Work and family: in a nutshell

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• Returning to work
• Helping your child adapt
• Making time for your partner
• Managing stress

Returning to work

If you have taken leave from your job to care for your child, returning to work poses a major change to your day-to-day life. You may feel:

• excited about getting some variety in your day 
• guilty at ‘leaving’ your child 
• nervous about rejoining the workforce 
• stressed about managing the extra workload.

Tips for returning to work

• To ease the transition, make changes before you start work. You could think about what your new daily routine will be. There may be things you can start doing now, like gradually introducing your child to child care or finding a back-up carer.
• Talk with family, friends and carers. They might have ideas for saving time or could help you spot problems before they arise.
• It's worth looking into what family-friendly polices and provisions are available from your employer. Research says that the workplace plays an important role in parent health and wellbeing.
• Try to leave work distractions at work. Now that you have less time with your baby, you'll want to make the most of your time together.
• Spend time with family members whenever you get the chance.
• Prepare things at night. To ease the morning rush, you could iron your clothes or make lunches the night before.
• Look for meal shortcuts. Breakfast and dinner time may be more of a challenge now that you’re working. When cooking, try making extra portions that you can freeze for future meals. Search out magazines or internet sites that feature quick and easy family recipes. You could try our ideas for meals in minutes.

Helping your child adapt

The transition from spending most days together with your child to being apart all week can be tough. Parents often worry how their child will be affected by the separation, and feel nervous about leaving their child in someone else’s care. Here are some ideas that might help you both adapt:

• Talk to your child about the changes ahead. Or if she’s too young to understand, have some ‘practice separations’. Before you actually start work, again, try leaving her with her new carer for short periods.
• Spend time with her before or after work.
• Set up a before-work routine. Children feel safe and secure when they have predictable routines.
• Always say goodbye to your child, even if she’s upset.
• Feel free to ring your carer or child care centre to check that your child has settled down. Very often, children are happily playing before their parents have even got to the car!

Read some more ideas to help you and your child adapt to your return to work.

Making time for your partner

If you have a partner, your relationship with him or her may be affected by your return to work. Here are some tips to make the most of your time together.

• Try to make time to catch up and spend time together. An easy way to do this is to share household jobs. One of you can clean the shower while the other does the basin, one can wash the dishes while the other dries, and you can both fold the laundry.
• Take advantage of technology to stay in touch – phone, text or email each other during the workday.
• Schedule lunch or dinner dates with your partner. If you work near each other, you can grab a quick coffee or lunch without having to find a babysitter.
• Put the kids to bed on time so you can share the evening together, even if it’s just sitting in front of the TV!

Managing stress

Getting the work-family balance right can be stressful. You will be trying to cope with more responsibilities and even less time for you. Stress has a way of sneaking up on you slowly, or it can sometimes be more like a volcanic explosion, particularly if conditions at work or home are difficult.

Give these ideas on reducing stress a go:

• Take care of yourself. Eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. Exercise is a great outlet for stress and helps put things into perspective.
• If work is making you feel stressed, talk about your concerns with your manager. Your employer might have some helpful suggestions for how you can manage the return to work after a baby.
• Are there things you could change at work to reduce your stress levels? Perhaps you need to reduce your workload or hours, or make them more flexible. You can try to make these changes yourself or with the help of others. 
• Take some pressure off unexpected events, such as when your children are sick, by having a plan you can turn to.
• If you stay organised at work, things are less likely to get on top of you. If you work in an office, practise simple time management techniques, like only checking emails twice a day and making a daily list of your work priorities.
• Are you getting some regular time to yourself? Could your partner or a relative prepare dinner while you take an evening walk? Or look after the kids while you go out for a coffee?

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  Newsletter snippet: Work and family: in a nutshell
  

   

  By Raising Children Network

  Returning to work after the birth of your child can be challenging. You might feel excited or nervous about rejoining the work force, guilty at leaving your child, or stressed about managing the extra workload.
  
  Tips for returning to work

  • Think about what your new routine will be like and introduce changes before you go back to work.
  • Have some ‘practice separations’ from your child before you return to work, perhaps leaving her with her new carer for short periods.
  • Plan catch-up times with your partner.
  • Check what family-friendly policies and provisions are available in your workplace.
  • Try not to take your work home with you at night.
  • Ease the morning rush by preparing as much as possible the night before.
  • Make cooking easier by freezing extra portions or trying quick and easy family recipes.
  • Keep an eye on your stress levels.

  This article is an extract only. For more information visit raisingchildren.net.au/work__family/work_and_family.html

  Sourced from the Raising Children Network's comprehensive and quality-assured Australian parenting website www.raisingchildren.net.au.