“After using up all the maternity leaves I got, I’m facing a dilemma whether I should return to the workforce or I should spend more time with my newborn becoming a stay-at-home mum?” 

 

Many of us share the same problem, making a decision is never easy, especially if this decision is directly related to your child. 

 

Stay-at-home mom? Working mom? Which is better for my baby?

If you choose to get back to work, here are some common obstacles you will face: 

  • Breastfeeding at the workplace
    Breast milk sometimes called liquid gold is the best source of nutrition for babies. If you don’t want to miss out on the benefits of breast milk, then you will need to pump at the workplace.
    Does your company provide a nursing room for breastfeeding mums? Where to store your breast milk in the office? Can your colleagues accept you storing the baby bottles in the fridge?Can your supervisor allow you to take half an hour off every 3 to 4 hours? Will you need to OT in order to compensate the “break” you take?
  • Enrolling the baby in a daycare. 
    Is daycare trustworthy? Will they treat my baby well? What about the food they provide? Are they clean?
    Daycare is too expensive, but are there other options?
    Even if your parents volunteer to take care of the baby, there might be conflicts over parenting styles. 
  • Stress coping

If you choose to become a stay-at-home mum, you’ll also face many hardships: 

  • My husband becomes the only breadwinner.
    He will need to take care of the whole family financially. In some cases, he will need to sacrifice his family time. 
  • Everyone thinks I’m lazy.
    They think I just stay at home and do nothing. I can go anywhere I want with my baby, do whatever I please to.
    Although we mums know that’s totally not true, that’s how many of our friends/ family members see us. 
  • I want to re-enter the workforce later, but do I still have a chance?
    I have a profession, I love my job, I want to get back to my career when my children are big enough. However, when I’m ready to work, I’m afraid there’s no opportunity left for me. 
     

Every decision comes with pros and cons. We understand your struggle because we’ve all gone through this stage. Spend some time to listen to your heart, communicate with your family, and make a decision you won’t regret.

Remember, you can always change your mind. You can always resign and come back home, or jump back to the workforce. Everything is going to be all right in the end, don’t put too much pressure on yourself.

Being a working mum doesn’t necessarily mean you’re a bad mum, vice versa. Only you can define yourself, not others. 

 

Let’s take a second to celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD), we are thankful for every person that helped to improve society to be a better environment for women. We hope that in the future, mothers will not need to face the struggles/ stigma we have now. 

 

Cheers to every mum. 
#EachforEqual 
#IWD2020