Back to Work as a New Mum
As Maternal Mental Health Month comes to a close, I’ve been looking back on my own experience as a new mum returning back to the workplace. Here are my thoughts…
My first day back from maternity leave was a weird one - I was sitting in my baby’s bedroom at my newly installed desk, signing back into my emails and logging on to Google Chat. I was very aware that I was surrounded by his things - his cot was in the background of every Zoom call and colourful animals were hanging everywhere. What did I do again? How do I make a calendar invite? How does Google Sheets work? This was not how I envisioned coming back. I was very keen to return to a physical office, to be in full work mode.
From going on mat leave to coming back to work, our little team of 10 became a team of 18! I had to reestablish myself and learn the ropes all over again. Processes had changed and going back to Zoom calls without meeting the new team was hard. The one thing I didn’t worry about coming back to work was the people. I knew that the team would support me fully and give me the breathing space to be me again.
One team member gave me the advice that I needed to go at my own pace, so I don’t get overwhelmed. Slow down and take one day at a time. She also told me that I will be tired. Very tired. I brushed it off, I’ve coped for the past year, how hard can it be?! And then the illnesses came - one after another. I didn’t know that I could be more tired! But every day did get a little easier. I was starting to find my feet again.
Fortunately, there’s loads of support out there. Following positive Instagram accounts, like ‘@Pregnant then Screwed’, ‘@amotherplace’ and ‘@mother_pukka’, really help with getting ready to go back to work and knowing your rights. Maltesers have teamed up with Channel 4 and Buzzfeed to campaign for Maternal Mental Health Month: Link
If you’re in the same boat as I am (or have been, or will be), here are some of the top tips I’ve learned since returning:
Communicate - I can’t stress this enough. If you are finding the new commute tricky or feel overwhelmed, talk to someone.
Buddy up! Find someone in your organisation that has been through it before. It helped me massively knowing that I could get advice from someone that could relate to me – whether it be work or baby related.
Be kind to yourself - it's a big life change. It will be a challenge at times, especially when you’ve been up most the night with a poorly baby. So take it easy, and enjoy that hot cup of tea!
Meet up with your team face-to-face, even if you have milk, snot and drool on your blouse! It’s such a great feeling to get out the house to see people IRL and have a proper adult conversation that doesn’t get interrupted by a small human.
Find out what you were passionate about before and take the time to find yourself again, even if it's just reading a page of a book once a day on your lunch break.
So, if you’re in the same position or going back to work soon, you’ve totally got this.