Returning to the office after being a caretaker

Being a caretaker for another person often demands your full attention every hour of the day – whether it’s a newborn, child, sick relative or elderly parent. Being a caretaker for another person can happen for many reasons, too. While some parents may stay home to recover and take care of their newborn child for a few months, others may leave the workforce for years before choosing to return. And some people may have no other choice than to quit their job or retire early to take care of their aging parent or parents if elder care isn’t an option.

Whatever the reason for being a caretaker, many caretakers eventually choose to return to work. However, whether you’re out of the office for six months or two years, you’re likely to encounter some challenges upon reentering. Here’s how you can deal with them.

Maybe you’re eager to return to work after being a caretaker. Maybe you’re nervous about returning to 9-to-5 life (or whatever schedule you have). Either way, your schedule at work will likely be different than the schedule you had as a caretaker.

Be patient with yourself as you adjust to work life. The transition isn’t going to happen overnight, so if you find yourself frustrated with the difficulty of your new routine, remember how you transitioned from work life to being a caretaker. It might take a while to adjust, but you’ll get there eventually.

You might find yourself worrying about having an employment gap on your resume. The fear of having an employment gap on your resume was instilled in many of us before we even started working. In reality, it may not be as big of a deal as you fear.

Regardless, you can help yourself combat this potential challenge by being proactive. Get support by reaching out to your network. You may know someone (or know someone who knows someone) who’s hiring for a similar role that you had before being a caretaker. You could also try working with a mentor or coach who would have advice for someone in your position.

When applying and interviewing, be direct about the gap, but don’t dwell on it. Some companies, including JPMorgan Chase, even have reentry programs designed specifically for people who left the workforce and want to reenter. At JPMorgan Chase, the program consists of professional skills workshops, on-the-job training, and coaching and developmental experiences to help people reenter the workforce.

Some people may find themselves reentering a new workforce compared to the one they left: a hybrid work model. Many companies have adopted hybrid work models because of COVID-19. Maybe you’ll find yourself working both from home and in the office a couple days a week, or even fully remote.

While remote work may have made it easier for caretakers to work, as they were able to stay at home with their loved ones and work at the same time, others may find themselves burnt out from juggling both responsibilities at once. Whatever your situation, you can try to make the possibility of a hybrid work model work for you.

Returning to work might be scary if you worry that you’ve been out of the game too long. Have confidence in yourself. If you find yourself stressing about returning to work, think about how you would view someone else in your office returning to work after being away for a while.

The reality is, you’d probably be excited to have them back, and if they’re a new addition to your team, there’s lots of benefits to that too. They will probably have extra energy and motivation to do well and be a good coworker. Not everyone is going to be as hard on you as you might fear.

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