How to prepare for your partner returning to work:
It can be a tough adjustment for all involved when it's time for your partner to return to work. You lose a set of hands for most of the day. The routine and flow that you have created for your days gets flipped on its head. You can suddenly feel a little lonely, overwhelmed and abandoned. It is best to prepare the best you can for this transition period so that instead of feeling overwhelmed you feel organised and empowered.
Here is our list of how to prepare for your partner returning to work after parental leave:
- Organise meals ahead of time, be sure to have some nutritious snacks prepared
- If a shower is essential for you to feel human, get up for one before they leave for work
- Organise an easy activity for each day to get you out of the house, something you can easily cancel if you can't actually get out of the house
- Join a local mother's group
- Do grocery shopping online - have a meal plan for the week that you are both responsible for executing on
- Have low expectations of what you will achieve in the day. Being with your baby is as productive as you need to be
- Communicate with your partner about how you are feeling and what you need from them
- Fill up the car with petrol on the weekend / ahead of time.
Remember that it is normal for it to feel like a huge adjustment when your partner returns to work. Everyone needs to find their groove in the new normal.