Maternity leave and returning to work?!

I felt the same way. It was very hard at first to leave him but after a while I did get used to it . I did think about quitting and being a sahm however that would mean financially cutting corners for us and I wasn’t ready for that. I’m happy knowing I can provide for my son and give him only the best :) it’s hard but eventually it becomes a routine

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I’m feeling the same way when it comes to the situation financially. But either way it’s definitely a hit even if I go back to work because I don’t have family he can stay with really so I’d be paying for childcare.

I'm not returning to my job. They can't give me suitable hours and everything I would earn would go straight onto child care so I'd make no earning.

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This is exactly what I’d be going through. Plus I work with children and infants so it just doesn’t sit right with me knowing I have a child at home and I’m caring for other people’s children although I love what I do , I think what would my child be missing out on as well.

I have 3 weeks Left with my LO. If I had the option to stay home I possibly would. My hubby doesn’t make enough to support us. At first I couldn’t wait to go back but now it’s so close and I don’t want to leave her.

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I feel the same way. I go back on the 20th and we have been trying to give my baby. Bottle and it’s been a struggle. So I have been stressing about that. If I could I’d chose to stay home but we can’t afford it. I manage the salon I work at so I am able to my the schedule suitable for me. So we will see How it goes. I know it’s going to be hard in the beginning but it is what it is.

I have 3 weeks left too. I feel like I just can’t bring myself to go back either.

I felt the same. I was lucky to be able to compromise & go back part time!

I was in the same situation and was able to go back 3 days a week. The extra 2 days I get to spend with them are huge, and it’s a good balance between being home with them and being able to work and interact with adults 😆

I feel the same I feel like I don’t want to work anymore coz I miss my daughter..

I feel the same way! Ugh I don’t wanna leave my precious baby 😭😭 If only all of us were rich and financially well off 😭

Going back to work is SO hard and I would love to say it gets easier but I went back two months ago and I still get a pit in my belly when I leave him. I do work from home Monday and Fridays so I get to see him more but is very hard. If you can make it work financially I would def stay home or even do like part time because staying home isn’t easy but I’m sure so worth it to be with your little one. Momming ain’t easy but we’ll never get these days back so we have to take full advantage 💙 good luck momma in whatever you decide I know it’s hard either way but you’re an amazing momma for wanting to be home raising your little one.

I'm in the same predicament! I'm supposed to return to work in January and I don't know how I'm going to do it! I commute to work and it's exhausting, so I'm not sure how it's going to be once I return. I'm nervous and scared I'll be too stressed and my mental health will deteriorate. As of now, I'm looking for a job closer to home with the same benefits, but positions are hard to come by in my profession. I have to also start thinking about breastfeeding and pumping at work! Which I feel will be a difficult task in itself. Open to advice on BF at work!

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I believe by law they have to give you a place to pump every 2-3 hours

Yes! The great thing about my job is that they do have a room available and I have my own office so finding a place to pump wont be the issue. More a time and supply issue I think. My daughter will be on site since they offer daycare services so I'm thinking I'll be able to BF her at least while on the clock

1000% go back to work. Daycare is expensive for the first few years, but you’ll lose even more money than that by leaving the workforce.

Yeah I’m going through the same thing here. I have a 2 1/2 month old daughter and I’m going crazy knowing I need to leave her from 2:30 pm to 12:30 am. That’s a huge chunk of her being awake and feeding. I worry I’ll miss so much with her and I also worry I won’t pump as much. You’re not alone in this. I wish I was staying home too.

It is so hard to leave them but it does get easier, of course if you work somewhere that’s willing to work with you to go part time or the ability to work from home that’s ideal. With my first I was able to leave my little guy with my mom 1-2 days/week which definitely helped the transition (knowing he was with family who loved him as much as me) and while it’s expensive we invested in an amazing daycare that our kids gain SO many benefits from. He’s learning and developing far above average and already making friends at a young age! Almost two years later though and I still think about giving it all up to be a SAHM :/ good luck, whatever decision you make will be the right one for your baby since it will be made with his/her best interest at heart!

It’s all personal choices. If it’s purely financial then maybe it does make sense in the short term to leave work and stay at home with baby. I went back to work after maternity leave because financially it makes sense, and more importantly you would have a sense of self when you are at work. Personally I think as a great mom as you are, your world doesn’t and shouldn’t be 100% about your baby.

I went back to work full time and ended up cutting my hours due to the insane cost of childcare so I started working from home with health and wellness business and now I’m setting up my own design business next year! Explore all your options! It’s such a tough decision but make it work for you I have the best of both worlds now xx

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That's awesome! I want to do this once my husband's green card is processed. I can't leave my job because I'm sponsoring my husband and I need to show proof of income for that. I'm scared that if I start a business and don't make enough that it'll jeopardize his green card process.

I'm heading back in a week and for us it makes sense financially. I will work from home one day a week but I will really miss my son. I don't have an option to stay home but I know we will make the best of our time as a family.

I am 15 weeks pregnant and thought the same! So scary! So I decided to do research how to not go back to work and start something low cost at home. I researched best compensation plan, best income opportunity, and I do believe I found it, best part you can have business globally! I already have customers cross the oceans 🌊 and I’ll work hard to make the best life possible for my peanut 🥜 I work with children too and it will break my heart going to take care of other children while someone else will look after mine. Doesn’t make sense 🤷‍♀️. Do not give up ladies! These days are so many options to start on your own xxx

Im a stay at home mom who wanted to go back to work. I did 3 months of maternity leave and could barely wait until I went back to work! At the time we were living in LA and we sent our daughter to daycare while I went back to work for 3 weeks. We had to move to Portland for my husband’s work and I was going to leave my current office and work for the same firm at an office up here. It was literally while discussing finding a nanny in Portland (since daycare lists are insane), 2 days before my last day in LA, that I realized I didn’t really want to transfer offices. I wanted to stay home with our daughter. It was shocking to me - I never thought I would l want to be a stay at home mom! But I quit my job. We moved up here. And it was the best decision I’ve made. Ever. Yes, it’s tough. But if you can do it financially, DO IT. You will figure out your career later. Your child is only young once! It’s been 4 months at home now and I am so happy with my decision.

Don’t go back if you don’t want to. It doesn’t have to be a permanent decision. I left the workforce for 2 years with my first, then returned. In many other countries maternity leave is at least a year for a reason. The separation is really hard mama and baby.

I was going to work until a week before my due date but I ended up leaving three weeks before me due date (I was waitressing so it was long hours on my feet) and then after my daughter was born I got a new job about a month after she was born and I only do it a couple nights a week leaving her with her dad or her grandmother I originally was not going to go back to work until she went to school but I went stir crazy! If you can work a couple days a week I would recommend that because you will probably not want to go back full time once you have your baby! But any choice you make is the right choice everybody is different and do what ever works for you! Good luck 😊

I work with so many mums that faced the same battle with themselves about returning to work. Have you ever thought about starting a business working from home. There are fantastic opportunities, I am involved in one, that offer time freedom. You can build a business whilst on maternity leave and work around baby once they arrive. If you have about 10 hours a week spare and a smartphone and a voice you can build a business... happy to share what I do to anyone that contacts me ...

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How did you do that ! I want to work from home also

Drop me a message and I can give you some details...

I work with a health and wellness company and work at home! I get to help woman become better versions of themselves all while bringing in an income. The products are amazing and speak for themselves so they are very easy to sell! What do you have to lose?