post PP imposter syndrome

[Olanzapinelenny]

morning, has anyone worked in a primary school or childcare setting since having PP?

[Jenny_at_APP Partner]

Hi Olanzapinelenny,

I hope you’re doing ok.

Thank you for writing. I don’t have any experience of working in these settings but I’m sure others will reply who have.

Are you looking to move into this setting, or is it a setting you’ve worked in previously and looking to go back? I’m guessing from the title of your post that either way, you’re feeling some anxiety around it.

It can be daunting going into (or back into) any new job, and much more so after a severe mental illness has battered your self confidence. Try to surround yourself with people who support and believe in you, hopefully your confidence and self belief will grow as you see yourself starting to achieve some of your goals, you’ve got this

Best wishes,

Jenny x

[Redtap Volunteer]

Hi Olanzapinelenny,

I worked as a childminder for 5 years doing before and after school pick ups. My eldest was about 10 and my youngest was about 6 when I started.

Is there something specific you wanted to ask me?

[SammySeal]

Hi Olanzapinelenny

I worked as a school secretary at a state nursery for a while, but that was about 10yrs after my PP experience. It wasn't the job for me - while I loved welcoming the children each day, I'm really disorganised and hate things like filing etc!

You mentioned post-PP imposter syndrome. Are you experiencing this?

If there's anything you want to chat about let me know.

Sammy x

[Olanzapinelenny]

hello, yes just feeling low in confidence and ability! And in sharing info with prospective new employer but will hopefully pass. Did you experience low confidence?

[Maria_at_APP Moderator]

Hi Olanzapinelenny,

It's hard to go back to work after pp. I do not work in a school setting, but I felt really low in confidence when I went back to work.

You can share as much as you want with your employer. For example I told my boss that I was mentally unwell after the birth and had to go to hospital for a while. I was not ready to share more than that at that point. A couple of years ago (about 4-5 years after my experience of psychosis) I changed boss and I was more open with him and shared about my postpartum psychosis and subsequent bipolar diagnosis. There is no right or wrong way to do it, just share what you feel comfortable with and what you know will help you get more support.

Have you considered a phased return to work? Having a day off in the middle of the week helped me to ease back into the work environment, rather than being loaded with the full responsibility of a full time schedule.

We all struggle to an extent with imposter syndrome, I think it comes with the job of being a parent and working at the same time. It is not possible to give 100% all the time, and I think being kind to yourself and accepting and prioritizing help with that feeling.

Take good care, it's really good that you shared this here because it is a very common theme. All the best,

Maria