Maternity Leave Vs. ‘Me-ternity’ Leave and What It Means for Work-Life Balance

I read with great interest the following story in the New York Post titled, “I want all the perks of maternity leave — without having any kids.”

The story, written by Meghann Foye, a self-professed overworked yet childless woman in her mid-30s (and author of a recently published novel called “Meternity”), argues that all women deserve “me” time away from work, and that maternity leave shouldn’t be limited just to new moms.

[T]he more I came to believe in the value of a “meternity” leave — which is, to me, a sabbatical-like break that allows women and, to a lesser degree, men to shift their focus to the part of their lives that doesn’t revolve around their jobs. 

For women who follow a “traditional” path, this pause often naturally comes in your late 20s or early 30s, when a wedding, pregnancy and babies means that your personal life takes center stage. But for those who end up on the “other” path, that socially mandated time and space for self-reflection may never come .… 

It seemed that parenthood was the only path that provided a modicum of flexibility. There’s something about saying “I need to go pick up my child” as a reason to leave the office on time that has far more gravitas than, say, “My best friend just got ghosted by her OkCupid date and needs a margarita” — but both sides are valid.