I recently had a friend go back to school for the first time since her son was born. He is only 6 months and she is a wreck. It is completely 100% understandable. I went back to finish up the last month of my master's when J was only 1 month old. I was a basket case! It was only 3 hours a week for a month but I felt like I couldn't breath by the time the class was over. And as J gets older it is harder and harder for me to leave him for long periods of time. To all working moms, please share your stories, tips, and advice about the first time you went back to work/school after having your baby. We are all doing the best we can and sometimes we just need support from one another. :)

After reading your blog about working mommies, I thought I would post my two cents. I am extremely empathetic to all those mommies that find it ridiculously hard to leave your little one behind to continue pursuing your career or education. I left my litte girl when she was just 3 months old to go back to work. It was the hardest thing I ever had to do. I had this constant feeling of emptiness in the pit of my stomach and I hardly got any work done in the beginning because of how preoccupied my mind was. Not to mention the fact that I was breastfeeding so everytime I actually started to concentrate I would glance at the clock and realize it was time to pump! It was a struggle for me for a long time, but I have to tell you, I have come to really enjoy my time at work. For a long time I was plagued with this guilt that I was missing out on valuable firsts with my daughter. After deep, deep, very deep soul searching I came to the conclusion that working has actually made me a better mother. Working full time has forced me to be a patient, fun, understanding mom that quite frankly I don't think I could be if I stayed at home. This is obviously not true for everyone. Some women are natural to motherhood and can think of creative, fun things to do with their toddler each day of every week. And trust me if given the opportunity to stay home with my angel, I would snatch it in a minute. With this economy, the chances of me not working are slim to none and until we hit that mega powerball, I am ok with it. Maybe I am kidding myself and talking myself into believing that working has made me into a better mother. Whatever the case may be, it helps me to be in that state of mind. My advice to those of you having to leave your baby behind is to be absolutely confident in your childcare decisions. Whether it be leaving your child at home with a nanny or enrolling them in a daycare program, if you don't have confidence and peace of mind as to who is taking care of your child, you will absolutely never get adjusted to leaving them. We are lucky enough to have a nanny that has been in my husband's family for a long time. We trust her completely and at times I question my own instincts over hers. Knowing that my daughter is with someone who loves her almost as much as I do is extremely comforting. I do understand that not everyone is able to have this situation, but whichever path you choose be confident and comfortable in your decision. Good luck to all of you mommies heading back to work and school. Remember -- every day when you leave your child, you are doing it to give them a better life.

This subject to me is definetly something that I am familiar with. I left Patty at 4 months to start back at work...and not only was I starting back at work, but it was something new..management. My first day back was horrible. Actually my first 2 months back were horrible in every sense of the word. I can't tell you how much I suffered. I threatened my husband every day that I was going to quit. I had spent 4 months with this child, 24/7, and literally from one day to the next I was gone for 9-10 hours. My boss thought I was having post-partem depression. I can't begin to tell you what a traumatizing experience it was. But, it did get better. That's the only advice that I have for mommies going back. Once you develop your routine, it does get better and you learn to deal and live with it. Like Marie said, if I could stay home, I would do it in a heartbeat. I am acutally starting a new job soon because of my daughter. The hours are better and it's not as stressful. My priorities have completely changed. The one thing that gives me peace of mind is our babysitter. She is a family friend that is great with my daughter. This lets me go to work at peace knowing that she is okay. Maybe not everyone goes through what I had to go through, but it is very difficult. Again, it does get better and I actually enjoy going to work now and keeping my mind on other things. After going through this, I have the utmost admiration for working mothers out there. It's so hard, but in the end, you are doing it for them...Good luck to all of the working mommies out there. You are not alone!