Sending your Child to Day Care

I still remember when I was in the last months of my maternity leave, I used to think day and night about whether I should send my child to day care or not. She is so small, how anyone will be able to understand what my child wants. Will she be safe or not, what if she gets hurt? Hundreds of questions used to flow over my mind, and I used to feel so chaotic inside.

The day care or crèche is quite a known word to all, but still it is looked upon doubtfully by the society. It is not seen as a supporting centre for working moms but as a workaround so that mom can continue work. So as a result, there is a sense of guilt inside a mom that she is doing wrong to the child by not being available for 24 * 7.

Thanks to Information technology, there is so much quality content on the internet which all-new mothers can go through and understand the process. Below are the quick points, which one can follow before finalizing the plan:

• If you are thinking of quitting the Job: Discuss with your partner to see if this is the only option left with you or there can be alternatives. You can also take advice from family members in this situation. Even if you decide to quit, it is ok until and unless it is, your own decision and you are happy with it.

• Discuss with mothers in your workplace or your society: Trust me, you will get some real advice from the mother, and it will help you to make a better choice.

• Browse the Internet: Check blogs by mothers, good content on YouTube or parenting sites & apps. You can further query and get some advice from the people who were in the same shoes before.

• Check with your family if someone can come to support you: It is a big change for a new mother to leave the baby and bounce back to the workplace. It is very helpful if you have support from your family. Even if you are planning for a day care, it takes time for both baby and mother to get comfortable with the new setup hence if someone is there to help you in the transitional phase, it will add to your overall contentment & mental wellbeing.

•  Do not self-doubt: Every mother does best for her child so do not self-doubt if you plan to continue with your work or want to stay at home.  We mothers self-doubt a lot and as a result start over thinking for every bit and piece. Be confident and take help from parenting experts if needed.

• Time management: The term ‘work life balance’ seems to be a very unrealistic goal set by us. In real life, one must prioritize work in order to have some sorting in our life. When we try to balance our life, we try to seek perfection in all tasks be it household chores, workplace or managing a child. It will only lead to too much exertion, be it mentally or physically.  The tip here is trying to list down all the tasks, with ‘must do’ tasks on top of the list followed by lower priority items. Then pick the first items in the list followed by the other. Avoid the last items in the list, maybe it can be postponed to the weekend.

• ‘ME’ Time: No matter how busy you are, try to steal some moments for yourself. It is very essential whether you are a working or stay at home mom. We all need some time for ourselves. A happy mother means a happy child & a happy family (in the long run).

Happy Motherhood. 

Ruchi Singh is a mother of 2.9 yrs old lovely daughter. She has work experience of 10yrs and currently working as software professional in French Multinational Company at Noida location. She is a strong believer of karma. In her free time she likes to engage with her daughter in creative activities.

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Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this post are the personal views of the author. They do not necessarily reflect the views of The Mom Store.