Baby name and age(s):

Damian James is 14 years old, Laramy is 16 and I am six months pregnant with a girl.

Where do you live in South Africa?

Rustenburg – North West.

Did you work before you had a baby?

Yes, with two of the three.

Why did you decide to continue working?

Financial decision.

How old was your baby when you went back to work?

First one, two weeks and second one two months – third one will be plus minus four to four and a half months if all goes to plan.

How long did you have maternity leave?

Did not have maternity leave previously, this time it will be four months.

How did it feel before you had to go back to work?

This is such a stressful time as you do not want to leave your poor baby with someone else.

How important is a career for you?

Pretty important – independence is one of my key factors why I would rather work. Being a full time mom does sound very nice, but you never get to go “home”. Dad think it’s a paying holiday being home with the children all day doing “nothing” and he works so “hard”.

How do you balance it all?

It’s very stressful and sometimes I really do not know where I get the strength from. Ever wished a day could have more hours?

Did you breastfeed when you went back to work?

No, I did not.

Where does your baby stay during the day?

They used to stay at daycare and Granny.

What is your working hours?

7:00 to 16:30

How does it make you feel? (Meaning, do you feel a sense of self - that you do something for yourself?) 

It makes me feel secured that financially I can look after my children, but wish I could have more time with them. They grow up so fast.

What is the most rewarding part of your day?

When I see my family after work.

Do you have help at home?

Yes I do. I will not manage all the duties of full time work, travelling (for work) and house chores.

Also read the story of this working mom as part of the Change Exchange on Brightrock. She says: "Working mothers incur an “energy debt” in the first four to six years of their children’s lives. We go into the ‘red’ and don’t acknowledge or even recognise it, beyond the feeling of exhaustion. Everyone, ourselves included, just expects us to get on with it."