Last Updated on September 16, 2022 by Natalie

One week before my three month maternity leave was over, I found myself unemployed.

Yes, my job situation was unique.

I was an independent contractor on paper but it was set up like I was an employee that worked remotely.

Although my situation was unique, the lessons I learned may be applied to any job where there is some flexibility or less structure.

If I had better prepared for my return, I believe I would probably still have a job right now.

1. Save money

This one sounds idealistic and annoying, I know.

But it won’t be as annoying as you having to explain to your baby that your time together is being cut short because you didn’t listen to me and instead you’re going to leave her at daycare or with the nice stranger who isn’t mommy.

I didn’t save like I should’ve.

How could I? In the months leading up to my delivery, I was spending money on preparing for the new baby.

Fortunately, I had enough to give me a little extra time with baby and peace of mind while I figure out my next steps.

Depending on how much you’re able to save, it may mean a few more months with baby.

 

2. Set up financial support

If you are one of the many women who does not get paid maternity leave from your job, take out a short term disability policy.

This also needs to be done in advance.

Technically, you need to be covered at least 30 days before you get pregnant so that it isn’t considered a pre-existing condition. However, I was advised to actually wait 45 days before getting pregnant in case I delivered earlier.

You know… easy peasy to control how fast you get pregnant.

I wouldn’t be eligible for coverage if I had given birth within a certain amount of time after enrolling in the policy.

I had actually been trying to get pregnant unsuccessfully for 9 months before I enrolled in short term disability and I wasn’t getting any younger. I wasn’t going to hold out and skip a precious couple of months but everyone’s situation is different.

Ask if your employer has a short term disability option that you can do through them. Otherwise, you need to find a company that will do this for individuals.

Heads up: when selling the policy, these companies advise that there is a “waiting period” of 2 weeks for coverage. For example, vaginal delivery is covered for 6 weeks with a 2 week waiting period and women who have c-sections are covered for 8 weeks with a 2 week waiting period.

This is a misnomer.

They straight up deduct those 2 weeks from what they will pay you. It’s not like you will get paid for those two weeks along with everything else and start receiving the benefits two weeks after you put in the claim, as one would logically assume.

In other words, if your policy is like the one I referenced in the “Heads up,” you’d be looking at being paid 4 weeks for a vaginal delivery or 6 weeks for a c-section.

Tricky, tricky!

But… it’s better than nothing.

Heads up II: If you are planning to give birth in a hospital, I recommend you also enroll in a hospital confinement policy which will pay you a certain amount for every day you are in the hospital for 24 hours…cha-ching.

 

3. Predict the future

Or do your best.

It’s impossible to know beforehand what life will be like with a new baby. Especially if it’s your first.

But even if you aren’t a first time mom, every baby, delivery and postpartum journey is unique.

I always intended to breastfeed but wasn’t sure if I’d make it too far because I know how challenging breastfeeding is.

To my pleasant surprise, not only did I make it past that first, hardest part, but I’m exclusively breastfeeding. No bottle in sight.

That makes for a pretty anxious response when I think about leaving my baby who feeds on demand.

My recommendation is to plan for the most time possible that your employer is willing to hold your position and that you can hack with your savings and/or financial support that you have set up.

Should you decide that you want to come back sooner, I think that would be easier to arrange than coming back later.

I know it may feel uncomfortable asking for as much time as possible. I felt weird saying I’d be out for 3 months because my boss had taken 2 months but *bleep* that noise.

My boss was the business owner. I’m not.

In retrospect, I regret being so concerned that it would be frowned upon.

 

4. Make sure you have it in writing

Last but not least, have as much as possible in writing so that your employer can’t have pretend amnesia about anything discussed.

At a minimum, outline:

• Any agreements about payment and what you need to do, if anything, to get that payment (i.e. log time, create an invoice)
• Return date. If you don’t have a specific return date, have a time of month at a minimum (i.e. beginning of January)
• Schedule: Will you be working full time? part time? How many hours per week? If you are planning on easing in, specify what your first few weeks or months will look like in terms of your schedule. This was the one that really put the nail in the coffin for me.

Plan for the worst case scenario. Be generous with your time off and how slowly you go back to work in full force. As much as you can get your employer to agree to.

 

If you have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’d be happy to know that someone is reading this.