In the United States, maternity leave is a patchwork of policies. Some are generous, but most are lacking in adequate time, pay, flexibility, or realistic expectations. Almost all are failing to account for one of the hardest parts of postpartum recovery: the return to work. It’s during the first four weeks back in the office after maternity leave—the “transition month”—that many new mothers struggle the most. From logistics involving pumping, newly established childcare, and shifting to a completely different daily routine—to the mental battle of actually leaving their baby for the first time combined with sleepless nights and surging hormones—it’s a very challenging and crucial time in the postpartum journey. It’s also the time when the pendulum swings and many decide they cannot continue, having to give up their career altogether. In fact, an average of 1 in 4 women exit the workforce during their first year of motherhood.

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This is not because they don’t want to work. It’s because the system, which was never designed with mothers in mind, expects them to rapidly transform overnight. One day, they are entirely consumed with the demands of caring for a newborn: navigating feeding schedules, sleep routines, postpartum hormone surges and physical recuperation, a new family dynamic, and more changes that only new moms can understand. The next day, as soon as their leave is up—if they even have leave to begin with—it’s back to meetings, emails, and expectations that they perform at their pre-baby level, if not higher, without any period of adjustment.

A transition month offers a realistic compromise. Instead........

© Time