CV making me want to accelerate baby plans

[Wannabemummy25]

Has the coronavirus outbreak made anyone else essentially sit back and re-evaluate? My DH and I have always both been very career driven/high achievers and have set goals of things we want to achieve in work before having kids (ie promotions in work, go on a few more carefree holidays etc) and we sort of had a rough plan that I would have the coil taken out October 2021 and we would go from there. However, with everything going on at the moment I feel like it has made me realise more than ever that family is the most important thing. I love my job, but it is a career I am hoping to be in for the next 40 years so taking time out and it taking a few years longer to become fully professionally qualified doesn't seem to matter. This time last year I was putting myself under a lot of pressure to work all hours, pass my exams as quickly as I possibly could and make it to the top of my career ladder by the time I'm 30 (I'm currently 24) and as much as I want to have a successful career I also want a family now more than ever. I am not planning on TTC now as logistically now really isn't the time to be going to the GP to be getting the coil removed but I'm thinking the end of this year?

Does anyone else feel like this crisis has made them re-evaluate their life and plans and what is important to them?

Go on your gut feelings here as you never know what might happen with your career. I spent years getting highly qualified (PhD chemistry, MBA), moving internationally for various ex-pat jobs and when I got pregnant, it all turned to dust.

My plan was to get loads of things done during pregnancy and take minimum maternity leave, but in reality I was very unwell with severe HG until term, which resulted in me losing my ‘high-flying’ job (in a male-dominated industry, abroad). I then had PND which further complicated matters.

I never in a million years thought this would happen to me. My point is that until you’re pregnant, you have no idea how things will pan out with regard to you health, the baby’s health, the effect on your career.

If your main desire is for a family, then go for it when this chaos had died down and don’t sideline it for a job that may or may not be worth it.

I am currently the only woman in my department, but I wasn't the first. My female predecessors all had to quit shortly after they gave birth, because they couldn't be as flexible with their schedules anymore as the job required.

I knew early on I never wanted kids and the older I get the happier I am I made that choice so early. I wouldn't have had nearly half the experiences and opportunities in my life as I have had and currently have if I had chosen children instead of career.

I think it would be good to consider how parenthood will impact your life by looking how it impacts most women who were in your situation before you change your plans. CV won't change the demands motherhood will place on you. In fact I think a year from now we will act as though it never happened.

Corona virus didnt, but I became quite ill and diagnosed with a host of issues last year. I had always been career focused and never seriously thought of a family until then. My career may never be what it was again because of my medical conditions yet I can still work full time for which I am grateful. But it did make me think that the career I had put off everything for was likely no longer an option, so why not give it a go

Its a hard choice, I've always been career driven and know my career will now stall for a few years. But I'm really pleased with where I've got to and I've worked so hard over the last 10 years since I left university building a career, I'm really looking forward to my maternity leave in August and having some time away from it. I don't regret waiting as we both have built careers and travelled a lot, but then we realised how much we wanted a family. As others have said, go with your gut.