It’s Okay to Be Okay with Going Back to Work

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{This piece was written pre-pandemic. While daily life looks different than it did back then, the sentiment of this post still hits home to those of us who have experienced the transition of going back to work after maternity leave.}

Back to Work | Central Mass MomWhen I announced I was pregnant, people had a lot of questions about my career. Would I go back to work? Would I stay at home with the baby? Find a part-time job? Honestly, I always thought I would stay home when I had kids – and maybe someday I will, but for now, I have a job that (most days) I love. People talk a lot about the variety of struggles working moms face – the emotional struggle of leaving your baby, the struggle of juggling working and parenting, the struggle of making it home from the office before bedtime…Have I experienced all of these? Definitely. 

But there’s another struggle that I think deserves some attention. The struggle of thinking you are supposed to feel guilty about being a working mom. It’s okay to be a mom and WANT to work. I’m not just talking about the moms who are laser-focused on becoming the head of a fortune 500 someday. I’m talking about the moms who have regular jobs too. I say this as a mom who has a very regular job. I appreciate the balance working brings to my life. It allows me to use my brain in ways I wouldn’t otherwise. It forces me to connect with other people and problem solve. Having a job forces me to have a routine and a schedule.

Don’t get me wrong, I love that little baby – hard.

But I also love working and there isn’t anything wrong with that. So if you’re a mom on maternity leave, feeling guilty that you don’t feel worse about going back to work, cut it out. Cut it out right now. It’s okay to have interests outside of your baby. It’s really, really okay.

Are there days when I’m totally jealous of my mom friends who get to take their babies to storytime at 10 am on a Tuesday? Absolutely. But you know what? I bet there are times they are jealous that I made it through my whole day without getting spit up on. It’s a tradeoff.

Do what is best for you and your family.

If you choose to stay home with your kids – more power to you. This isn’t meant to be a post about how all moms should work, because I don’t think that’s true. Every mom should do what’s best for them and for their family. Maybe that’s working, maybe it’s staying home, maybe it’s coming up with a brilliant business idea so you can work for yourself on your own hours. Whatever path you choose, none of us should feel guilty about it, and I think we live in a world where we could all use a little reminder of that.

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