Work and Family

My seven-month-old daughter recently contracted the Roseola virus, which as I soon found out is a harmless, though somewhat frightening, viral infection – similar to chicken pox. The events leading up to this discovery is an entirely other blog post. But, I digress. 

After my third phone call to my pediatrician on his cell phone at 10 p.m. he accepted my request to bring her into the office in the morning. And that is when my husband and I began the conversation of who was taking her and who was going to work on time. Lucky for us, we both have understanding bosses who would no doubt excuse our lateness due to a sick child, but as professionals who are not accustomed to coming in late or calling out you can’t help but wonder if your commitment is being questioned. And therein lies the rub.

My husband volunteered to take her to the doctor’s. And I soon learned that hearing second hand from my husband what the doctor had to say was simply not comforting. Only after my vigorous research on the Internet and two reassuring talks with co-workers did I stop “worrying”…a.k.a. crying. As a new mom, I’m not used to pressure of balancing work and family. Though my daughter will always be my priority, I can’t help but feel a bit guilty for neglecting one or the other.

Any advice for a new mom? How do you balance work and family when a child gets sick?