A new perspective on juggling two full jobs: employment and motherhood
It is often that we see mothers running out in the middle of work to attend to their young infants' needs while other co-workers get envious of this privilege that new mothers get. However, it is absolutely inconsiderate and naive of us to perceive being a mother- gets you discount on the work you are paid to do. Adele Barbaro, a Melbourne-based blogger and a mother has some insights into being a mother, working and maintaining the family at the same time.
In a blog post on her Instagram she explains how does it feel like to be a working mother, she condemns the eye rolls and chit-chats about what only seems to be privilege. She says, “You know the new mum at work? (Insert eye roll) The one that is leaving early because daycare has called...... again. The mum that only talks about her kids in the lunchroom. That mum who is forever taking days off. And the one, that has a shorter working week and gets an extra day off? Don’t judge.”
She talks about the day-care calls about children and worrisome situation that mothers at work are put into. She describes how hard it is to leave the work behind which nobody is covering for them and go attend the children who they are so worried about. The post reads, “Let me assure you that they are on edge at work, hoping that daycare won’t call and their heart drops when the phone rings. They don’t want to leave again. They know how it looks. And if they leave, it’s because they have nobody else to cover them.”
As children arrive it is foreseen that life alters and not necessarily in only a good away. Mothers are affected in their careers, lifestyle and physical changes. The nights are sleepless as a result the next day is also going wrong. “At 3am, when they are rocking a baby with yet another illness they are dreading that they can’t go to work the next day, again. They are sick of missing work and do not want to fall behind,” she says.
Mothers also gets instant Day offs which other people are really envious of, Barbara explains what a Day off of a mother looks like, “And on their ‘day off’? Well, this is what it often looks like. This is what they are up to when they are not at work. There’s no coffee with friends or shopping sprees, beach trips or salon visits. It’s being rundown with hairy legs, mum buns and boogie filled snuggles. It’s selfless and can be bloody relentless.”
So before you judge that new mum in your office, think about the double shifts she runs at home after the shift she runs in office.
Barbara is supporting and inspiring a lot of mothers online through her social media blogs- Instagram and Facebook.