Marieke Maartense-Molendijk

There is a queue in front of a trendy trainer shop. A dozen or so men are waiting one-and-a-half metres away to be allowed inside. I turn into a narrow street and dodge

My husband and children are still asleep when I put on my running shoes. It is seven o'clock in the morning when I step outside and my watch gives a GPS signal

'You can get straight to work,' Dagmar says as I take over her shift. 'She had four centimetres of dilation an hour ago, I promised you so after the transfer

I am on duty when I microwave my soup at lunchtime at our practice. There are double consultations and the assistant is present, so I find it

She is over 40 weeks pregnant when a familiar pregnant woman calls me with contractions. 'It's started I think,' she says softly on the phone. She sounds focused on the

Vandaag is het zondag. Meestal een rustige dag om mijn visites in de dienst te rijden. Terwijl ik mijn lijstje met visites bekijk en bedenk hoe ik logistiek de beste

Op mijn spreekuur verschijnt een koppel die hun eerste kind samen verwacht. Hij heeft al een zoon uit een eerdere relatie en zij is voor het eerst zwanger. ‘Wij hebben

In my diary is an appointment for a sex determination. The appointment has gone through a friend of a friend. "These people want someone they can trust," it says in

Today I am on duty, together with our 2nd year student. She is doing a 10-week internship in our practice. Her family roots are in Iran and there she has

It is Thursday when I am on duty and drive past all the maternity wives to see how they are doing. On my third visit, I get a call from a nurse

A woman coming in weakly presses a clammy hand to me. "I'm nervous," she says. She is alone and sits down on the chair. "What's the matter?"

Ten weeks after giving birth, a woman steps into my consulting room. 'Once a Kyleena IUD,' she says, laughing. She is an acquaintance to me and gave birth to her first son.

It is 4.30am when my phone rings. Surprised, I look at my phone for a few seconds. When my consciousness returns I realise I am on duty and quickly take

After a long day of consultation, I pick up my children from after-school care. When we get home, coats and bags are thrown into the corner. 'Euhh...should we take those

'Mummy! There are purple flowers in the garden,' says my youngest son one Sunday morning. I walk with him and see a few stray violets in the garden. 'Have

'See you later mum!" says my eldest son as he presses a quick kiss on my cheek. I look after him as he walks into the schoolyard and chat a little more

As I drive to work, I see a number of signs passing by along the road. They contain advertisements for gyms nearby. These signs strike me more as

It is around 3am when I receive a wake-up call. In the screen of my phone, I see the name of my fellow practice in town.

When I am on duty on a sunny Thursday morning, my phone rings around 10.00am. 'It's started I think,' says a familiar female voice. 'The contractions started 05.00 am