u/kxtasha1

:
I'm 31F and currently on maternity leave I’ve been on maternity leave for 12 months, with my scheduled return to work in January 2027. I'm a Global Manager of Corporate Communications at a large global organization, where I oversee internal and external communications, PR, executive communications, ESG , and a team.

Over the past few months, my company has been going through some significant organizational changes, including new executive leadership and a restructuring of several departments.

While I've been on leave, I was offered a 15% salary increase, and now things have progressed even further.

I've officially been confirmed as one of two leaders in the newly restructured organization, reporting directly to the Chief Resource Officer (C-suite). The other leader will oversee Marketing, while I'll be responsible for the communications side of the organization.

Here's where things get interesting.

The company is apparently very unhappy with my maternity leave replacement, and I've now been asked to consider returning earlier than January, in November instead. They're willing to accommodate me with either a fully remote arrangement (which the company is very against normally) or a hybrid schedule requiring only 1–2 days in the office per week to catch up and bridge the gap. My previous boss told me that he highly suggests working with the c-level executive and show my true leadership.

I'm obviously excited about the opportunity, especially because reporting directly to a C-suite executive feels like a significant career move. At the same time, I have two young children, and I had originally planned to take my full leave.

My questions:
Does reporting directly to a C-suite executive as one of two functional leaders typically warrant a Director-level title?

Would you negotiate additional compensation or a title change before agreeing to return early?

Would you return early for this opportunity, or stick to the original January return date?

I'd especially love to hear from anyone in corporate communications, HR, or senior leadership who has navigated something similar.

I don't want to miss a potentially career-defining opportunity, but I also don't want to give up the remainder of my maternity leave without making sure the arrangement makes sense for me. I’m confused if I should take the part time role, fully remote flexibility hours or just refuse all together.

My daughter who just turned 11 months drinks breast milk once in the morning, afternoon and night now. What about your babes? I plan to wean by 12 months and wondering how you are all navigating this

I want only two kids, mainly because it’s expensive to have them and me and my husband are full time working parents who feel like having a third might be difficult. Deep deep down I want three, my second baby - my daughter is 11 months old, I’m 32 years old and I’m incredibly incredibly sad that I won’t be going through the beauty of pregnancy, delivery and the newborn baby snuggles again.

I don’t want me missing those things to be a reason to have a third but truly it’s hard for me to accept. I miss going to the ultrasound appointments with my husband, and wondering who the little baby in my stomach will be, it’s just so beautiful.

I just know also that three kids would be so hard. 😭

I’m 9 months postpartum with my second baby and still breastfeeding. I recently had my first cervical screening/Pap and was completely caught off guard by the results.

I tested positive for HPV-16 and my cytology came back ASC-H (atypical squamous cells — cannot exclude a high-grade lesion). I’ve been referred for a colposcopy.

I’ve been with the same partner for 9 years, so initially I was really confused about the HPV result, but I’ve since learned that HPV can remain dormant/undetectable for years and become detectable again later.

I’m obviously anxious about the ASC-H result and wondering whether being postpartum and breastfeeding could have affected how my cervical cells looked. I understand that low estrogen, hormonal changes, inflammation, etc. can sometimes affect cervical cytology, but I also know HPV-16 needs to be taken seriously and followed up.
Has anyone else had an abnormal Pap/HPV result while postpartum or breastfeeding?

What did your colposcopy/biopsy end up showing? Did anyone have ASC-H that turned out to be normal or only mild changes? If they found CIN2/CIN3, what happened next? I’m sick to my stomach I don’t even want to eat :(

I’d really appreciate hearing other moms’ experiences while I wait for my colposcopy. The waiting and uncertainty are honestly the hardest part right now. ❤️

I’m 9 months postpartum with my second baby and still breastfeeding. I recently had my first cervical screening/Pap and was completely caught off guard by the results.

I tested positive for HPV-16 and my cytology came back ASC-H (atypical squamous cells — cannot exclude a high-grade lesion). I’ve been referred for a colposcopy.

I’ve been with the same partner for 9 years, so initially I was really confused about the HPV result, but I’ve since learned that HPV can remain dormant/undetectable for years and become detectable again later.

I’m obviously anxious about the ASC-H result and wondering whether being postpartum and breastfeeding could have affected how my cervical cells looked. I understand that low estrogen, hormonal changes, inflammation, etc. can sometimes affect cervical cytology, but I also know HPV-16 needs to be taken seriously and followed up.
Has anyone else had an abnormal Pap/HPV result while postpartum or breastfeeding?

What did your colposcopy/biopsy end up showing? Did anyone have ASC-H that turned out to be normal or only mild changes? If they found CIN2/CIN3, what happened next?

I’d really appreciate hearing other moms’ experiences while I wait for my colposcopy. The waiting and uncertainty are honestly the hardest part right now. ❤️

I recently had my first cervical screening and found out that I’m positive for HPV 16. I’ve been with the same partner for 9 years, so this result really caught me off guard. I understand now that HPV can stay dormant/undetectable for years and that a positive result doesn’t necessarily mean it was recently acquired.

My doctor has referred me for a colposcopy, and naturally I’m pretty anxious about what they might find. I know HPV 16 is considered one of the higher-risk strains, but I’m having a hard time separating “high-risk HPV” from actually having precancerous or cancerous cells.

For anyone who has been HPV 16 positive:
What did your colposcopy show?

Did you have normal cells, CIN1, CIN2 or CIN3?

Did you need a biopsy or LEEP?

Did you eventually clear/test negative for HPV 16?

Has anyone had HPV 16 show up after being with the same partner for many years?

I’d especially love to hear from people whose HPV 16 was discovered during routine screening and who had no symptoms beforehand. I’m trying not to assume the worst while waiting for the colposcopy.
Thank you ❤️

I’m looking for advice from parents who have gone through something similar because I genuinely don’t know what to do anymore.

My son is almost 3 and lately his behaviour at home has become incredibly difficult. He does not listen to us at all. If we tell him to stop doing something he knows he shouldn’t be doing, he’ll look at us and continue doing it anyway. Consequences, taking things away, warnings, threats, explaining why he can’t do something none of it seems to matter to him. Sometimes it almost feels like being told “no” makes him want to do it even more.
The confusing part is that apparently he is an angel at preschool. He listens, follows instructions and behaves well there, so I know he is capable of it. At home it feels like we have a completely different child.

There’s also a huge preference for his dad right now. He constantly says he only wants Daddy, doesn’t want me, and has even started telling me that he doesn’t love me and only loves his dad. I know he’s not even 3 and probably doesn’t understand how hurtful those words are, but hearing it over and over again is honestly heartbreaking.

He also really seems to resent his little sister. Since she came along, he wants very little to do with her and can be extremely jealous and difficult when attention is being given to her. I’ve tried spending one-on-one time with him, involving him with his sister, giving him lots of attention and reassurance, but the Dad preference and rejection of me are still intense and I want to cry when I hear it. He doesn’t even want hugs or kisses from me anymore and pushes me away.

I feel like we’ve gotten into this cycle where we’re constantly correcting him, threatening consequences and getting frustrated, while he seems completely unfazed by any of it. I don’t want to spend his entire toddlerhood yelling or punishing him, but I also don’t want him learning that he can completely ignore us and there are no boundaries.
For parents who had a very defiant 2.5–3-year-old: what discipline actually worked? How do you handle it when they deliberately continue a behaviour immediately after being told to stop? And has anyone gone through an extreme preference for one parent where your toddler actually says they don’t love the other parent?

I’d especially love to hear from anyone whose toddler behaved perfectly at daycare/preschool but saved all of the defiance and meltdowns for home. Did this eventually get better, and what helped?

I’m on a fitness journey after having two babies, I eat pretty clean , high protein healthy meals and I try not to snack too much in between. However a few days leading up to my period I’m STARVING , I’m also breastfeeding so I figure my hormones is playing a factor. Not sure if I just give into my hunger or do my best to fight it to avoid weight gain and falling off track.

I'm just trying to understand what a healthy balance looks like.

I'm 5'2", 122 lbs, and I've had two kids. I train with a personal trainer three days a week, and she monitors literally everything I eat and when I eat it. She's very strict with my nutrition, and to be fair, I am seeing progress. I lost about 8-10 pounds since starting with her

The problem is that I sometimes feel like I'm afraid to tell her when I'm craving something because I know she'll say no.

Today I was really craving a chicken burger, so instead of grabbing fast food, I decided to make a high-protein version at home. I even sent her the recipe first to ask if it was okay. She told me the white bun wasn't because it's high glycemic. So I skipped it and just ate plain chicken with vegetables.

Now it's 9:30 p.m., and all I can think about is a chicken sandwich. I haven't had fast food in months, and I honestly feel like if I'd just had the healthier homemade chicken burger earlier, I probably would've satisfied the craving. Instead, I'm sitting here trying not to drive to McDonald's.

How do you deal with cravings like this? Do you push through them, or do you find that satisfying them in moderation actually helps?

Also, for those who've worked with trainers or coaches, is this level of strictness normal or even necessary? I'm not training for a bodybuilding competition—I'm just trying to get stronger, lean out a bit, and be healthy after having kids. I'm wondering if this is helping me build sustainable habits or if it's making food feel more restrictive than it needs to be.

I started light pilates at 3 months postpartum, then increased to doing reformer pilates 4 times a week, then around march/april i switched to seeing a personal trainer who was a bit of a beginner as a trainer but I learned the fundamentals. I then switched in late May to an excellent personal trainer and can see TRUE results now. I went from 146 pounds postpartum to 123 pounds, less than I weighed before I even got pregnant with my first.

I am extremely happy with my progress and excited to share it. I have to also make note that my healthy eating has seriously led me to despise all the foods i used to always crave (fries, McDonalds, chicken wings etc), just thinking about unhealthy foods makes me feel uneasy. I never thought my palette would change this much, months ago I would crave fast food, or potato chips and now I dont even think about those foods because I know how it would end up making me feel.

Hi everyone!

I'm recruiting on behalf of a well-established, independent optometry practice in the Ottawa South area that's looking to add an Associate Optometrist to their team.

They're open to both experienced ODs and strong new grads who are looking for a long-term opportunity in a busy, supportive practice.

Highlights:
Guaranteed minimum compensation of $250,000/year for qualified candidates

100+ comprehensive eye exams already booked each week

Immediate patient base (no need to build a practice from scratch)

Modern clinic with OCT, visual fields, topography, autorefractor/keratometer, and more

Excellent, experienced staff who handle pre-testing and special testing

Flexible schedule (4–6 days/week)

Strong optical and loyal patient base

Realistic pathway to partnership/ownership for the right person

This is a fantastic opportunity for someone who wants clinical autonomy, excellent earning potential, and the chance to grow with an established independent practice rather than working in a corporate setting.

To protect the owners' privacy, the practice name and exact location will be shared after an initial confidential conversation.

If you're interested or know someone who might be please send me a DM.

I’m 32 this year, my husband is 35 and we have an almost 3 year old and an 8 month old. We are discussing recently if we should have a third or not. I know it’s still early but I don’t want to be over 35 and have my third I rather just get it over with in the next year or two but I have one boy and one girl and I’m pretty satisfied. I feel and look fit, I’m healthy, my kids are healthy and I just feel we have it all figured out. In theory I want another baby cause I love my babies but deep down I know it will be hard to manage. We are both full time working parents and I just don’t want to be selfish and give my kids the attentions and needs they deserve best I can. But I’m worried at the same time if I don’t have a third I’ll regret it when I’m older.

Would love to hear parents with three and their honest experiences in this day and age.

My almost 3-year-old is making every transition a battle and I'm at my breaking point.

I don't know if this is normal toddler behavior or if we're doing something wrong, but literally every single transition is met with screaming, crying, and protesting.

Brushing teeth? Meltdown.
Bath time? Meltdown.
Getting dressed? Meltdown.
Putting on pajamas? Meltdown.
Leaving the house? Meltdown.
Coming inside? Meltdown.

It's not just a little whining either. It's full-on screaming, refusing to cooperate, and acting like we're asking him to do something horrible.

The hardest part is bedtime. We have an 8-month-old who goes to sleep around 7 PM. Once she's asleep, we bring our almost 3-year-old upstairs to start his bedtime routine. From that moment until he's in bed, he's screaming, crying, and protesting nearly every step and if he’s not protesting or screaming he’s calling us out loud from his crib. The noise often wakes the baby, and then she struggles to get back to sleep because she's overtired. Some nights she's waking multiple times overnight because of it.

Has anyone gone through this with a child around this age? Is this just a phase? What strategies actually helped? We've tried giving warnings before transitions, offering choices, staying calm, and keeping routines consistent, but nothing seems to make a meaningful difference.

I would love to hear from parents who have been through this and come out the other side because right now I feel completely defeated.

I bought the effortless pants 2 months postpartum in a 6 and I’m maybe a size 2 now. I also recently purchased two effortless pants on fb Marketplace size 6 for a super good price and I’m wondering if anyone has had luck hemming and fixing waist of the pants down two sizes? Would they have to take anything else in as it seems a bit baggy and big on me or would that naturally be fixed once they hem and take waist in?

My 2.5 year old was exposed to hand foot mouth yesterday from his cousin and I’m spiraling a bit. 😞
His cousin wasn’t himself yesterday, had open sores/rash on his legs that the parents didn’t know was HFMD at the time, and had apparently been complaining about mouth pain since Friday. Today they confirmed it was hand foot mouth.

My son only played with him for a few hours (partly outside, partly inside), but obviously toddlers touch everything and now I’m worried sick.

What’s making me hopeful/confused is that there were multiple HFMD cases at his daycare back in January and somehow he never got it then.

Has anyone had a similar exposure where their child DIDN’T catch it? Or if they did, how long after exposure did symptoms start?

Trying not to panic but I have a baby at home too so my anxiety is through the roof.