Diary of a Working Mum

Juggling Childcare and Work: The Stress We Shouldn’t Accept

Trying to balance childcare with a full-time job feels like spinning plates while walking a tightrope. Our mornings start in a flustered frenzy—packing lunches, trying to convince my daughter to put on her uniform and shoes, and racing to school and back in time for the first meeting of the day.

I am fortunate to have my parents, who pick my daughter up from school everyday. I finish work at 5, and it would be impossible for me to get to school for 3.15pm. Before this we put my daughter in after school club, but after five sessions, she told us that it was distressing her that she was not going home at the same time as the other children. I couldn’t stand to see her so upset, so I asked my parents to help.

Work used to be terribly difficult before my daughter started school two years ago. It was a blur of stolen moments, checking emails during her nap time or taking calls whilst she was screaming in the background. It is easier now she is almost six. On the rare occasion when she has been ill, and has had to stay home with me, she will sit and play on her iPad or do some crafts. Although I am not yet lucky enough to have left behind the constant ‘Mumy, mummy, mummy!’. Then she gets fed up and wants to go to the park, even though seconds earlier she insisted she was the poorliest she had ever been. I have to hand it to her, she has acting skills that would amaze Hollywood.

It is hard to make a child understand that we cannot just drop work and go to the park. When I say no, she gets the huff and tells me I am the worst mother in the world. I try to redirect her to another activity whilst simultaneously typing an email, which is mostly effective. Thankfully this has only happened once since she has been at school. Parents who home school their children deserve a medal. I couldn’t do it. I don’t have the patience or coping skills.

Then evening time comes around. I log off my work computer, and it’s straight into a mad dash to cook, clean, do the washing, and maybe steal five minutes of peace before collapsing on the sofa, only to do it again tomorrow.

The stress feels relentless, and breathing space is non existant. Deadlines loom while guilt festers—I wonder if I am neglecting my daughter. I wonder if I am doing well with my career. I feel frustrated that I cannot find the time for self care. There is evidence in studies to show that a high percentage of working parents report high stress levels, with burnout rates soaring. It’s not just personal; it’s systemic. Skyrocketing childcare costs force impossible choices. Many parents scale back their careers or leave the workforce entirely, not because they want to, but because it becomes more expensive to work than to not work. But at the end of it all, it is worth it. Because those precious, uninterrupted times come along, when it is just me and my daughter, and I know why I do it all.

I cannot help feeling that life shouldn’t be this way. I find myself wondering why are we stuck in a system that pits family against financial survival? Imagine a world where parents can breathe, where raising kids doesn’t mean sacrificing sanity or stability. It’s possible. We just need to demand it.

What is your opinion?

Cheerio

E x