to talk about her panic attacks and I take a deep breath and phone Eleanor.

"Oh, thank you for phoning back doctor. I would like to make an appointment to see you please."

Huh? Why did she not ask the receptionist for an appointment?

"Is there any reason why you wanted to speak to me today other than to book an appointment?"

"No there isn't. Do you have any appointments next week perhaps?"

"Eleanor, there is no need for you to speak to me to book an appointment. Perhaps you can phone our receptionists to book an appointment?"

She agrees and we finish the call. My mind boggles at why she would want to speak to me to book an appointment. Five wasted minutes in which more of the paperwork could have been completed.

Joni

Book Review: Ghostly Writes Anthology 2017

Book Review

 

Basic Details:

Book Title: Ghostly Writes Anthology 2017

Subtitle:

Author: Multiple authors

Genre: Horror/supernatural

Part of a series? Yes

Order in series:

Best read after earlier books in series? No

Available: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36506400-ghostly-writes-anthology-2017

Overall score:

I scored this book 4/5

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

Short Summary of the book:

This book is a collation of several ghostly writes. Ideal for anyone who likes these types of stories.

What I liked about the book:

I particularly liked that there were stories from multiple authors in the book. Something to like for everyone.

What I didn’t like about the book:

I wasn’t impressed by the odd writing style of individual authors, but in general it was a good read.

My favourite bits in the book:

I loved some of the stories, but not all. That is why this is a nice collection. Something to appeal whereas other stories may not be for you.

My least favourite bits in the book:

This book is not the usual genre I go for. I enjoyed some stories, others not so much.

Any further books in the series? Any more planned by this author?

I understand these anthologies are published on an annual basis.

What books could this be compared to and why?

This book reminded me of The Shining, although different at the same time.

Recommendation:

In summary, I would recommend this book for the following readers:

Children	No
Young Adult	Maybe
Adult	Yes

If you like Horror and supernatural stories this book is the book for you.

I look forward to reading more books by these authors.

Book Description by Author:

ENTER IF YOU DARE. A new Ghostly Writes Anthology for 2017, gives you sixteen authors from around the world with ghostly stories and poems for you to read. Each short story will take you to a new place, be it the future, present or past.

Plaisted Publishing House is happy to present this book to you - our readers. Please note that all stories are written in the English of the country the Author resides in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Slight addition to the original review at the request of one of the readers of the review.

Which stories did I like, which one did not do it for me and why?

·       The Crow Watches - A great poem.

·       Soul Man, Part Two – I really enjoyed this story as well, a bit of a hero ghost in this story.

·       Lily – A great ghost story, which could really give you the willies.

·       Rimor’s Riddle – Although the story is interesting, the delivery was lacking a little.

·       The Old Oak Tree – A great story, well told. A malignant ghost takes control of humans to exact his revenge for his own murder.

·       Boneyard – Another great story, which I really enjoyed. Crime doesn’t pay.

·       The Piano – Loved this story as well, although it had an unexpected twist. I had expected it to turn out the other way it did.

·       A Sanctum for Charlie – Another fabulous story, which had a bit of a historic twist to it and time travel.

·       Together Forever – I really enjoyed this story as well, a bit of a hero ghost in this story.

·       A Grave Business – Interesting twist on the undertaker business with a mixture of ghosts and technology.

·       They Came for Him – Another great story. Don’t play around with an Ouija board.

·       The Big Escape – I liked this story of a girl in an orphanage finding her gift still links her to remaining family.

·       Primrose Point – An interesting story with a love story underneath. Although the possibly happy ending does not lay within this story, you could envisage one when the story would develop further.

·       Blood Bond – This was an interesting story about a girl raised by her dad after her mum’s death. Dad believes there is a supernatural world about and Ciara comes face to face with what dad always looked for.

·       Wicked Moon – A poem, that did not quite work for me.

#NaNoWriMo Day 6, still going well.

I'm still going full steam ahead for #NaNoWriMo2018.
Today I spent most of the morning writing on my project and I'm now gearing up to continue writing my sixth book 'Growing Love' again. There is still a bit left of the book and I would like to finish the first draft of this book soon as well. Although I'm getting close to the end of the book, I'm still not quite there yet.

So, how did I get on with 'Diary of a Female GP' today? I have now passed the 40000 word mark and have reached 40969 words, today 6772 words were added to the project.

I hope you are enjoying my daily updates so far, with the little excerpts from the book as well.

Here is another taster:

And then it is time for my fifth patient already. The amount of time I was ahead, has now been reduced and shattered and instead I'm running five minutes behind. Oh, well, you can't have it all I guess.
Thirty-seven year old Jenny comes complaining of abdominal discomfort and bloating. She has gradually increased in weight over the last few months and denies any possibility of pregnancy, "I'm just getting fat, should stop eating rubbish."
When I ask her when her last period was Jenny informs me she has no idea, she has always been irregular and doesn't keep track. "They come when they come and that's just how it is."
After asking her to lay on the couch so I can examine her, I have a good feel of her stomach. It is quite large and, if I am to believe Jenny this is due to obesity. However, I'm fairly certain I can feel a baby inside. Even if it is not moving at the moment, I'm fairly sure I can feel the head, the body and the limbs. No chance of pregnancy? I'm definitely not convinced. 
"Jenny, I believe you may be pregnant after all. Would you like me to check if I can find a heartbeat?"
Jenny's eyes shoot wide-open as does her mouth. Speech appears impossible, but she nods.
I walk to the cupboard and collect the doppler. Hopefully the battery is still working. After putting a bit of jelly on the probe, I place it where I expect the baby's heart to be, and..., indeed, there it is. A fast heartbeat can be heard.
"That is my heartbeat, though, isn't it doctor?"
Not a lot of patients have a resting pulse of around one hundred and twenty a minute. I move the probe to where it picks up her heartbeat, "This is your heartbeat. Nice and slow." I move the probe to the baby's heartbeat again, "And this is the other heartbeat. Hear, it's faster."
"But..., but...," Jenny can't get her words out easily, "I can't be pregnant. This can't be true."
Well, I'm afraid it's too late now. When I examined Jenny it felt like the womb reached to around thirty-six weeks already, there is no going back now.
After informing her of the approximate pregnancy duration and advising her she will probably need to prepare herself real soon, I arrange for an emergency referral to the midwife. If my estimation is correct, she only has about four weeks left. Not a lot of time to get used to the idea of becoming a mother and preparing for it. Not quite the surprise you would expect on your visit to your GP.

Joni

#NaNoWriMo Day five.

 
Okay, so today is not something to write home about. Too many other things have interfered with the thing I needed to do, write.
Instead, I have spent time doing the housework (also necessary), the shopping (the family needs to eat after all), booking a short trip in December (not urgent, but would help) and sorting a few other things out.
But, I have still managed to write to, albeit short, chapters of the project.

Current word count: 34197
Today added: 1898 (yes I know, I should do better)

This is, however, a convenient place to stop. The end of a chapter, while I already know the next chapter is going to be a long one.

Ready for another short excerpt? Here we go (it's not much, but something is better than nothing, right?)

Again, I walk back to my room after and start preparations for the day. A few more of the letters waiting are dealt with, and I notice the complaint I received yesterday. I will need to make some time to answer that one as well today. Officially we may have two weeks to answer a complaint, but I always feel the sooner it is dealt with, the better. I absolutely hate receiving complaints. As a perfectionist, I always aim to do the best I can for all my patients. A complaint to me means that I have failed in doing that and that hurts, a lot. It makes me wonder if I will ever be good enough, or whether I never was good enough in the first place. Still, I must be to have gotten this far.
After putting the complaint to the back of my mind for the moment, I return my attention to all other jobs still waiting for me. The letters. Electronic prescriptions that have been put in my inbox since this morning, tasks that have been sent already. At least I'm not on call today and that is something to be thankful for. 

Joni.

My Birthday Treat to you!

On the 7th of November it will be my birthday. To celebrate this, I will offer the Kindle versions of some of my books for free during the 7th and the 8th of November. Remember, 'Captive Love' is always free and the remaining books are free with Kindle Unlimited.

So, which books will be part of this free offer? (sorry, I'm limited to only some or I would have made them all available for my birthday).

* Freed Love, censored version: books2read.com/u/brG1YA
* Bevrijde Liefde 18+: books2read.com/u/meA26l
   and censored version: books2read.com/u/bazp9L
* Lost Love: books2read.com/u/brG1YA
* Verloren Liefde: books2read.com/u/3kr0dn

Day four of #NaNoWriMo

And another update from me.

The project progresses nicely. I have now completed Tuesday and tomorrow should get started on Wednesday of the week in the diary.

Today I have added another 5155 words to the project, bringing the total at the moment up to 32299 words, and sixteen chapters completed.

I have also spent time on the draft of my sixth book in the 'Friends, family and love' series, 'Growing Love'. For this book I have nearly added another chapter and with this another 2329 words, bringing the word count for this book up to 125169.

And, just in case you would like to read another excerpt from the unedited draft of the #nanowrimo2018 project 'Diary of a Female GP', here it is:

My next emergency patient is the lady with hairloss I nearly forgot about. Fortunately she was able to accept the afternoon appointment and I hope she is not too angry with me for not being more accommodating towards her.
When Melanie enters, she appears extremely annoyed. I'm running a little late and she is seen six minutes after her appointment time.
"This surgery is rubbish. There are never any appointments available if I need one." Although I am tempted to point out several appointments were available last week when she claimed there weren't, I hold my tongue. "When I phoned this morning they told me you would ring back within an hour." I am quite certain the receptionists would never make a promise like that unless there was an emergency and in that case they would have warned me about this. "Instead, I was kept waiting for hours and when I then finally get an appointment for this afternoon, you keep me waiting another half an hour." Again I am tempted to point out I'm only six minutes late, but I bite my tongue again. She takes a deep breath before continuing, "This practice never does anything to help patients. I could have been dead already." Dead of hairloss? Really? That is not something I have ever heard about. "Really, I should put a complaint in and I think I will. You have seriously neglected my needs." She pauses for a moment, "Actually, perhaps I should go with the paper with this. That will teach you to treat people properly. You are a disgrace."
I take a deep breath, hoping to control myself before addressing the Melanie, "I am really sorry to keep you waiting and you have been able to get a suitable appointment. To be honest, I was not aware I was running behind half an hour already, but I do apologise for the inconvenience I've caused you. But now that we are here, perhaps you can tell me what seems to be the problem." Oops, I nearly pointed out that I was only six minutes late and that really might have blown up the situation.
"Well, it is like this doctor. Over the last two months I've been losing loads of hair. I'm convinced I'm going bald and you need to do something about that."
"When you say you're losing hair, how much is this? Are there clumps on your pillow, any bald patches you have noticed?" While I glance at Melanie, she appears to have a full head of hair, but I have not yet properly examined her.
"No, not clumps on my pillow, but there is a handful of hair in my hairbrush when I brush it after washing my hair. Surely that is not normal. I'm convinced my hair feels thinner as well."
After examining her hair, there is no sign of any bald patches or even thinning of her hair. I offer Melanie to perform a few blood tests to rule out some of the causes of hairloss and inform her that so far it does not appear likely she is going bald. My reassurances fall on deaf ears as Melanie still appears thunderous and when she leaves after advising her to return if things don't improve or if they get worse, I wonder if I will have another complaint on my desk in the next few days. 

Joni

The third day of #NaNoWriMo

Today is the third day of #NaNoWriMo and I already decided yesterday the weekend would be for resting and taking it easy. And for working on the first draft on my sixth book.

So, after a short lie-in, a leisurely shower, turning the washing machine on and eating breakfast with the family (okay, the kids remained upstairs while hubby and I ate breakfast), I wrote three more chapters of 'Diary of a Female GP'. After getting to 22128 words yesterday and noticing the next badge would be achieved at 25000 words, I was desperate to make it to that threshold today. When I reached it, I was still not fully happy and wanted to get to a minimum of 5000 words today, so I wrote another chapter.
So, I'm proud to tell you, I have now reached 27144 words total and it's only day three! Tuesday has however not been completed yet. This will take another two chapters. Something to work on tomorrow, I guess.

The rest of today, I will work on my sixth book and anything else I fancy doing. It is Saturday after all.

Although I'm not sure if you enjoy the little excerpts I have shared with you so far, I will give you another one today. Hope you'll like it.

I'm running behind slightly and the next patient comes in ten minutes after her appointment time. Meghan is a thirty-seven year old lady, who tells me about her depression today, "Life just isn't worth living any longer. I'm no good to anyone and everyone would be better off without me. Martin tells me how worthless I am constantly and he should know. Martin is the one who knows me best."
"What do you mean, life isn't worth living? Have you ever considered doing anything to hurt yourself?"
Meghan dissolves in a flood of tears and nods, "I have a nice stock of tablets stored away for when I can no longer cope, for when the time is right. Martin does not realise. If he did, he would hit me so hard, I wouldn't even make it to the hospital."
Wait? What did she say? "Does Martin hit you?"
Still crying, Meghan nods again, "Yes, but it is my own fault. Martin only hits me if the food is not ready on time or if there are still creases in his shirt after I have ironed it. Only if I haven't done things right or if I haven't done what I was supposed to do."
And she considers that to be normal? "But Meghan, that does not give him the right to hit you. That is not acceptable behaviour. You have a choice to not accept that. There are services available for you to help you with this."
Meghan shakes her head, "No it is my fault Martin hits me. He told me so. I'm worthless and can't do anything right. Only by hitting me will I ever learn how to do things right."
I shake my head. Meghan sounds like she has been completely brainwashed. This should not be allowed to continue, but if Meghan won't accept my help, what is there left to do? 
"Do you an Martin have any children?" If there are children in the household something needs to happen. Social services will need to be involved if Meghan is not willing to take control of the situation and get out of her abusive relationship.
She shakes her head, "Martin says it's my fault. Three years ago I lost a baby. Can't even carry a baby right, he says. Things have gotten worse since."
Okay, I have most of the back story now. Even without her willingness to accept help - why is she here if not asking for help? - I need to look into the suicidal thoughts more. 
"You mentioned the tablets earlier, Is there anything that stops you from taking those at the moment?"
"Yes, if I take them, Martin will be so mad with me. There won't be tea on the table when he gets home."
"And is there anything that would make you take them?"
Tears continue to run down Meghan's face as her hands fidget in her lap, "If I lost the baby again." I can only just make out the words.
This makes the situation even worse than it was already. "Does Martin know you're pregnant?"
Meghan shakes her head and continues to stare down, her voice continues in a whisper, "If he found out, he would kick my stomach again until I lost the baby. I'm not worthy to be a mum, too worthless. But I don't want to lose the baby."
Something needs to be done. If Meghan returns home to her husband, there is a distinct risk she and the baby might not survive. 
Again I try to persuade Meghan to accept help. Surely she must have wanted help for her to attend the surgery? There seems to be a deep desire to protect her unborn baby and I may be able to use that to convince her.
"This baby is important to you, isn't it?"
Meghan nods.
"How far would you be willing to go to protect it?"
She looks up, "Anything," then adds, "anything within reason. I can't leave Martin. He will never allow it."
"Do you want to leave him?"
Another nod, "I've tried a few times. Last time was when I lost the baby three years ago. I was clumsy and tripped over Martin's foot at the top of the stairs, then fell down it. He blamed me for being careless and hit me when I lay at the bottom of the stairs, then kicked my stomach. My clumsiness killed the baby, but I blamed Martin for a while and I ran away and stayed with my mum for a few weeks. When he told mum what I had done, she told me I should own up to my mistakes and go back to my husband. That I was unreasonable and Martin deserved better from me. I went home again that same day, I had no other choice."
"So, what would you like to do now?" Judging by Meghan's words, she was on the threshold of making a major decision regarding her future. A decision that could save the life of Meghan and her unborn baby. Still, her words regarding the pills remained in the back of my mind. Referral to the crisis team for assessment of her suicidal ideation might be necessary as well as referral to the domestic abuse centre.
"I don't know. Sometimes I want to leave Martin and never come back. But where can I go? Mum would just send me back home. Dad died years ago and my sister lives too far away. She has her own family to care for and does not need me to make her life worse. Anyway, Martin would find me. He will always find me."
As I walk to the filing cabinet and take out the details for the domestic abuse centre, a little hope of a better life for Meghan and her unborn child flickers inside me. I hand the details to Meghan and she meets my eyes, "Do you really think these people can help me, doctor?"
"Yes, I think they can. The centre has helped a lot of women in a similar position and they can help you as well if you wish. No one is worthless, we all serve some role in this world. Don't let anyone tell you you're worthless, because they are wrong."
Will this be enough? Should I refer her to the crisis team as well?
"Now, if the centre helps you, how do you feel about those tablets you've stored away?"
A sheepish smile takes hold of Meghan's face, "I don't think they will be needed in that case, doctor. They would hurt the baby, wouldn't they?"
I nod, "Yes, they would certainly hurt the baby."
"Then I'll get rid of them as soon as I get home."
"So, what are your plans?"
"Martin won't be home until eight tonight. After I get home, I'll get rid of the tablets, pack a bag and see these people. I'm going to leave Martin, this time for good."
Hope blooms in my heart and I hope Martin doesn't get home unexpectedly, "If you ever need to talk, you know where to find me. Also, if there ever is a time where you feel like you want to hurt yourself, please, don't suffer on your own, speak to someone instead."
Meghan promises she will, hugs me and leaves with a hopeful expression on her face. Please let her be okay.

Joni

#nanowrimo2018, day two

Another update for you. The project appears to progress quite well. The total word count now stands at 22128 and eleven chapters have been written. All the editing still needs to be done.

'Diary of a Female GP' follows a female general practitioner, aka Family Doctor if you live in the US or huisarts if you live in the Netherlands over the course of a week. The book starts on Monday and I began writing Monday down yesterday and started Tuesday today. So far I have reached lunchtime on Tuesday and already the word count is at 22128. My suspicion is that the book will have far over the 50000 words required for #NaNoWriMo. And if I keep going like I have over the last two days, averaging 10000+ words a day, I may even finish the first draft of the book within the 30 days of #NaNoWriMo.

In case you are interested, here is another short excerpt from the book. Again, no editing has taken place yet, just a simple vomiting out of the words.

My fifth patient of the day turns out to be a difficult and emotional one. Forty-seven year old Moira comes in and after I ask what I can do for her today, she collapses in floods of tears, "Oh doctor, I'm so depressed. I have been suffering from depression all my life, or at least it seems that way, and it is just not getting any better. At times I think I would be better off if I was not here. But then I remember my children and I pull myself together again as best I can."
When I ask her if she thinks she could ever act on those feelings, she denies that, "Oh no, I could never do that, no way," and she shakes her head, "Barry has told me I really need to see you again," Moira looks down to the hands she has folded in her lap, "I can't stand it when he touches me and I think he has finally had enough. Who would want someone who doesn't want to be touched?" More tears roll down her face and I grab a box of tissues and place them on the desk in case she needs them.
"Is there anything that has caused you to feel this way?"
Moira seems to consider this for a moment, "Well, uh..., I have never told this to anyone, but when I was twelve our next door neighbour raped me. Although I tried to avoid him ever since, he would often babysit us when our parents went for a night out. Every time he looked after us, he would sneak into my bedroom at night and rape me again. I was too scared to tell my parents about it, he said he would kill them if I did, and I never told anyone about it."
Tears continue to roll down Moira's face as my heart squeezes for her. I find it difficult to breathe and it takes all my willpower to remain in control and not show my feelings, "You have told no one about this?"
Moira shakes her head, "No, you are the first person I've ever told about this. The worst thing is, he still lives only a street away from us and I run into him on a regular basis. I just can't cope with this any longer."
She looks down for a moment, "When I was pregnant with my children I was terrified. Fortunately they are both boys, thank God. I wouldn't have known what to do if they were girls. How could I protect them?"
We discuss the local rape and sexual abuse counselling service where she can self-refer to and I offer my support. Has she considered reporting him to the police? If not for herself then to perhaps stop this from happening to others? She has considered it, but so far felt uncertain worried that she might not be believed. She does not feel he still poses a risk to others, he had a massive stroke a few years ago, is wheelchair bound and unable to do much for himself, let alone to others.
When she leaves she looks much happier, now realising it was not her fault this happened to her, although still not really believing it. 
"Can I hug you doctor?"
She hugs me before leaving and asks if she can come to talk to me again. Of course she can. Even if it is emotionally draining, I'm happy to speak to her again if she feels the need. I only advise her to make a double appointment if she does. This appointment has taken twenty-five minutes after all and I'm now running behind.

Joni

#NaNoWriMo is here!

So, it's the first of November already and the official start of #NaNoWriMo2018.

Although I tried hard, I did not manage to get the first draft of 'Growing Love' completed yesterday. There are still another three chapters to be written before the draft is finished.

The good news, however, is that I have managed to write the first seven chapters of  'Diary of a Female GP' today, a total of 10327 words already. At the moment it is looking more like I won't be able to keep to the 50000 words rather than I won't be able to reach them. If I keep going like this, 50000 words will be reached within five days, not thirty.

But, it is still early days, and we never know what will happen. At the moment forty-three chapters are planned in this book, detailing seven days, one week in the life of one female GP. Today, I completed the first day, Monday.

Already I know that Tuesday is going to be an intensive day and it is unlikely I will be able to write the entire day down within one day. Chances are Tuesday will take more than 10000 words to complete.

But, we'll see how it goes. I have not kept track of editing while writing this time. Instead, I have simply written down the words to be edited at a later stage. That seems to be the thinking behind #NaNoWriMo, I gather.

Below is a small excerpt from the sixth chapter of the book. Remember, this is purely draft, no editing has taken place yet at all. I hope you enjoy it.

By now I am running fifteen minutes ahead of schedule and my next patient has not arrived yet. For just such occasions where there is time not filled with seeing patients, I bring my Kindle and I read for a moment while keeping an eye on the appointment screen. This only happens at my husband's work where I only see patients but am not involved with dealing with results, letters, routine prescriptions and tasks.
Five minutes before her scheduled appointment, my fourth patient arrives, a twenty-nine year old woman. As I walk to the waiting area to collect her, screaming kid's voices reach me from the waiting area.
Shelly is mother to three young children, Libby who is three months old, Bobby who is eighteen months old and Tilly who is five and currently in school. Her partner and the dad to her children left her two months ago for another woman and now she is left taking care of three active children. The pain of Sam's betrayal and the loss of the relationship weigh heavy on Shelly, who is depressed and cries a lot. As her parents have retired to Spain and her sister lives thirty miles away and is too busy with her own family and career, Shelly is rather isolated and lonely.
Sam's parents live around the corner from her and they help out where they can. However, they are not supportive and tell her she is a failure as a mother and should hand over custody of the children to their son.
Shelly cries the entire consultation and I listen and comfort as best I can while also keeping an eye on her eighteen month old. Bobby crawls through the room, under the desk and opens cupboards and drawers. Shelly is too distraught to notice and it is on me to keep him safe. Although she calls out to him at times, "Bobby, don't do that" and "That is naughty", he takes no notice of her.
"I'm just a failure doctor. Maybe Sam's parents are right and I should just let him have the kids. I'm no use as a mother to them."
Shelly's crying intensified again.
"What would you like to happen Shelly? Do you really believe they are better off with Sam?"
Tearful eyes meet mine, "I don't know doctor. But I don't want to lose my children. Before Sam left me, I was a good mum."
Again she dissolves in a flood of tears. Then she sits up a little straighter, "No, I'm not going to let this bring me down. I am a good mum and it was Sam who left us. But I do need some help, is there anything you can suggest?"
We discuss Shelly's symptoms a while longer and after ensuring the kids are safe in her presence and Shelly is not suicidal, I hand her a leaflet for self-referral to the local mental health services to receive counselling. She appears a little less depressed when she leaves and I ask her to come and see us to talk whenever she feels the need to.
Unfortunately this consultation has taken twenty minutes and I now run five minutes behind.

Joni.