Sadly, we live in a country that doesn’t prioritize and often doesn’t even consider the needs of children. While certain politicians are fighting to end reproductive rights, the truth of the matter is, from pregnancy to birth and throughout childhood, the system doesn’t provide the type of care and resources mothers and babies need to thrive. One second-time mother highlighted this fact in documenting the birth of her daughter, who entered the world at just 30 weeks.
More from CafeMom: Mom Denied Maternity Leave After ‘Traumatic’ Delivery of Her Stillborn Baby at 37 Weeks
Lena, who goes by @Lenalebron on TikTok, shared that her daughter was due in February. But instead of taking those last two months to marinate, she decided to come in December, 10 weeks premature. As such, Lena’s daughter was taken to the NICU, where she continues to be monitored. As of January 20, Lena’s daughter has been in the NICU for 40 days. Naturally, it’s not what her family had planned. Lena is lamenting the fact that her employer — and most other employers — don’t make provisions for families like Lena’s.
More from CafeMom: Mom Shares What It’s Really Like To Get Little Maternity Leave With a Preemie in the NICU
@lenalebron California maternity leave is a joke. She’s not home & I’m still recovering from my c-section. #maternityleave #californialeave #nicubaby #nicumom #nicumomma #preemie #preemiestrong #preemiebaby #nicustrong #preemiemommy #30weekerpreemie #30weekerpreemie #csectionmom #exclusivelypumping #momlife ♬ Beautiful Boy Edit – 𝙇𝙖𝙣𝙜𝙪𝙁𝙞𝙡𝙢𝙨
In a video of herself holding her baby girl Lena writes, “Why our system sucks … I spent my whole maternity leave in the hospital with my preemie. I’m expected to go back to work before she’s home.”
She captioned the video: “California maternity leave is a joke.” She continued, “She’s not home and I’m still recovering from my C section.”
Sadly, California’s “sucky” maternity leave may be better than what many other mothers across the nation can expect. The state is one of only 13 in the country that offer mandatory maternity, leave. According to LAist, “A typical leave for a vaginal birth in California includes a total of 22 weeks off, with up to four weeks before the due date and 18 weeks afterwards, with 17 of those weeks paid at 60-70%. A typical leave for a cesarean birth is a total of 22 weeks off, with up to four weeks before the due date and 18 weeks afterwards, with 19 of those weeks paid at 60-70%.”
Because Lena’s baby came early, those standards were abandoned. Sadly, her comments section was a reflection of so many other women who had similar stories. “I had to go back to work 2 weeks after my son was born so that I could take me off when he finally came home,” one mother wrote.
“Our maternity leave in this country is so broken,” another commented. “I had to leave my twins at 6 weeks to go back to work because I used the other 6 weeks on bed rest before having them. Worst thing ever and I regret it every day since, they’re 5 now.”
Other people shared the ways in which they got creative in order to spend more time with their babies. “My leave ended as she was being discharged,” one mother explained. “I filed for FMLA and got another 3m home. Then my husband filed and got a month home when that ended. Wasn’t easy. No pay. But we were home. Praying.”
Another mom just washed her hands of it. “I was scheduled to go back January my baby comes home Feb I couldn’t do it I quit,” she shared.
