Aussie Mum Discusses Work Challenges After Baby
Tahlia Shorter, an Australian mother, discusses the challenges of returning to work after having her third child, highlighting identity and career crises experienced by parents.
An Australian mother, Tahlia Shorter from the Sunshine Coast, has shared her experience of the difficulties faced when returning to work after having a baby. Shorter highlighted the complexities of the situation that often go unspoken among parents.
Describing her recent struggles, especially after welcoming her third child, she expressed a significant career crisis that is challenging to articulate. She remarked that before going on maternity leave, it seems straightforward to plan a return to work, but the reality is much more complicated.
“Before you go on maternity leave, especially from a corporate employer, you're like, 'Yeah, I'll take my 12 months and I'll be back four or five days a week,'" she shared. “But you don't understand the biological shift in your brain that occurs.”
As a seasoned marketing professional with over a decade of experience and a hair salon owner of Bondi Lane for more than five years, Shorter has found her priorities drastically changed. The arrival of her third child has prompted her to rethink her long-term career goals.
“For somebody who is so passionate about their career and being independent, to then have all of that stripped right back... It's actually quite confronting,” she added.
Shorter described this phenomenon as a “maternity leave crisis,” which can also lead to an identity crisis as parents must confront tough decisions about their futures. “You're getting to really know yourself in this process as well... Especially if you've worked your way up, like a lot of like my friends have,” she said.
While she felt capable of balancing work and family with one child, the arrival of her third baby intensified her challenges. “Even if you work full-time, 10 sick days a year just does not cover what you need,” she emphasised.
This situation generates significant guilt towards employers due to the noticeable absence compared to previous work performance. Shorter's sentiments resonate with many parents across Australia, as evidenced by the numerous comments on her TikTok video, where commenters shared their own struggles with parentalhood and career.
Some expressed that their roles at work felt less significant compared to their identities as parents, while others reported a loss of joy in jobs they once loved.
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