National MT Week (May 18 24, 2008)

I am in shock. Are you living in 2008 or [2008-06-25]
1958. Is this real? Every able body in the household should contribute. You do work. You just do it at home. You need to take some time out for yourself and decide if the verbal abuse is worth the trouble. You must remember your children will see and hear how he treats you and this is abuse to them also. Don't you think you are worth so much more? You must think of your children and your mental well being. I refused to live this way years ago and my two daughters and I did just fine and with no child support. I raised two wonderful women, now 24 and 30, and both college graduates.

National MT Week (May 18-24, 2008) [2008-03-28]
http://www.ahdionline.org/scriptcontent/eMTWeek.cfm

Anything more than a week is unreasonable.. [2007-08-30]
Been there, done that x3. More than a week is not only unreasonable but just plain inexcusable.

more than a week off is not unreasonable. [2007-08-30]
For me it was my third child and I had lots of support. Some women are not so fortunate. Have you ever heard of complications???? Some women (and their children) haven't even been released from the hospital after one week. Maternity leave should be based on the individuals need. Personally I requested a months leave but told my company that if I was able I would be back sooner. A mother should take as much or as little time as she needs and should not feel pressured to return to work too early this could be bad for not only the mothers recovery but for the babies development.

Last week we kept our 3-1/2-year-old [2007-01-31]
granddaughter and her 1-1/2-year-old brother for 6 days while their parents were on a cruise. I worked from 4:00 a.m. until they got up each morning (about 7-7:30). Then I did not work again until they were asleep for the night, about 8:00 p.m. I then worked until 12:30 or 1:00 a.m. Good luck finding a schedule that works for you. You can do it, and I admire you for wanting to spend quality time with your daughter!

yup...possible [2008-11-13]
I don It does take time to get into the swing of things though. When I first started, I was averaging about $5 an hour, but after a month or two started to see more financial progress. I have been an MT for about 2 years now and work about 15 hours a week, but if I worked FT, it would average out to about $35,000, and that is with taxes taken out already.

hard, but can be done! [2008-11-12]
I started working from home when my daughter was just under a year old and my son was 3. I have been at it for almost 2 years now. It can be very, very hard at times, especially when my husband doesnbad days. However, I can say that after the first few months it got a little easier. I try to have activities for them to do while I work, and I just plan on having LOTS of interruptions. My job is not very flexible and I have to work set hours, so there are definitely days where I don't meet my quota...I usually make it up later in the week though.

I did it - it is possible! [2008-11-05]
I started working from home when my son was just almost 2-1/2. Before that, I worked at a hospital and he was shifted from babysitter to grandma to daddy four days a week. I know you said you canmommy sitter. That's where a child (they say ideal is 8-12 years old) comes to play and entertain the children while mommy has something else she needs to get done in the house (or take a bubble bath!). It wouldn't cost much to pay a child so young and the child's parent would be reassured by your presence. Plus, a child that age with no younger sibling might truly enjoy playing with a 1-year-old. That might work until your husband comes home. Keep working at it. Sometimes it just takes a while to adjust and kids go thru periods of straining at the confines of a schedule. Work at figuring out a schedule until you find one that works. You CAN do it! And it's worth it!!

Working at home while caring for 1-year-old son. Can it really be done? [2008-10-21]
Seriously . . . Can it? I work second shift. Most the days I am starting once I lay my son down for his afternoon nap (around 12:30 p.m.) and then working until the end of my shift with a lunch in the middle. My husband doesn My son has recently decided he needs less sleep, which is understandable since he is getting older now. He has cut his naps down to about 1 hour a day. That means I have to try to work from about 1:30 p.m. until my husband gets home trying to take care of my son at the same time. He usually is pretty good about playing on his own or sitting on my lap watching me, but he is teething now and is very, very needy. He won I just switched jobs, so I can Any suggestions or help or tips would be greatly appreciated. I wish I didn I am just totally stressing about not making enough to pay the bills and trying to keep my son and husband happy all at the same time. Tips and suggestions would be very, very much appreciated. Thanks.

I did both too. sm [2008-09-21]
I homeschooled my oldest child for 2nd, 3rd, and 6th grade while working as a medical transcriptionist. For his 2nd and 3rd grade, I set him up a workspace right in my office, so that I could instruct, assign work, monitor, and support. We then would go once a week to the district and he would test. Needless to say, he did wonderfully. It became more difficult however for myself trying to take my youngest at the time to school and pick up, work, go to school myself, teach, and take care of home and family. I was going through some personal issues with my hubby at the time and the stress was just too much for me. I did it again when he was in 6th grade. If you have the will and the self discipline, it is great! Good luck!

one-month-old-- have one too. [2008-09-08]
My daughter was born 08/08/08, and I also have a 15-year-old and a 3-year-old. I commend you for going back in one week!! I should be back already, but just can My normal shift is 5 a.m. to 1 p.m., and I have been laying back down with her after she gets up her once a night, until most days 8 a.m. at least. When we started giving my son cereal at night at 4 weeks, he slept longer. Put it in his bottle to start with a larger nipple, and then spoon fed also.Maybe try spoon feeding abit of cereal mixed with milk beforelaying her down for the night? Docs do not recommend it, but it sure helps them sleep longer/keeps their tummy fuller longer. It has worked for my first 2 sons!! I have never breast fed, so don Every baby is different, and you will probably have to adapt to her schedule, rather than she to yours. That is what is good about flexible schedules-- I go back to work this Wed. and have a VERY flexible schedule/boss. Good luck with this, I have it pretty easy, my daughter gets up only once a night, but it may be 2 a.m., it may be 4:30 a.m., than she goes back down and it is WAY too temptnig to lay back down with her, instead of getting into the groove of getting up by 5 a.m.!!! SHe also sleeps the largest part of the day, just waiting for that to change... Again, good luck!

I believe it is all a state of mind [2008-08-31]
kind of thing. Some days I would love to stay in my pj I have 5 children that I homeschool every morning. I have a K, 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th graders at home. They are the reason I do this job so that I can be home with them. I work 4 days per week, part-time and the kids have piano lessons, dance lessons, school work, etc.. We manage to get everything done in a day. They also know that when mom is working it is time for them to do something quietly and they cooperate very well. It can be done and it does not have to be hard.

Really possible? [2008-08-18]
I am not an MT (yet) but before I make the final step enrolling in M-Tec I wanted to ask a serious, point blank question. Can a new person, after completing M-Tecs course, make 20k a year at any point after getting a job (while working no more than 40 a week as well). Is this an at all reasonable expectation? I am looking long term career choice if I commit to the training but I have heard from working MT's in my state that they were working 80+ hours for about $500.00. If this is the reality then I will have to consider another option and that would be OK, just not optimal. I THANK you for any help you can give.

Tax Free Shopping Weekend [2008-07-29]
Hey, I) But I know that all WAHM need to do what they can to save some money. This link shows when each state that is participating is having its sales tax free shopping weekend for back to school (and other items). http://singleparents.about.com/od/taxfreeholidays/2007_Sales_Tax_Free_Holidays.htm Enjoy (Yes the link says 2007, but it is 2008). Chris

Been there...done that [2008-07-24]
Please don't beat yourself up. I've been exactly where you are and it's not a hard place to end up. I could have written your post. I lived in my PJs and sometimes wore them for days, no make-up, and the same issues with even basic daily hygiene, i.e. showers. The best advice I can give you is what worked for me and that is to GET OUT OF THE HOUSE! I had to put MTing on the back burner and actually took a job close to home as a waitress! Believe it or not, it did wonders for my self-esteem. Most people would consider serving the public a degrading position or demotion from what I had done before. I needed the structure, a time-clock, and just basic interaction with other human beings. After close to a year, I am back at home working once again as an MT. Public service can be difficult, but it was just the boost I needed to get my mojo back and appreciate the fact that I'm in a field that allows me to work at home. Believe it or not, I miss the people so much, I'm considering going back to waitressing a few nights a week. I actually even made more waitressing than being an MT! Give it a shot. Waitressing may not be your first choice, but I would definitely advise finding any type of job that will get you out of the house. It will give you a reason to fix yourself up and dig the make-up bag back out. Please feel free to email me if you'd like to talk. Good luck to you!

working at home [2008-07-24]
I love working at home for the reason that can go out with my husband and daughter for lunch, dinner or breakfast, as I have my own accounts and they give me a week to get it done and it works great for me. Yes, they are still on tapes and one of them I do doctors notes. This all works out great for my family. We are totally blessed by the Almighty God.

working at home [2008-07-23]
I work at home also, but one of the private accounts I work on requires me to go to the office twice a week to pick up tapes. Maybe that is a good thing. During the summer my husband and daughter go with me and then we grab lunch out together and do whatever errands we have to do. It really is a change and I love it.

1-month-old schedule [2008-05-21]
Hiya. I have 8-year-old twin boys and an almost 1-month old girl. It has been a long time since the boys were on a napping schedule, so I was wondering if someone could refresh my memory as to when a nursing newborn can be set up on somewhat of a sleep-at-night, nap-by-day schedule and what a typical schedule might be. I went back to work one week after she was born, but am finding it really difficult to work consistently and get enough sleep for myself (homeschool the boys, one with special needs) with the baby up about every four hours. My boss is very patient anddoes not mind lesser line counts at this point, since I came back after only one week (despite emergency c-section), but I really want my line counts and paycheck back to normalas soon aspossible! Thank you!

Sounds like his mother was this type of [2008-04-01]
wife/mother and that is all he knows. My ex was like that (his mom was SAHM and did absolutely everything) and he found out real quick that was not the real world, especially as I was working 40+ hours a week. I truly believe you both need to sit down and let each other know your expectations. Since this has been going on forever, it is going to take time for you both to come to some sort of compromise. You can only do so much before you run yourself into the ground. Then you are no good for anyone--him or your children. Plus, your kids need to know that if and when they have families, it takes 2 to run a household, not just the mom.

update [2008-03-31]
thank you all for your encouragement and advice. we haven't been going to church regularly lately and i've realized maybe we need it, so i packed the kids up and we went to church (he came too, usually i get up and get the kids ready and tell him an hour before i leave that if he's not ready by then i'm leaving without him -- he sleeps in on weekends, as i said before). so we go to church and guess what the sermon is about... marital disharmony. our pastor listed some things that cause disharmony and one of them was unrealistic expectations. i listed mine as expecting him to be home more often to spend more time with us. he asked if i wanted us to spend more time together, and i said yes. so he convinced his mom to take the girls and then took me out to dinner, and told me he would try to do something with me once a week. another thing the pastor said was not to criticize differences, to embrace them and celebrate them. he didn't make any comments about it but i'm hoping if he paid attention to the expectations part that maybe he paid attention to this too. i've told him before that i can't take constant criticism, it breaks me down and makes me feel worthless. i do realize keeping my mouth shut for the sake of peace and quiet isn't going to get us anywhere. one day it's all going to add up and i'm not going to know what i'm doing here anymore. if he can keep making little steps like he did yesterday, then i can keep setting an example and look forward to his slow maturity. i do have some childhood banks my mom gave me recently, filled with coins -- i'm going to take them in to be counted asap.

In the same boat [2008-02-01]
My 18mo daughter has a problem with waking up at 3 in the morning to play, too. Not sure what is going on. Most days she is a super sleeper, even still taking three or four hour naps in the day, while still sleeping all through the night. But about once a week, she wakes up in the middle of the night, playing with her dollie in her crib. We just let her go and she usually falls back to sleep.

have to agree with Mom of many [2008-01-31]
I Believe me, I If a child gets away with it once they My 4-year-old used to get up around 3 a.m. and try to come into my bed but I just tuck him right back into his bed. He used to fuss and cry but he knows now that it won't work and his early morning awakenings are becoming less and less, down to once a week now. As parents we just have to be consistent right from the start and don't give in, even when we're exhausted and frustrated.

looking for insight [2008-01-24]
Hello All, This is my first post here. I have some questions about my current employment situation and was hoping for some insight from others who may have been in my shoes before. Basically, I have been working for a small transcription service for the last 2 years.I came into the field as a way to have a flexible, at-homeschedule for my school aged children and just to earn a little extra cash per month. I donformal MT training or education but because of the bachelorreally love the work, but after 2 years I am only making 7.75 cents per line. Each time I get comfortable with a certain discipline and begin to increase my line count, the employer switches the account I'm on and I'm back to square 1. Also due to the limited availability of the work she has right now, I'm only getting 5-10 hours a week, if that. Sorry to be so long-winded, I suppose I'm just wondering if 7.75 is a fair rate for 2 years experience and if I'm getting the shaft by being switched from 1 discipline to another every few months so that I am never able to increase my production/pay. I would appreciate any thoughts or suggestions. Thank you.

Some ideas [2008-01-23]
These might work for you. I went to college and had three children and a full-time job (transcription). My employer let me work at home too and on a flex schedule, just had to get the work done and I aimed for weekends, but you may want to work pm - that works too. I had to be at the hospital at set times too, 6:00 - 3:30 three days a week for clinical and then two days a week at school all day long from 7:00 to about 4:00. I had my mom (thank God for moms) pick up my kids from school (they were a little older than yours). I picked them up from her house after I got out of school, about 4:30. I went home and then fed everyone, then baths were early and some homework and everyone had to go to bed early. Like at 7:00. They could leave the lights on and play with a toy or talk for a half-hour and then they had a half-hour of reading time - quietly after that and they mostly always fell asleep that way. I then had a few hours to do my homework (nursing school has lots of it) and clean up the kitchen, maybe type for an hour or two. I went to bed early as possible and listened to recorded lectures until I fell asleep. I got up every morning at 4:00 a.m. for four years. Even on the weekends. I listened to recorded lectures at those times and cleaned the house, made lunches, and did the laundry. It is peaceful at 4:00 a.m. and things you study are best remembered if you study for some reason. On weekends, I made up enough dinners for the rest of the week and froze them, typed reports for work (cramming 40 hours worth in is not easy. I did it with a little bit done during the week on lighter days, but for three hours without fail on Saturdays I went to the library to work on school stuff alone - my mom again! It helps to listen to lectures (recorded) while you drive and while you get ready in the mornings. I had a study group too (three of us) and that helped a lot. We divided up all the material we had learned before exam days and exchanged our notes and study materials in that way. I was married, but my husband was gone on business five days a week, so he was no help. Just get a pattern going and stick with it no matter what (except illness). It is easier to clean in the morning when kids are asleep. Get rid of all the extra toys and knick-knacks - you won't have to dust them or put them away if they aren't there. Make sure you have a freezer and a dishwasher because they are your best friends. If you can't fix dinner, eat out or get takeout, but be sure it does not become your only source of food. Plan ahead and you won't have to do that often. Sometimes I cheated and took all the clothes to the laundromat because you can do it all at once (like in two hours) in case that has fallen behind. Sometimes I thought I would lose it, but I didn't. I survived and graduated, did not get fired from my job and my kids are all okay. Take vitamins. Learn to like coffee! I never drank it until then. Good luck. You can do it!

You are right, and no one can should be expected to work a schedule of 20+ hours of work in 1 day or [2008-01-19]
work 7 days a week. Especially when you have children at home, who are more important to you than all of the money in the world and any career in the world. The one thing a parent will regret most in life would be not being devoted to the love and care of their children.

Overwhelmed! [2008-01-18]
I am a self-employed WAHM-MT. I do not have a degreeMT, was trained 10 years ago by the same client I am contracted with now. They had 4 phys. when I started and it was myself and an in-house MT. I had 1 child then, who napped 3-4 hours a day, so I worked before she woke up, during her naps, and after she went to bed. 10 years later andseveral children later, they now have 6 drs. and 3 np They no longer have an in-house MT, just myself and another WAH MT. There is more than double the work, and less workers, but unfortunately they canmath and figure that out. They refuse to let me subcontract someone to help me. They refuse to hire someone else. They used to demand 24 hr turnaround, but now thank goodness they have at least realized that they can However, after 2-3 days they are complaining and calling me on the phone wanting notes typed and faxed. They refuse to telecommute, so I am still picking up tapes every day. I have a set amount of hoursI work a day, because I have a family to care for and there is only so much work I can do in a day. That is why I work at home. However, they don I have been working my normal M-F hrs, but I am so backed up that I still have 2-3 days worth of typing left on my desk by the end of the day. It is a vicious cycle, because for every 2-3 tapes I get done in a day, they give me 3-4 the next day. If I am still backed up on Fridays, they expect me to work on Sat and Sun, or on holidays, to get caught up. If I did this, I would be working 7 days a week. I told them I would like to avoid working on my days off. I don Apparently the other at-home MT does this for them, or at least they think she does, because they used that bit of information to try to manipulate me into working this weekend. I really am at a loss of what to do. I need the job, but at the same time, I have children who need me. I dona week. Does anyone else out there have this problem or feel this way? They will call me and want me to stop fixing my children It is like they want me to neglect my children, which I cannot and will not do. In the past, I have looked at finding another client, but most in my area want someone with a degree. If I don My husband is looking for a better job making more $ so I can either quit and find another line of work, but nothing has turned up so far. Does anybody out there charge extra for working over a certain amount of hours, or a certain amount of lines? Any advice? Well, I don Thanks for letting me vent.

Yes... [2008-01-18]
I have been through the same thing. I am a mother of two who has had some schooling, but mostly trained on the job. I am self-employed, as well. While working for a national, I was told that I couldn't take the time to feed my baby, or even have a bathroom break...YES I WAS TOLD THAT. So, I left and decided to do things on my own. What I do is sit down and list every activity we have going on for that week (we even play 2 basketball games on Saturdays and have lots of traveling to do that day) and fit work in. I typically like to work M-F, but there are times when I work on Saturday, as well. I have a 24-hour TAT, so as long as I get my work in on time, I am doing okay...still having time with my family and time for work, as well. As far as Holidays, I don't totally write them off of my schedule..if I have work available then after I spend time with my family and the kids have gone to bed, I work. It can be very frustrating, but once you find the balance between home (family) and work, you will feel free as a bird (and less overwhelmed). I sure hope this helps!

here is my advice... [2008-01-18]
Take your kids to a sitter; you It amazes me the amount of WAHM Helloooooo, treat it as if it were a real job. If you left your home, you I realize that is another bill, but it is NOT a perk to work at home to have your kids interrupting you all day long. It is NOT a perk to work at home when you get interrupted every 10 minutes, then end up working over a span of 12-14 hours of the day, just to get your 8 hours of work done. I just don IMO, it is worth me spending the $18 a day to send my son to the sitter where he gets social time with other kids, and I get peace and quiet time to do my work.How is that so hard to figure out???

I can definitely relate to this. [2008-01-18]
I started sending my son to preschool about 6 months ago, but recently had to pull him out. I am so absolutely stressed with him home now. I cannot concentrate and I feel like I am now working from 4 am to 9 pm each day and making much less. With him at school, I could work for 5-6 hours straight each day and then be done and have the evening to spend with my family. Now I feel like I have to work all day in between the breaks I have to take to take care of his needs and my income has dropped by $200 each week as I canIf momma ain? It is so true! I am really hoping that I can at least get him back in somewhere part-time. For me, the extra work I get done more than covers the cost of preschool, not to mention he gets out of the house and gets to play with other kids his age and I get some quiet time alone.

I'm giving up and I'm sad. . .(kind of long) sm [2008-01-08]
I have decided to give up my dreamof beingan MT. I have worked for approximately 6 months with 3 different companies. The first 2 lost contracts or didnmy husbandoff my back. I knew they weren't hiring, but I thought if I at least made the effort to get my old job back, he would leave me alone. My old boss was very glad to see me and said she had wanted to call me and ask me to come back, but she didn't want to make me feel bad. She said she didn't have any openings, but she will hire me anyway because she didn't want anyone else to snatch me up first. That made me feel really good, but I was kind of hoping she would have just said she didn't have anything for me. So, I start back next week. Anyway, I did not mean to make such a long post. I don't have anyone to talk to because all people see is how much money I could be making at my other job. No one cares that I love the work I am doing as an MT. Thanks for listening.