What are midwives for?

The midwife will refer you to the GP for any medical question-perscriptions, illness, etc.  She/He's there to monitor you and the baby throughout your pregnancy.  Take your blood pressure, check your weight, check on the baby's growth-that sort of thing.  You're still early days yet, so there's not too much that needs to be done.  You see them more often the further along you get.   
If it's a straight forward labour, a midwife(not necesarrily the same one) will deliver the baby, and then they'll check on you and the baby after the birth.

thanks for the info everyone. i do think some of my confusion is b/c there isn't actually much involvment with midwife early in the pregnancy, so i guess their role will become more clearer over time.

on a side note, i do think it is a bit of a shame at how little info/support is given in the early days of pregnancy. i don't mean to sound like a whinger but my first trimester was really really rough with all day sickness and just feeling really down from how bad i felt physically. i don't have many friends who have babies so i was a bit confused and lonely.  fortunately one piece of advice did come true and that is that i started to feel better at the end of my first trimester (ie within the last week or so!)

cheers

thanks for the info everyone. i do think some of my confusion is b/c there isn't actually much involvment with midwife early in the pregnancy, so i guess their role will become more clearer over time.

on a side note, i do think it is a bit of a shame at how little info/support is given in the early days of pregnancy. i don't mean to sound like a whinger but my first trimester was really really rough with all day sickness and just feeling really down from how bad i felt physically. i don't have many friends who have babies so i was a bit confused and lonely. fortunately one piece of advice did come true and that is that i started to feel better at the end of my first trimester (ie within the last week or so!)

cheers

Joining the NCT is really good advise.  It'll put you in touch with people who are pregnant and have babies and will give you a support network in your area.  I would have really floundered if I hadn't had it when I moved here. 

I think it's not just British, but a very European way of handling pregnancy, not having too much medical involvement unless there are problems at the start of the pregnancy.  I haven't been pregnant in Sweden (too OLD), but my younger friends always talk about how they feel they aren't seeing the doctor enough, aren't getting vitamins and other meds shoved at them, etc.  A lot of the care in the United States is too much care fueled by fears of medical malpractice lawsuits, a cover your ass philosophy so if anything at all happens, they have tons of medical records to show that they did everything possible, even if it wasn't necessary.  Most of my friends here have been delivered by midwives, even some at home, and have ended up being pleased by the handling.  May you have the same excellent care and a safe delivery.

It IS always stressful when you are far away from your home ground and your first pregnancy.  On the other hand, perhaps you miss a lot of the horror stories that a great many mothers feel they have to tell the first-time pregnant lady, along the lines of being in dry labor for 87 hours and then delivering a 60-pound baby, etc., most of which is total rubbish.  I never did understand why a lot of women had to do that to each other.

good point - i think i would die if given too many horror stories and advice.

ignorance is bliss?

on a side note, i do think it is a bit of a shame at how little info/support is given in the early days of pregnancy. i don't mean to sound like a whinger but my first trimester was really really rough with all day sickness and just feeling really down from how bad i felt physically. i don't have many friends who have babies so i was a bit confused and lonely.  fortunately one piece of advice did come true and that is that i started to feel better at the end of my first trimester (ie within the last week or so!)

I think this is too bad, but this is also true in the US.  I remember that I wasn't seen until 12.5 weeks for the first time in my first pregnancy (in the US), and that was only because I had lost weight and was dehydrated.  I had a MILLION questions my first trimester about what I could and couldn't safely eat and do, what meds I could and couldn't take, etc..  I was horribly sick and felt so lost with no one to answer my questions.  I know just what you mean, but I can say that it's not just in the UK that you aren't seen until your first trimester is over or almost over.  Hang in there!

My sickness with Aillidh lasted until about 18 weeks - well beyond the first trimester.   

ignorance is bliss?

Perhaps not bliss, but better than idiots spouting out stuff without thinking.  And remember, if pregnancy and labor were all that bad, there wouldn't be multiple children in a family (taking out the calculations for those who reproduce like rabbits because they can't say no, remember to take a pill, have religious reasons or whatever).