How to survive Maternity Pay

onlyroz

I survived maternity pay by only taking 4 months mat-leave. Then, between myself and my husband, we took another two months' holiday before putting our daughter into nursery at 6 months. This meant that I only had about 6 weeks on reduced pay.

If your husband is at home anyway then I'd suggest that you take 2-3 months off on leave before going back to work. In the mean time you can save up as much as possible to cover the short time you'll be on reduced pay. Have a look at some of the other boards on this form for ways of bringing in extra income (e.g. match betting, surveys, ebay etc).

must_try_harder_2

If having children is something that is very important to you I would go for it and do what Jody suggested (6 weeks at 90% pay and tag as much annual leave on as possible) and let your husband look after the child. If the alternative is waiting longer (against medical advice) then it seems the most sensible thing to do.

Whilst at home your husband could do online surveys. Doesn't equate to anywhere near an income but would definitely help.

summerday

Clearly this is a less than ideal situation to be in, but if I were you I would just start trying for a baby asap, and make the most of OH being able to stay home and take care of the baby. I see where you're coming from about feeling upset at having to go back to work soon after the birth but unfortunately you're not going to be able to have things all your way, and surely the fact that it'll be the baby's daddy looking after it should ease your fears. That is a totally different situation from putting a month old baby in nursery with strangers from 1 month old. You could express milk for it if you're hoping to breastfeed and if OH is unable to work anyway it seems a sensible solution for him to stay at home.

Think about how you will feel in 10 or 20 years time- if you know that you'd regret this chance of not having a child, then go for it asap, no matter what sacrifices you will have to undergo. Somehow you will cope, and at least in this country you won't ever starve and will have a roof over your head no matter what.

I hope things all work out ok for you hun- I am looking at it from the perspective of someone who has also had a miscarriage, am now 18 weeks pg but I know the distress it causes when it feels like you're not in control of your fertility. My financial situation is admittedly more comfortable than yours but I can honestly say that if I had to go back to work after 2 weeks I would, if that was the only option! Check out all your entitlements, too.

ETA: Have you posted an SOA on the Debt board, to see if anyone can suggest on how to cut out unnecesary expenses from your budget, trim your bills etc? That might reduce your costs. Plus the Old Style board for how to eat on practically nothing! Also remember that when you're pg and for 1 year after you get free medical and dental treatment and prescriptions...