7 Musts to Survive Going Back to Work after Maternity Leave
The night before I returned to work…
…I was sitting on the toilet (well, it’s true) with my face buried in my hands as I dreaded the next day leaving my babe. Here came the negative spiral.
Or I thought it was coming. Then God interrupted me mid thought and implanted this thought in my head: “It’s ALL a blessing.”
And I had this peaceful feeling come over me that literally everything is a blessing.
Even maternity leave ending…blessing.
Our infertility journey…blessing.
Covid…blessing.
But how can I say that? How can that be? You might be thinking, “yeah, but not in my situation, you don’t understand.”
You might be far from thinking anything about your circumstance could ever be a blessing. But hear me out, you can get there too.
Because guess what? It all either leads you closer to God (if you choose) and/or God turns it into good.
Let me explain…
Maternity leave - Thankful for the 13 weeks I got with her. Thankful I have a job to return to during this time. Thankful I have family to watch her. And sweet Georgia will have someone else’s silly faces to interpret.
Infertility…what a tough journey. But it led me closer to God which led me to experience an overflow in my marriage, my mindset, my relationships, and a newfound confidence in myself and who I am. I didn’t let infertility define me. Instead we came out stronger because of it.
I know it’s stressful. Lots of thoughts running through your head…
Is my baby going to remember who I am?! They don’t know our routine and it’ll throw her off! They don’t know what she needs like I do! She NEEDS me!! How can I just stay at home full-time?
All thoughts that have run through my head.
Actually not just running through, more like consuming my mind.
I want to challenge you! Maybe you won’t have an epiphany like I did right before returning to work from maternity leave, but I hope you can find some good out of your current situation + some hope…
So here’s what helped me not ball my eyes out before going back to work:
I prepared mentally for this time. I did this by being PRESENT in the moments. Even the stressed out, emotional, crying episodes.
We all know this day would come right? My goal was to not let it sneak up on me. But I also didn’t want to think about it often enough to become obsessed or sad thinking about it. So when I was struggling with breastfeeding or just so exhausted I wanted to cry (and did), I reminded myself that I won’t get this time back. And as soon as I get back to work, I’d be wishing I was back in this moment.
IT’S ALL PERSPECTIVE!! Think…how is this situation working FOR me?
I prepped my meals. This made my life so much easier the first week. There’s already a million things on my mind and this was one less thing to worry about. Plus I was energetically better because I had nutritious food ready for me. Whether it’s prepping lunches for work, breakfasts on the go (overnight oats is a great one!), or throwing things in the crockpot on the way out the door…take the extra time now so you can enjoy your lil babe more when you get home!
This may not be your favorite, but DO IT!!
Keep in contact with your caregivers. I am fortunate enough to have family watching GG, but I know some do not have that luxury. But pictures and just updates throughout the day helped me so much!! You just want to know they are okay and surviving without you. Because they WILL survive! And so will we.
Get a prayer team behind you. Seriously. I had several people reach out to tell me they were thinking about me and praying for me. I found so much peace in this! Don’t be afraid to ask your family + friends to say a prayer for you!
Appreciate the adult interaction. I thought maybe my voice would be permanently stuck in mom voice, but turns out I still know how to speak in adult. Reconnect with your coworkers! It will at least help distract you.
KNOW this…when you get home and see them again, it will be sweeter times 100!
Last, but not least, believe that you CAN do this. Trust me. Just like birth. You may think you can’t do it, but people do this all the time. Which I know doesn’t make it easier, but it should give you some confidence that you can do hard things. We are strong, resilient, and bad@$$ Mamas!