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Subject: |
Physician Transitioning Into Stay-At-Home-Mom Stage |
| Date: |
2009-10-05
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Physician Transitioning Into Stay-At-Home-Mom Stage
Hi Dr. Laura,
For the past 16 years I have also been recognized as "Dr Laura" by thousands of patients that I was given the Blessed opportunity to treat as their physician. For the past year now I have transitioned into the occupation of "full-time mommy". I've sold a very large and successful practice to be able to stay home with my 3 children. I wake every morning and thank God for Blessing me with the awesome privilege to be able to be here at home for them.
Yes, it is by far a change in our finances. My husband and I used to jet off to tropical islands every other month for long weekends just to decompress from the stress of owning a large healthcare practice. Although my husband gave up his career as a contractor to stay home with the children while I was the bread winner… it was still hard on us. I left for work at 7:30am and returned at 7:30pm. At home, I still could never seem to leave the office, employee issues, insurance problems and patient problems at "the office". I paid a heavy price for all of those years I helped others in my Blessed occupation as a physician. I'm sure it has taken years off of my life in mental stress. Even though my husband is amazing and a very active father to our children...it still hurts when mommy is the one who goes to work. I cannot tell you how many times my daughter clung to me crying and begged me to stay home even at the age of 11! I will always regret the years I wasted of their lives as I pursued the goal of providing for my family. An astronomically, ridiculous amount of money earned…yet so much lost that can never be gotten back in time lost with my family.
It amazed me after reading your books("The Proper Care & Feeding of Marriage" as well as "Stupid Things Parents Do To Mess Up Their Kids") at how EASILY brain-washed we can become at the importance of careers over family. Yes we love the family but so blindly and ignorantly we become consumed with satisfying other people's demands at work and so easily push our family needs to the bottom of the list. After nearly losing my marriage and playing "Russian Roulette" with my children's future happiness and experiencing that ever-present nagging feeling of unhappiness, I bottomed out and finally "GOT IT!"
Now a healthy hot meal is on the table at 5pm. I am there to take my children to school and pick them up. I cherish the time in the car that we have to talk and laugh. So many things that you just miss if the quantity of time is not there to be able to catch those surprise moments. My husband and I are doing wonderful and I feel great that I can now be home to support his hard efforts in providing for the family. No, carpenters don't live like physicians financially, but this one lives like a cherished king.
I just saved my 18 month old from her frustration of not being able to get herself out of the toy box that she so bravely crawled into. Her beaming smile of love and gratitude was priceless. Thanks for more than you know.
Laura
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