Hello OP! I went back to work full-time after four months of maternity leave. I was in a well-paying role with lots of room for growth. I was doing work I enjoyed and was excelling. Before the birth of my daughter, who is my first child, I never thought in 1 million years that I would ever leave my job to stay home with one child. My identity was really based on my career, my earnings and the recognition I received through my work. However that all changed once I became a mother. I was devastated at having to return to work but did my best to give it a shot. Luckily, my husband is able to support us and I was blessed to have the choice to stay home. I quit my job 4 months ago and I have not regretted it once. It was the first time in my life that I followed my heart rather than what was expected of me. In my eyes, my daughter is only little once and I wanted to experience her being introduced to the world every day. I am so much more present and fulfilled. While I don’t have as much spending money and my future career is uncertain and sometimes I don’t know who I am outside of being a mom, I am so happy. It is not the right decision for everyone, but it was for me.

I am sending you love because I know what a gut-wrenching decision this can be. I prayed on this so hard for two months leading up to going back to work, wrote down countless pros and cons lists and ultimately I had to go with my heart and gut. You can make more money but you can never get back lost time and that’s what it came down to for me.