Summer of Love by Marie Ferrarella (easy to read books for adults list .TXT) 📕

it right then. A knock on the door heralded the arrival of her first patient, a young woman who looked vaguely familiar. Emma smiled at her.

‘Please sit down. I’m Dr Roberts. I’m helping out while my uncle is in hospital.’

‘Oh, I remember you!’ the young woman exclaimed. ‘You were in the same class at school as my sister—Cathy Martindale. Remember her?’

‘Of course I do.’ Emma laughed. ‘No wonder you look so familiar. You’re very like Cathy. How is she, by the way?’

‘She’s fine. She lives in Leeds now with her husband and her two little boys.’

‘Tell her I was asking about her, will you?’ Emma picked up the folder of notes that the girl had brought in with her. ‘So, Judith, what can I do for you today?’

‘It’s my periods, Dr Roberts. They’re so heavy and irregular that they’re causing me a real problem. I also suffer the most awful pain in my tummy and lower back each time it happens.’

‘I see. How long has this been going on?’ Emma asked.

‘About a year now. I came off the Pill eighteen months ago because my husband and I want to start a family. My periods were very erratic after I stopped taking it, but I thought everything would settle down once the drugs were out of my system. Instead, it’s just got worse.’

‘Have you had any other symptoms? Pain on having intercourse, perhaps?’

‘Yes.’ Judith blushed. ‘I’ve never had a problem before, but recently I dread making love with David because it’s so uncomfortable.’

‘Which doesn’t help when you’re hoping to have a baby,’ Emma said sympathetically, standing up. ‘I’ll just check your blood pressure and then I’d like to examine you, if that’s all right?’

‘Oh, yes, of course it is.’ Judith sounded relieved as she slipped off her coat. ‘I’ve been putting off coming for weeks, to be honest. Dr Haynes is lovely, but I felt so embarrassed about having to explain it all to him. I couldn’t believe my luck when Ruth told me I’d be seeing you tonight!’

‘Good.’ Emma laughed, although she couldn’t help wondering how many other women were delaying making appointments because they felt uncomfortable about discussing their problems with an elderly male doctor.

She checked Judith’s BP, which was fine, then asked her to undress and lie on the couch while she examined her. She gently palpated her abdomen and then performed an internal examination but could find nothing to indicate what was causing the problem. Judith had had a smear test the previous month and that had come back clear.

‘And there’s been no other symptoms at all?’ she asked after Judith had got dressed again. ‘Not even something that is apparently unrelated?’

‘No … well, apart from the fact that I’ve had several bouts of diarrhoea. It’s not something I’ve ever suffered from before, but it’s happened a few times lately. Either that or I get constipated,’ Judith added, grimacing.

‘I see.’ Emma frowned thoughtfully as she considered what she’d heard. ‘It’s possible that you’re suffering from endometriosis, although I wouldn’t like to make a final diagnosis without sending you for some tests first. However, the symptoms you described could point towards it being that.’

‘Endometriosis?’ Judith repeated. ‘What’s that? I’ve never heard of it.’

‘It’s when tiny pieces of the lining of the womb, the endometrium, are shed during menstruation but don’t pass out of the body. Instead they travel up the Fallopian tubes into the pelvic cavity and attach themselves to the pelvic organs. They continue to respond to your menstrual cycle so each month they bleed, but because the blood can’t escape, it causes cysts to form. And they’re the cause of most of the pain and discomfort.’

‘How weird!’ Judith exclaimed. ‘And you think that’s what is wrong with me?’

‘I think it’s worth investigating further.’ Emma brought up the relevant document on the computer and filled in the patient’s details. She glanced at Judith. ‘You need to be seen by a gynaecologist so I’ll organise an appointment for you. Basically, what it means is that your pelvic cavity will need to be examined. It’s done by using a laparoscope, which is a special instrument that’s passed through the wall of the abdomen. There’s a tiny camera on the end of it so the gynaecologist can see what’s going on inside you.’

‘It sounds horrible,’ Judith said, shuddering.

‘It’ll be fine,’ Emma assured her. ‘And it will be worth having it done if it means we can sort out this problem you have.’

‘If I do have this endometriosis, how will you treat it?’

‘It depends how severe it is. Drugs can be very effective in some cases. In others, where the cysts are very large, surgery to remove them is the best option. Pregnancy can also suppress the condition.’

‘So I can still have a baby?’ Judith asked anxiously.

‘Yes, although it’s only fair to warn you that endometriosis can affect your fertility. However, let’s find out if my diagnosis is correct before we worry about that.’ Emma tried to sound as positive as she could but she could tell that Judith was upset by the thought that she might not have the baby she longed for.

Emma saw her out and buzzed for her next patient. The evening flew past and before she knew it, it was time to pack up for the night. She collected up the files she had used and took them into the office. Ruth looked up from the computer and smiled at her. She had worked at the practice for many years and had watched Emma growing up so there was no question of her standing on ceremony.

‘I bet you’re sorry you came home now, aren’t you, love?’

‘It did cross my mind,’ Emma replied, jokingly. She held up the files. ‘You’d think we should be able to do away with all this paperwork now that we have computers to help us.’

‘I wish!’ Ruth replied cheerfully. ‘The trouble is that computers have a nasty habit of breaking down, so we need the files as back-up.’

‘I suppose so.’

Emma looked round when