I’ve been back to work for 2 weeks now and boy, did it fly by! I swear I was just on bedrest, anxiously hoping to keep those babies in as long as possible, and then all of BAM! I’m in 2021 with 4-month-old twins!
Was Maternity Leave Restful?
Hell no! Anyone who has had children knows this.
When I didn’t have children and had to cover for people at work who were on maternity leave, I imagined they were being rewarded with some sort of time off. I imagined them with their babies and admit I felt resentful of what I thought was a “vacation.”
Excuse me while I laugh hysterically for like 10 minutes…
Ok, where were we?
So anyway, maternity leave is like no joke! It’s a major life adjustment while recovering physically.
Like, imagine you are sleep deprived, hog-tied, and blindfolded, and expected to keep 2 tiny humans and yourself alive while living in a frat house where someone is throwing up, pooping, or crying every hour. Yup…that about sums it up! LOL
My Reality
First off, I went from remote schooling my 5 yr old on “bed rest” which ended up being, according to my Apple Watch 6,000 steps a day between my kitchen and dining room.
My pre-COVID imagined bedrest would be me building LEGO sets…needless to say the sets are still in their boxes. With my massive belly filled with children, there’s no way I could reach the table anyway. In the last month, I think more food landed on my stomach than in my mouth, lol.
Let’s sum up my maternity leave reality: I go into labor, got sliced open, threw up a whole day with infants in the NICU. Followed by postpartum hemorrhaging, pumping my boobs every 2hrs and driving back and forth to my babies for a month. Yeah…not so much a vacation.
The Good Stuff
How Am I Doing?
Looking back on what my body went through, I’d say I’m doing freakin’ amazing! I am still in physical therapy to recover and have made significant progress. This month I can finally bend to tie my shoe! I appreciate my body a lot more than I used to and plan to take better care of it as I continue my recovery. After being on fertility meds for nearly a decade with all their side-effects, I am looking forward to getting back in shape. I’ll post my progress on my future Friday posts if you are interested in following.
Before going back to work, I was honestly looking forward to it. I wanted to have some consistency in my schedule in my being to help my clients and continue this blog. I also wanted some time to myself to think, be creative, and reflect. Sure things are a little overwhelming with my schedule at the moment, but I know I will find my groove soon enough.
Life Design is not a 1-and-done deal, it’s a constant evolution.
What is Work Like Now?
Going back to work was actually an easy decision for me. Financially, I needed to go back, but that wasn’t my main motivator. My main motivator is my purpose (and I know not everyone can say that). I am so passionate about helping others live their best life! And I get to do this through all my projects planned this year and that is thrilling to me. Getting to this point was a lot of me working my ass off and I am proud of myself for leading my journey here.
My work life also looks a lot different than it used to. In the past, I commuted an hour and was stuck behind a closed door all day as a business owner. Now I take a stroll in my backyard, have time for myself, and most of all, I get to be creative in all I do!
Life Design is all about designing a life that is fulfilling in all areas and that’s exactly what I’m doing in my work life and my personal life.
Do I Miss My Babies?
I will always miss my babies. The truth is, I’m a better mom when I have time away from them. I like balance, and balance for me is not giving all my energy to one area of my life. I enjoy being able to play different roles and am lucky enough to give my children experiences in other places with other people (while being safe right now in our current climate).
Plus, my babies are up early. On my first day back to work I actually got to spend 4hrs with my twins and daughter before my workday started. I tell myself that when I need to use an alarm clock again, I’ll know my kids are growing up.
Going back to work has been a relatively easy transition.
I love my clients, I love my babies and I get to spend time with both!…not because I’m “lucky,” but because I made it happen.
You can too!
