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Staying on Top While You're Waiting to Pop
The Working Woman's Guide to Pregnancy and Maternity Leave
By Shannon McKelden
Most experts and moms warn, though, not to shortchange your time at home with too many worries about the office. "You'll be surprised at how quickly you are forgotten, but also at how quickly you're right back in the thick of it when you come back," Branco says. "On the other hand, those sleep-deprived, diaper-changing, nursing marathon days are more fleeting than you can ever imagine when you are in the middle of them. The best thing you can do for your career is to return to it with no regrets that you missed a snuggle because you were checking e-mail."
Plesent agrees. "The more you can be with the baby during maternity leave, the more you will be able to have your head in the workplace again once that time comes," she says.
Above all, try to avoid looking back with regret at the time you took off to be with your baby. Katie Rosin, a publicist/marketing consultant from New York, suggests moms take time to enjoy changing the dirty diapers, but also says, "don't feel guilty for going back to work. If it will keep you sane and feeling self-assured then do it."
Do your best, but don't be too concerned for the future of your career. "For new moms, during and following maternity leave, [any] crisis of confidence is even more pronounced because they are often tired, frazzled and vulnerable to all the media and well-intentioned, but wrong-headed, folks who tell them that motherhood interferes with having a rewarding career," Dr. Canter says. "This is only true if you believe the hype and give up on your career."
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