The Mother Load Podcast

Stay-at-home or working mum: Is there ever a right choice?

From corporate ladders to toddler tantrums, two mothers talk about the struggle to balance ambition with motherhood, and what life actually looks like on the other side.

Vanessa Paige Chelvan

Synopsis: Join us for a five-part series on working motherhood from July 3-31 with episodes out every Friday.

This episode explores one of the biggest questions mothers face: Stay home with my children, or continue working?

From the emotional cost of missing moments with their children to the financial realities of stepping away from paid employment, working mums often find themselves weighing impossible trade-offs, even though there is no “right” way to raise a family.

Host Vanessa Chelvan speaks with Kristen Kiong, a speech therapist and mother of three who left the workforce to care for her children full-time; and Yong Qiao Qing, a marketing manager and mother of two who returned to work after being a stay-at-home mum.

They discuss the misconceptions surrounding stay-at-home mothers, the hidden value of unpaid caregiving, and why becoming a mother can make women stronger and more productive at work.

Highlights (click/tap above):

8:18 My job comes at the expense of my kids - and vice versa

10:10 Dealing with guilt and the common misconceptions

12:45 From earning your own money to asking your husband

16:35 The value of stay-at-home mums is not monetary

20:42 Dealing with overstimulation as a mum

25:45 We are the first generation of mothers to apologise to our kids

27:27 Stay-at-home mums sometimes feel ‘collectively lonely’

30:55 The motherhood penalty

34:11 On why mothers are extra productive workers

36:35 Advice for those considering the switch

Host: Vanessa Chelvan (vpchelvan@sph.com.sg)