The Work It, Mom! Blog
with Nataly
Hi, I am Nataly and I am the co-founder of Work It, Mom!
I write the daily Work It, Mom! Blog where I talk about issues affecting working moms, goings on in our Work It, Mom! community, new site features, updates,and contests. I also share my own juggle between work and family and love to see members jump in with comments. Come and visit often!
Nataly's profile on Work It, Mom!
|
We’re full swing into sniffles/cold/stomach flu season and if you have a kiddo, you know how it goes: They get “it” in germ land… I mean, school or daycare, and then the “thing” makes its rounds through your family. Not the most fun thing for a family to share, but that’s just how it goes.
We’ve had a few of these rounds already, mostly with minor colds. Each time when our daughter got sick I put myself and my husband on a regime of tons of vitamin C, zinc, and other unpleasantly-tasting herbal remedies recommended by friends and Whole Foods employees. A few times I think we did this early enough that both of us coasted through the colds much quicker and with much less negative impact than we anticipated.
But my vitamin-blast strategy doesn’t always work and that’s when I end up with a choice I have a hard time making: Suck it up and go to work or stay home. I’m sure you’ve had this debate and I’m aware of arguments on both sides. Going to work means that my cold will last longer, I’ll be less productive during the time I’m there, and I risk making my colleagues sick, however careful I try to be. Not going to work means taking one of the precious sick days that I may need to use to stay home with a very sick kiddo at some point, getting really behind on work, and spending the day being anxious about all the to-dos which are not getting done.
Of course there are degrees: When I feel really sick, I’m home and it’s not really a choice. But what I’m talking about is the gray area, the times when you feel like crap or have a cold that’s been persisting or are just feeling like you would really rather hide under the covers and sleep all day. When you’re not feeling well but are well enough to function.
One of the things I love about my gig is that I have the flexibility to work from home when I need to. I realize I’m lucky to have this and on days when I’ve felt like not going into the office is better for me and my colleagues I’ve used this option. But if it’s not available, I’m curious: Do you hesitate to take sick days?
Subscribe to blog via RSS
Yes, working sick today. The kids don’t need me to stay home, and I will make it through the day with some mucinex. I will save my sick days for kid sick days (my kids were home for at least 2 work days a month last winter…)
Working at home is not an option unless I have some time to prepare, move files around, etc.
dina | November 8th, 2011 at 11:37 am
This is timely for me, as Nathan was up twice last night with a sore throat. AGAIN. I’m going to work for the morning and Mathhew’s staying home with him, then we’ll trade. Thankfully, I can work from home, too.
Angella | November 9th, 2011 at 9:20 am
I sort-of hate the working from home option. It almost means there’s no such THING as a “sick day” anymore, unless you’re really, undeniably, can’t-move-for-fear-of-puking sick.
I’m at the office today, hacking like a 90-yr-old chain smoker, with whatever germs have come through my area lately. I hardly ever stay home with a cold for exactly the reasons you mention. (Sometimes i do, and have the laptop with me. But I’m not happy about it.)
el-e-e | November 9th, 2011 at 9:23 am
It depends on how sick I am. Last year I got strep, and I laid in bed all day, and didn’t feel one bit guilty about it. Even my preschool-aged kids had to suck it up. But normally, I will work through whatever God sends me and get as far as I can get. I will try to get more sleep between bouts of working. (I do work at home, inches from my bed.)
SKL | November 9th, 2011 at 10:46 am