‘I went back to work days after giving birth – women who take maternity leave are lazy’

An Australian mom went back to work only five days after giving birth. Jaelyn Cox, 29, works as a nightclub stripper and an OnlyFans model. She’s a mother of two daughters and she wants to give them the best life possible. So she returned to work to continue making money less than a week after the birth of her second child, against her boyfriend’s wishes. But she believes that women who take a long maternity leave are lazy.

Maternity Leave is an “Excuse”

“I think those people are just lazy and looking for an excuse,” says Cox. She advises women to return to doing what they love to avoid feeling like they lost their identity, a common feeling for many moms. “It’s important to not let being a mum take over your life. Every kid needs a happy mum and having a break from your kids is a good thing. I think it’s important to get back to your old life and back into a work routine. Sitting about the house and letting ‘being a mum’ take over your life is only going to make you depressed.”

Aside from returning to work, she says women should return to their pre-pregnancy figures as soon as possible. “I think getting to the gym the second week and dieting is a must after you give birth. And also for your relationship to start looking good again for your partner. A lot of woman let themselves go after giving birth and put weight on. Then their partner ends up cheating on them because they’re not the same person they were before giving birth.” [1]

Many people are horrified by her attitude toward maternity leave. “Does she even want to be a mother?” asked a viewer on TikTok. Another said, “My mother sacrificed a lot to be a mum and this woman here doesn’t appreciate motherhood.” [2]

When Cox was pregnant with her first child, she was concerned she would lose money at her two jobs. But she learned that many men loved the baby bump and she had optimizes that popularity during her second pregnancy. “When I was trying it in the beginning my confidence was just really low and the more guys weren’t bothered by it and I wasn’t losing money, the more my confidence grew.” [3]

Read: 11 “Priceless” Pieces of Advice That We’d Better Not Give to Parents

The Benefits of Maternity Leave for Mothers

Currently, many people do not get paid family leave, a sabbatical that many health experts petition to become more complacent. Parental leave can affect the health of the parents and the babies. Studies show that women who return to work in under two months tend to struggle more with their self-esteem, marriage, physical health, and mental health, even years later. They also show that paid leave decreases the risk of rehospitalization by 51%. When Norway changed its policy from 12 weeks of unpaid leave to 16 weeks of paid leave, mothers’ health improved in many ways, including lowering blood pressure and pain and improving behaviors like exercising regularly and smoking less. 

“Even if it goes well, pregnancy and birth is a really serious events. It can be an assault on your body, and you need time to recover,” said Tiffany Green, Ph.D., an economist and an assistant professor of population health sciences and obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. [4]

Benefits for the Fathers and Babies

When men receive paternity leave, research shows that they develop a closer relationship with the baby; meanwhile, the mothers experience fewer health complications, less stress, and are less likely to take anxiety medication. 

And, of course, the babies benefit from paid parental leave, which is linked with lower infant mortality rates, especially for low-income families. Bonding with parents in the first few months and years is vital for newborns’ cognitive, emotional, and behavioral development. Mothers with paid leave are more likely to breastfeed, which has many benefits for the baby, like helping their immunity and development. These positive effects are apparent many years after, as shown by an analysis of California after it implemented paid family leave.

Keep Reading: “I Was Forced To Suck It Up And Get Back To Work:” Heartbroken Mom Shares Why 12 Weeks Of Maternity Leave Isn’t Enough