Hi Ellie - sorry I am at work and had to duck away before I could finish my first post. Sorry to hear that the work situation is not resolving itself quickly. I understand that you don't want to do a mediation session with HER but I think in the long term you will regret not doing it. It will give you the opportunity to vent your pent up stress and let her know how you feel. I was in a bad situation at (different) work a few years ago and I regret not doing the mediation session - while it would have been confronting at the time it would have allowed me to say how I was feeling rather than keep bottling it up inside - I am very good at doing that which just ends up with me being very stressed and consequently I get sick which makes it worse! It will be therapeutic in the long run and if you are worried about it, take a friend or colleague or someone you trust with you as your ally to offer some emotional support - they don't need to say anything - it just might make things feel a little less initmidating. Strength in numbers I always say! But whatever you decide, make sure it is for you and allows you to move on, and as you said focus on being a mum. We are here for you whatever you decide. It is a b*gger that these things happen when we have so much else to deal with and that others can only think that they understand!

Take care and chat to you soon. Cheryl xxx