https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 12 Apr 2026 02:14:55 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476839 Sat, 27 Feb 2016 07:12:31 +0000 Mrs Hedgehog 2476839@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@Mrs. Jacks: adoption is still covered under FMLA. were you not able to use that? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476838 Sat, 27 Feb 2016 07:07:26 +0000 Mrs Hedgehog 2476838@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Used my 12 weeks of FMLA. (A screw up on HR's side got me am exra week though so i technically took 13 weeks.) I did use sick and vacation time during my 12 weeks so I was able to still keep a paycheck. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476821 Sat, 27 Feb 2016 03:04:32 +0000 gingerbebe 2476821@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>California. FMLA eligible.</p> <p>Under my disability policy I get 4 weeks before actual delivery and 6-8 weeks post partum depending on method of delivery. This is paid out at 50% salary with full benefits and FMLA does not come into play yet. I can supplement that with accrued leave time if I want more money but I chose not to.</p> <p>After that I can use my accrued leave at 25, 50, 75, or 100%, meaning I can stretch out my leave longer for less pay. I chose to take 50% pay to remain at half-time status to maintain my health benefits.</p> <p>With my job I have a statutory right of return for up to a year leave of absence where you can return to your current position, although the department you end up at is not guaranteed. I was assured I would be able to return to my team so I took the full year. </p> <p>I left work at 38 weeks in case I went past my due date but had the baby at 39 weeks. Then I had 8 weeks for a C-section, then I stretched out my accrued leave another 7 weeks, for a total of 4 months at 50% pay and full benefits. At the point I went unpaid, I invoked my FMLA rights and got my 12 weeks that way, during which my pension contributions and retirement and promotion credits were preserved. So I really only lost out 5 months worth of seniority at work (which pushed my next raise) but it was great in the grand scheme since my job itself was protected. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476819 Sat, 27 Feb 2016 01:38:48 +0000 dc yoga bee 2476819@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I used the sick and annual leave I accrued for 8 weeks paid time off. I'm sitting at 18hrs of leave to my name now, and it's been hard to get that now that I have a baby! I can't imagine building all that leave back up for number two! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476621 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 19:39:42 +0000 DesertDreams88 2476621@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>FMLA eligible so that is what we get, 12 weeks of unpaid time. We have to use our PTO, which lucky for me I had 7.5 weeks saved up. I also have the max amount of STD, which is "6" weeks, though the first week is unpaid. So in the end, I will be getting 12.5 weeks of pay for 12 weeks of leave. But, that is bc I almost never took any PTO for the past 6 years and it rolled over; and I paid for the highest level of STD. Future leaves will only have the 6 (really 5) weeks of STD. </p> <p>I have to go back all at once, since I'm a teacher. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476491 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 16:44:27 +0000 alphagam84 2476491@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>8 weeks paid leave then they tapped into my 2 weeks of PTO. I took 14 1/2 weeks off total so 4.5 weeks were unpaid. My husband then took 2 weeks off when I went back so DD had someone home with her for 16 weeks before having to start daycare. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/3#post-2476476 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 16:29:24 +0000 fussygal 2476476@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took 17 weeks. Six of them were paid by my work's short term disability plan at 60% of my salary. Then I received one month of full pay from work and the next seven were paid at 50%. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476434 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 15:54:48 +0000 MoonMoon 2476434@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I didn't vote because my situation is unique. I'm a part time instructor, so I didn't have any paid time off. But my baby was born in June so I got to stay home with him for 2.5 months before school started up again, and even after that I was only gone 2-3 days a week. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476332 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 14:30:55 +0000 BSB 2476332@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took 12 weeks after the birth of my twins, but I was also on hospital bed rest for 6 weeks prior to them being delivered. </p> <p>So not that I wanted to go back to work after 12 weeks, I did kinda feel like it was time to go to work and have a schedule. My DH is a SAHD. </p> <p>My STD medical leave before they were born and the 8 weeks (c-section) after they were born was all paid. I took 4 weeks of unpaid leave under the unpaid bonding leave my job offers. My company offers upto 12 weeks of unpaid bonding leave.</p> <p>I live in WA but my company is based out of CA.</p> <p>Oh, I was FMLA eligible. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476325 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 14:27:53 +0000 agold 2476325@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@SFMummy: Thank you for that info. And yes, I hadn't even considered that it would take a while for the benefits to kick in. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476283 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:56:03 +0000 SFMummy 2476283@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@agold </p> <p>I can't remember the exact terms, but you get 6 weeks for disability, or 8 if you have a c-section. Then you get another 6 weeks of PFL leave (paid family leave). </p> <p>It was pretty easy, once the first 6 weeks was over I got a message in my online account saying I needed to fill out the new form. Went to the same card, etc. </p> <p>Better outline - <a href="http://pregnancy.lovetoknow.com/wiki/California_Maternity_Leave" rel="nofollow">http://pregnancy.lovetoknow.com/wiki/California_Maternity_Leave</a></p> <p>Also just a note - it took FOREVER to get any of my benefits. I didn't get anything until 8 weeks out, then the entire 6 weeks of disability was dropped in. Luckily it wasn't a huge deal for us financially, but I couldn't believe it took that long and wondered how people got by if they hadn't planned for that. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476276 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:51:00 +0000 Mrs D 2476276@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>6 weeks under STD....6 additional under FMLA.</p> <p>STD was 100% paid. FMLA was completely unpaid.</p> <p>I am choosing not to use any of my vacation time. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476275 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:50:40 +0000 Alba4 2476275@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Baby #1<br /> FMLA eligible. I took a total of 17 weeks. I was paid for 6 (but I had to use sick time). The rest of the time was unpaid, plus I had to pay COBRA for the last month.</p> <p>Baby #2<br /> Because I'm on a medical leave from work (modified bedrest), I will use up FMLA for the calendar year. Since I'm also using all of my sick time to have a fully paid medical leave, I'll have to take an unpaid maternity leave. Oh, and I'll have to pay COBRA each month. I'm either planning a 3 or 4 month leave. </p> <p>Isn't America grand? Supposedly Governer Cuomo is proposing a paid maternity leave bill that will be voted on in May, but even if it passes, I doubt it will be in effect in time for my baby's arrival in June. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476271 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:48:16 +0000 Ms maths 2476271@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>LO1: 11 weeks<br /> LO2: 5 months</p> <p>I'm a professor, so the times I am reporting are the time until I went back to teaching; I did, however, do research during that time. For both, I took leave until the current semester ended and then had a regular break (winter break with LO1 and summer break with LO2). For both, I had 6 weeks of paid leave (for medical) and then took some unpaid leave for both. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476262 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 13:45:31 +0000 agold 2476262@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@SFMummy: how did you get 12 weeks of paid disability by the state?? Please share! For some reason I thought it was only 6 weeks. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2476183 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 12:48:51 +0000 Finfan 2476183@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I was FMLA eligible (government employee) and took it. Most recently, I took 12 weeks and was able to use saves PTO for 9.5. I basically missed one paycheck so that wasn't bad at all financially. I would have loved to take longer but my job would not have been held for me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2475564 Fri, 26 Feb 2016 00:37:12 +0000 SFMummy 2475564@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>20 Weeks - Californian here.</p> <p>12 weeks of it was paid at 55% by disability/FMLA<br /> 4 weeks vacation/sick time at 100%</p> <p>Rest unpaid.</p> <p>Still wasn't long enough! I would have gladly taken longer off unpaid but my company has a max of 16 weeks maternity (Can then apply vacation). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2061123 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 14:34:37 +0000 PawPrints 2061123@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My company isn't required to comply with FMLA but they do so anyway. I could take up to 6 weeks at 60% pay and an additional 6 weeks unpaid for a total of 12 weeks off with a guarantee I would have my job back. I didn't feel like 12 weeks was enough time to spend with my baby so I'm going to take a total of 6 months off, all of it unpaid except that first 6 weeks at 60%. No guarantee I will have my job back at the end of it, but almost every mother at my company has done something similar and 99% of them have gotten their jobs back. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060964 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 13:40:26 +0000 MamaG 2060964@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>FMLA eligible.</p> <p>LO1:<br /> 11 weeks - all sick/vacation leave that I had accrued. I couldn't benefit from STD, as my company's policy is that you must exhaust your accrued time.</p> <p>LO2:<br /> 8 weeks - 6 weeks of accrued sick/vacation. Remaining 2 weeks STD (at &lt;60% of pay). My STD policy is available through my employer, but fully paid by me (no employer contribution). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060916 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 13:28:41 +0000 birdofafeather 2060916@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took about 16 weeks off: 3 before delivery and 13 after. I was technically not eligible for FMLA because my company was less than 50 but I'm in CA so I used disability and our state Family leave for pay and my company had no issue keeping my position for me. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060765 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 12:36:24 +0000 bunnylove08 2060765@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took 8 weeks since i had a c section. My leave was not paid so we used all my vacation and sick time. I was lucky DH has paternity so DD was able to be cared for by us for almost 6 months before she had to go to a sitter. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060720 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 12:21:59 +0000 sunny 2060720@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>FMLA eligible.</p> <p>I took 20 weeks which was the maximum allowed by my company. The first 12 weeks was paid. The next 8 weeks was unpaid, but I was able to use saved vacation days to cover part of the unpaid portion. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060692 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 12:04:49 +0000 kiddosc 2060692@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took 8 weeks, which was all of my stockpiled vacation and sick time. I was FMLA eligible, but was required to use any accrued pto during my leave. I was not eligible for std because of a pre-existing condition, though it was offered through my employer. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060672 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:57:36 +0000 ChelseaRose 2060672@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I took 20 weeks off. The way my employer interprets the CA pregnancy leave with FMLA results in the amount of time you are out medically (usually 6-8 weeks, although my OB gave me 10 weeks off because I was on meds for awhile after delivery) then followed by 12 weeks of baby bonding time. I could have taken another week or two, but wanted to save the last two weeks in case I needed more time later on within the first year. I was paid via sick time, vacation time, overtime, etc. for all but one day of the 20 weeks. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060647 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:50:48 +0000 mrs. tictactoe 2060647@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>With Liam, I took 10 weeks of official leave, came back to work for one half day at the end of the year, then it was summer break. So I actually got 4.5 months off. This time, I will take 14 weeks of official leave, come back for one half day, then have summer break and I'll end up with 6 months total off. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060633 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:48:05 +0000 Mrs. Jacks 2060633@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>First one, 4 months, last one 3 days. This one, I have two weeks scheduled. The US sucks, especially when it comes to adoption! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060621 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:46:23 +0000 aegie 2060621@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My company offers 12 weeks paid maternity leave which is separate and apart from FMLA and disability, although they all roll together. </p> <p>So I got 3 weeks disability prior to giving birth because my doctor cleared me. I qualify for 26 weeks of paid disability, so once my maternity leave kicked, disability continued to pay like $200 some odd dollars and my company paid the rest of my salary. FMLA also kicked in the minute I took disability to protect my job. So I have 6 months job protection. So total time I took off was 3 weeks disability, 12 weeks paid maternity and then a week off vacation for a total of 16 weeks. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060609 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:42:58 +0000 Rainbow Sprinkles 2060609@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>5 weeks.<br /> unpaid.<br /> no fmla. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060607 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:41:53 +0000 wrkbrk 2060607@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@MrsBananaGrabber: Just TTC now but I chose "11 or 12 weeks" in your poll because our law firm gives us 12 weeks. And 2 weeks for the "secondary" parent. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/american-moms-how-long-did-you-take-for-maternity-leave/page/2#post-2060604 Mon, 09 Feb 2015 11:41:01 +0000 mrsjazz 2060604@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>FMLA eligible here, too. (If I got pregnant at my current employer I would not be FMLA eligible).</p> <p>I used:<br /> 8-weeks short term disability (for C-section). This came out of my sick leave. We got so much that I still had plenty left over.<br /> 4 weeks vacation</p> <p>In addition, I took Fridays off using vacation days for August and September. </p>