Priya

Mom to Ari

Registered Nurse

Length of maternity leave: 12 weeks

What did you struggle with most about returning to work after having your kids?

I am an operating room nurse. Of the countless responsibilities that we hold, the most important ones are keeping our patients safe, being their advocate, and comforting them when they are scared. I never appreciated the significance of this until I had my son. Now I look forward to coming to work and treating each patient with the hands and heart of a mother.

What do you enjoy about being a working parent?

I enjoy being able to apply my nursing skills to motherhood and apply my motherhood skills to the nursing profession.

After being back at work for some time, have your views about career and family changed?

Because I find my work so rewarding, the transition has not been so difficult. I would say the physical demands of my job do leave me a little more exhausted when getting home when compared to pre-child.

Knowing what you know now, what’s one thing you wish you could go back in time and tell yourself as you were preparing to return to work or getting ramped up in your role?

I wish I spent more time trying to understand my sons needs the old school way as opposed to constantly referencing the internet. Trusting your intuition is a learned skill. I apply it in my nursing profession everyday however it felt like a completely new skill as a parent.