I was the person who didn’t want to go on maternity leave.
I thought, I’ll be back to work after 3 to 4 months and ended up starting my maternity leave 1 week before giving birth. So I couldn’t understand why I was so nervous and anxious to be returning to work.
As I said my teary good-byes to my son and boarded the train, a million thoughts crossed my mind.
What if I can’t remember how to do my job? How am I going to last a full day? Will I be able to stay awake in meetings? I haven’t had much adult interaction for a full year, and how will I build rapport with the client?
It took everything I had not to get cold feet and go back home.
I stood outside the client’s office with clammy hands, a jittery stomach and my heart pounding a gazillion beats a second as I heard “Hey Nuz! Welcome back! So good to have you here!”. My DiUS colleagues beamed with genuine smiles ear to ear as I was let in and all of a sudden I started to relax and all my concerns faded away. It felt as if I had never gone on leave to begin with.
Now I won’t lie, the first few weeks of adjusting to work life were very difficult. Trying to remember tools, techniques, soft skills and trying to concentrate for a full day did prove to be a little trying at times, but having the enthusiasm and support from my colleagues (and lots of coffee) helped immensely.
It’s tough being a working mother; I have never doubted that and always admired the hard working mothers in the workforce. But when you have such great colleagues as those here, returning to work is something that you don’t need to dread, and transitioning from changing nappies to talking priorities is made a whole lot easier.
So I conclude my journey by thanking my DiUS team – you know who you are!
Thank you for welcoming me with a very warm embrace, making my first couple of weeks back at work very bearable, understanding my confusion levels and lack of alertness and listening to my constant chatter about my son! If it wasn’t for you guys, well.. what more can I say?