To not want to go back to work

[amousemetasnake]

This is just a moan, there’s nothing I can do about it.

Maternity leave ends soon and due to lockdowns I’ve only really been able to make the most of it since around May / June.

I just don’t feel ready to leave my baby, still isn’t sleeping well, don’t want to be only grabbing a couple of hours in the evenings

It is what it is. But I do wish life could just be as it is now for a little bit longer.

However you got any accrued annual leave to take before you go back? I love DS but I really enjoy my work and it's very mentally and emotionally challenging so I did enjoy going back. DS also really loves his day with daddy, day at nursery and two days with grandma, I consolidated my FT hours over 4 days so we have every Friday just the two of us which is really nice, would it be possible for you you do similar? We then have Saturday and Sunday as a family and DH has Mondays off (again consolidated hours).

*have

I felt like that after my second DC in March this year; I still miss him when I’m at work but it’s given a bit more balance to our lives and there was no real choice so I had to get my head round it sadly

No, it’s full time, back to the normal rut! Hopefully not forever. But it just feels rubbish.

It’s impossible to say whether you’re being unreasonable as it’s such a personal thing. I was delighted to return to work after 4 months (standard maternity leave where I am). But then I really enjoy my work and the benefits it brings; if I’d have hated it, maybe I’d have felt differently.

I’m sure once you get over the hurdle of re-starting, you’ll settle into a new normal and it’ll all be fine. Often the anticipation of things is worse than the reality!

I get you, it's such a change when you go back to work. It will get easier as you do it. Make sure you take your holidays.

Hi OP
Pandemic or not, going back to work is horrible for everyone after maternity leave. My husband took a few months off sharing paternity leave with me the first time, then took a month paternal leave the second time and that really helped me settle back in as I wasnt worried about the baby settling into nursery and new routine at the same time.
It's hard getting into work again and the feeling of leaving a baby you've spent all day every day with feels really brutal.
But soon you find you're in a new routine and might actually enjoy it again. After a few months of being at work I realised I felt much more like my old self again and had found the part of me again that I didnt even realise I'd missed.