11 Infuriating Things Your Partner Will Do When You're On Maternity Leave
byFiona Tapp
Maternity leave: a time to recover from birth, connect with your new baby, and learn complex skills of feeding, sleep schedules, and general baby care. If you're lucky enough to get one at all, it won't be long before you hear other people complaining about the "baby vacation" you're getting, as if what you're doing is any kind of "vacation" at all. It's not just old colleagues and childless friends who might not understand the purpose and importance of time away from work after having a baby. In fact, sometimes your biggest clueless critic can be really close to home. There are just some things your partner will do when you're on maternity leave that will drive you up the wall — and believe me, I know!
Maternity leave is absolutely essential to a mother and baby's health and wellbeing and unfortunately, it remains a rare benefit in America, with only 12 weeks of unpaid leave mandated, compared with our nearest neighbor Canada, where mothers can take up to 52 weeks of leave with financial compensation representing a percentage of their previous salary, and they can share this leave with their co-parent.
Although a necessary and amazing part of the postpartum period, maternity leave isn't without issues. Some mothers feel bored, undervalued or overwhelmed, and many don't have adequate support.
If you do stay home for a period of time to care for a new baby and your partner returns to work, they are unlikely to really understand what your days are like and will most likely say or do some truly infuriating things like: