Working Parent

First of all, I want to go home. I don’t want to be at work. I want to be at home with my baby who has a cold and is teething. Life is difficult and we have gotten bills to pay. I feel like I have been up and down with a cold. It has turned into sinusitis (as usual). P is still fighting her nasty cold and on the top of that going through teething. I would love to stay at home and just snuggle with her all day but I am not able too. I feel rotten. It feels like someone has punched you in the face. Honestly, I would rather go into labour with P again than deal with this pain. I must keep my sick days for my daughter when she needs me and in the meantime I can cope with painkillers. That’s the reality of a working parent. Not many employers care about working families. I have gone back to work 4 weeks ago and I have been thrown into harsh reality of an employed mother.

Don’t misunderstand me, I’m grateful to  have a job and being able to contribute financially to my household but nobody cares that my child is being unwell due to a cold or teething. I don’t expect any sympathy but a pinch of flexibility, empathy and common sense.  Currently, my employer will not pay me for staying with P at home when she is unwell but will cover days when I’m physically unable to come to work due to an illness. Therefore I must keep my sick days for when P needs me.

But what about my mental wellbeing when my child is sick?

How can I be productive while being aware that my daughter is unwell and needs her mummy?

I know there are so many pathetic people who intend to abuse the system and overuse the sickness allowance but I strongly believe that there are ways to prevent it from reoccurring frequently.

My two favourite people😻