Maternity leave is the furthest thing from vacation, and these out-of-office messages will communicate you’re unavailable (and why) directly and honestly.
There are no words for the postpartum experience, and no “out-of-office” message can carry the weight of what a mother goes through during that time.
All new parents deserve time to step away from work responsibilities and focus solely on caring for their new babies, healing, and adjusting to their new family dynamic.
Ready-to-go maternity leave out-of-office responses:
- “I am currently out of the office meeting the human that I have grown inside of me for the last nine months, going through significant hormonal changes, healing physically, and balancing the busy day-to-day of raising a family on little to no sleep. “I’ll be back on ___. Please contact ____ in my absence (and send food!).”
- “Out of office but busier than ever. Will return on _____. Please contact ____ with any questions.”
- “On maternity leave. I will return with more time management skills, multi-tasking abilities, ways to diffuse tense situations, and negotiation techniques. Please contact ___ for support until my return on ___.”
- “I am currently waking up at 12 am, 2 am, 4 am, and 6 am. I hope to sleep more than this upon my return to the office. See you [too] soon! In the meantime, please get in touch with my colleague _____ for support.”
- “I will be out of the office from __ until __. I will not be responding to emails during this time as I will be adjusting, physically and mentally, to life with a newborn. I look forward to speaking with you when I return. Please reach out to ____ while I’m away.”
Maternity leave isn’t a vacation; your out-of-office should be honest
So much occurs in a mother’s mind and body postpartum. Healing and recovery from birth, however, the baby was brought into the world, takes time.
They’re visiting the bathroom, often enduring incontinence, all-over pain and soreness, and changing postpartum pads, all while providing themselves with frequent wound care and trying to figure out how to feed a baby.
Significant hormonal changes can make crying an hourly occurrence (both from mom and baby).
And feeding a baby? No matter how you do it, the process requires education, learning, and time.
Breastfeeding is often incredibly challenging at first and a job on its own; with it comes pumping, being available for the baby around the clock, and, for some, physical pain.
Some parents use formula, which is also wonderful, but cleaning and preparing these bottles takes time.
New parents aren’t getting sleep; they wake up every few hours throughout the night and welcome the sun groggily, often feeling jet-lagged and relying on caffeine to make it to the next (very short) nap.
Many mothers (at least 1 in 5) experience postpartum anxiety and/or depression, wondering when they’ll see the light again. Let’s remind these mothers that 100% of perinatal mood disorders are treatable. Don’t be afraid to contact your doctors, family, and friends for more support.
New mothers are adjusting to their new reality and wondering when they’ll feel like themselves again. Spoiler alert: it takes time, and you will.
Seasoned parents care for their other children while doing all of the above, trying to heal, rest, and care for their newborn.
Doing all of this while also thinking about work is nearly impossible. That is why maternity leave is so important not only for mothers themselves but for their new babies, older children, and partners.
Details to include in your maternity leave autoresponder
No matter what you write for your maternity leave OOO, it’s important to include some important details to clearly communicate what’s going on.
- A clear statement that you’re on maternity leave
- Who to contact in your absence
- The anticipated dates you’ll be out of the office
- If and how often you’ll be checking your email
- A link to your meal train (kidding, kind of)
Copy and paste maternity leave out-of-office messages
For those looking for some colorful ways to describe the work they’re doing while on maternity leave, we’re sharing five ideas below. Of course, feel free to adjust these as needed to your unique work environment.
1. The “brutally honest” OOO
I am currently out of the office meeting the human that I have grown inside of me for the last nine months, going through significant hormonal changes, healing physically, and balancing the busy day-to-day of raising a family on little to no sleep.
I’ll be back on ___. Please contact ____ in my absence (and send food!).
2. The “short and sweet” OOO
Out of office but busier than ever. Will return on _____. Please contact ____ with any questions.
3. The “she’s not wrong” OOO
On maternity leave. I will return with more time management skills, multi-tasking abilities, ways to diffuse tense situations, and negotiation techniques. Please contact ___ for support until my return on ___.
4. The “sleep deprivation is real” OOO
I am currently waking up at 12 am, 2 am, 4 am, and 6 am. I hope to sleep more than this upon my return to the office. See you [too] soon! In the meantime, please reach out to my colleague _____ for support.
5. The “solid boundaries” OOO
I will be out of the office from __ until __. I will not be responding to emails during this time as I will be adjusting, physically and mentally, to life with a newborn. I look forward to speaking with you when I return. Please reach out to ____ while I’m away.
Ultimately, setting boundaries during this time is so important. Learning to care for a newborn (and yourself) can feel challenging postpartum, and it does take some time to adjust, get into a new routine, and feel confident in life after birth.
If possible, the last thing you need to have on your mind is work. Any time you can spend entirely disconnected is helpful.
Returning to work after maternity leave
When you turn your maternity leave out-of-office off and dive back into your emails, some mixed emotions might arise.
Some are excited to return to the office. It’s a part of us that we often miss and forget about in those early newborn days. Some are anxious about going back and are already reconsidering their careers.
It’s believed that 10% of outside-of-the-home working moms don’t return to work and decide to stay home, and many change their hours to part-time. Some moms plan to stay at home and decide that they want to get out of the house, that they need that part of themselves again.
The one thing that many new moms navigating life after maternity leave have in common is a feeling of guilt. Guilt for leaving the home, guilt for not going to work. We moms put too much on ourselves and should never – ever! – feel guilty for our decision, whatever it is.
Our love is all that our babies need, no matter our working status.
Add this to your OOO: the need for paid maternity leave
Whether a mom works at home or works outside of the home, all moms are working. They need support regardless of their title, and there are many ways that partners, friends, and family can support moms. Gift a cleaning service, bring over a meal, plan a moms’ night out. All of these can make a huge difference.
Moms also carry the weight of the “invisible load.” These are the little things that get done silently, like scheduling appointments, buying clothing in the next size up, stopping for a birthday card, thinking about our children’s milestones, and answering that school email.
There are so many moving parts to keeping a household together, and usually, mom makes it all work.
In other words, moms need a break.
Especially during one of the most challenging parts of motherhood, the postpartum period. Check out the following stats according to Velocity Global.
Bulgaria offers 58.6 weeks (about one year and 1.5 months) of leave at 90% pay. That’s over one year.
Canada offers 50 weeks (about 11 and a half months) at 55% pay, and Croatia provides 30 weeks (about seven months) at 100% pay. That’s incredible.
The U.K. offers 39 weeks (about nine months) at 90% pay.
Sweden offers 39 weeks (about nine months) of paternity leave at 90% pay. Imagine being home with our new babies and partners for an extended period, not worrying about finances or losing jobs.
Also, “the U.S. provides fewer maternity leave protections than any other industrialized nation.” Certain states offer up to 12 weeks of partially paid leave (Oregon pays 100%), but we have a long way to go.
Closing thoughts on maternity leave
The United States needs to do more to support parents, especially mothers. Moms shouldn’t have to struggle when we’re not ready to leave our babies and our bodies are still healing.
If you pause and think about it, this support can start with an honest and engaging out-of-office message when your leave starts.
We shouldn’t have to worry about choosing between our newborn and our jobs, potentially losing them if we don’t return. Let’s continue the conversation surrounding maternity leave. It’s an important one and could change things for us significantly.
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