So my 9 yo had to fill out a little get-to-know-you questionairre for her teacher at school. On the plus side, she lists ME as "Person you admire most"
But she answered "I am saddest when....." with "My mom is at a birth."
Ouch. That hurt.
So, would you talk about it with your child if you saw that? How would you bring it up?

If it were me, I would talk to her about it. I would try to figure out what about being away upsets her, maybe it is something you overlooked but can be easily fixed.

What a great compliment about being the one she admires most though.

Let us know how it goes if you do talk to her.


-Annie

Ouch is right. :hug I would sit and talk to her, find out what exactly is bothering her when you are at a birth and if you two can come up with a plan to help her when she is missing you.

Liz

So my 9 yo had to fill out a little get-to-know-you questionairre for her teacher at school. On the plus side, she lists ME as "Person you admire most"
But she answered "I am saddest when....." with "My mom is at a birth."
Ouch. That hurt.
So, would you talk about it with your child if you saw that? How would you bring it up?

My 8 yr old feels similiarly to your daughter .. I would just bring it up at a good time (your mom intuition will let you know). Try to feel out where the feeling is stemming from and see if you can talk her through it and process it a bit better. Does she feel neglected when you are at a birth? Does the care giver who takes over rub her the wrong way? (My dd prefers me over Dh..personality thing.. ) I would really just try to understand why she feels that way and after you have processed that you can talk to her about why you are a Doula, how you work with families, etc. and then try to sort through what the next step should be.

Wow, that is tough. Perhaps it is just that things aren't "the same" when you're away. You know, Dad's aren't the same as moms, and maybe she's just missing you. It could be that she has NO idea when you'll be home, KWIM? When a mom who's not a doula says, "I'm going to work" her kids know what to expect. Doulas... not so much.

Good luck talking with her!