Choosing To Be A Stay At Home Mom || Mayim Bialik

Hey, it's Mayim, and I was a stay-at-home mom with a PhD. Yep, that's right! I chose to stay home with my kids when they were young, which I know is a privilege I was able to make. But I wanted to talk about why and how I was able to do so, and why I loved it so much. What are your thoughts? Let me know in the comments!

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You may know me as Amy Farrah Fowler from The Big Bang Theory, or from Blossom, but hopefully, these videos allow you to get to know me better as Mayim, too! Subscribe to my channel for video updates. I upload new videos every Thursday!

Find Mayim Bialik:

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About Mayim Bialik:
You might know me as Amy Farrah Fowler from The Big Bang Theory or from Blossom​ but there are so many other parts of me that you might not be aware of​!​​ I’m trained ​as a​ neuroscientist, ​I'm ​a passionate activist, an observant Jew, a​ perfectly imperfect​ mother, and ​I'm a complicated human being​ like many of you​. This is the place where I wear ​all of those hats - and none of them have a flower on them! ;)

[shalinioutram]

I completely hear you! I also have my doctorate in biochemistry and after two years of a postdoctorate, I got pregnant with my beautiful daughter. I decided just like you to stay home with her and put my career on hold. Then my beautiful baby boy came along and I continued to stay at home with them to enjoy the most amazing years of their lives! I thought I was making a mistake but in hindsight I loved every minute. It was stress free and pure! I became a full-time Mom and I realized that not many women can have this opportunity to watch their children grow! After they started school, I decided to be a small business owner and opened a Kumon Math and Reading center! It was a completely different career choice, but my background in Math and Science allowed me to help kids understand and excel in Math and Reading, build self-confidence, do better in school and set the foundation for them to attain their goals. Who knows, maybe I can nurture future Biochemists, but this choice was the best choice I could make for my life! Cheers to all women who have the courage to do the unthinkable and follow their heart!

[juliebendixen]

In Denmark, parents have 1 year paid maternity leave per child. I wish more countries had such opportunity to be with their kid

[melindajordan]

I did it for almost 20 years. Homeschool, farming, lost social life, divorce and everything. I was lonely, exhausted, broke, confused alot of the time and I will never regret it. My children and I are so close and they are the most amazing people. Other people see tbe difference in my kids and want to know what I did differently. I was there. ❤

[rebeccaramsden]

As a lawyer who is 28 weeks pregnant with her first baby I needed this video.

[lazyperfectionist]

Spending time as a stay-at-home parent should not count as time out of the workforce. I mean, if nothing else, it counts as caretaking and leadership experience.

[meharsheikhstudent]

I can relate! I graduated from Harvard and went on to law school. Now I am a stay-at-home mom and want to be my child's primary caregiver. It is hard to trust anyone!

[MF-pugv]

In Czech we can stay at home until the kid is 3 years old with a little financial support from the government. It's great, I am so grateful to be a stay-at-home mom

[triciag]

I love you Mayim.
I'm an RN. I never intended to be a SAHM. I went back to work 3 months after my son was born. It lasted 3 weeks. I cried EVERY day I had to leave him. And HE cried because he would only take the breast and would not take a bottle while I was gone. One day he got so worked up that it scared my mom and when I got home that night my husband said "you're not going back to work." And I called my boss and said "I'm sorry. I can't come back." They were understanding.
At first, I had an identity crisis. I had always worked and prided myself on being an independent woman. Seeing my son grow changed that. I knew I was the most important job I have ever done and being there for every moment was so special to me. My son and I have the strongest bond and I am so proud of that. A lot of people disrespected me for my choice but I don't care. I wouldn't trade one moment of being home with my son. All the reasons you stated are exactly my reasons.

[heathergoodwin]

This is everything. I experience stay at home mom shaming REGULARLY. Everything you said in this video is 100% accurate. I am someone who has many single working mom friends, and I am their biggest cheerleader. I am fortunate and blessed that I am able to be home with my daughter, as my husband works a job that requires him to travel & therefore, he is gone anywhere from a few weeks to a few months at a time. Other than the financial aspect, I am a single mother the majority of the time. I am blessed to not have to work and worry about money. However, I am constantly bashed, belittled, & criticized for my CHOICE to stay home with my daughter. Even more disheartening, the constant bashing comes from my own mother. She says things like, “why don’t you get a JOB and set an example” & “you have too much time on your hands, get a JOB”.
It is unfortunate that in this age where women are becoming more and more empowered, that we still have this type of judgement and shaming for the choices that we make for our families. I really really appreciate this video and I plan on listening to it every time I am feeling shamed for choosing what is best for me, my daughter, and the future of my family. Thank you, Mayim. Thank you so much. 💗

[izabelarivera]

My husband and I are making serious financial sacrifices so I can stay home with our 5 months old boy. It’s not easy as we had to adjust our spendings significantly but it is so worth it. I love staying home with our baby.

[GrandmaGG]

I chose to stay home with my children. Now my oldest is 25 and my youngest is 16. I am so happy I was given the opportunity to stay home with them. It was a blessing.

[jacquelinewatson]

Staying home with my kids full time has been the best decision I ever made!

[MegaMindyLou]

In my most recent job interview, I just had a compliment on my resume because I included my 10 years I stayed home with my girls. He liked the way I broke down my time at home into visual tasks - balanced priorities to create and implement budget, taught and modeled ethics, worked closely with educators to closely monitor academic performance, etc, . I’m very thankful we were able to swing me staying home, a lot of families these days just can’t do it.

[Alwina]

When we got married we tried to live off of only my husbands paychecks so that I could stay home once we had kids. I now have an almost 3 year old (hoping to get pregnant soon) and am able to stay at home. We definitely make some sacrifices in order for me to be able to stay at home. Our cars are old and we rarely eat out. Vacations are not happening until we have saved enough to replace one of the cars. I do feel judged a lot for staying at home but daycare costs more than half of what I would earn and I do want to see my kid grow up and not pay someone else and miss out.

[lifewiththegentryfamily]

I Love this!! I stay home with my 3 kids and pregnant, working on my 11 😉. I was working but realized What I wanted wasn’t going to work while working I was exhausted, fighting with my husband, and too stressed for my kids. I also was reading my bible and was trying to model how God designed the family but was fighting the being dependent on your husband part. Which was more of my mom and grandmas lifestyle of motherhood and marriage so I adopted their traditional ways of thinking. I put the full providing responsibilities on my husband and now i focus on my home and kids. And I love it!!! Everyone is happier!! And my husband has shot up in the providing category which I wasn’t expecting. I believe God blessed us because we listened Him.

[lolitaadams]

I'm a grandparent who has decided to cut back my work in order to allow my daughter(a teen Mom)to finish highschool while i become a Mom all over again. I know this action will cause a drastic tightening of my budget BUT the satisfaction i feel knowing i am there for my beautiful grandaughter AND helping my daughter have a better chance in life are worth it. Yes, being a teen Mom was NOT the best of choices BUT i wouldn't trade my granddaughter for anything! I've prioritized- EXTRA stuff is not going to have me miss the precious moments with my grandbaby😀. Thank God i can make that choice.

[livinginlux]

I was brought up by a stay-at-home mom. I have always been so grateful and appreciative that she went against the grain and made that choice. We didn't have much when I was little...our living room was empty for several years, one winter they couldn't afford heating oil and we spent nights huddled around a kerosene heater...but I wouldn't have traded my mother being there for anything in the world. I can't put into words the joy and confidence my mother's constant presence gave me as a child. Don't let a capitalist, materialistic culture make you feel insecure for putting your children first. We're truly living in upside-down world when women are judged badly for devoting themselves to raising their children.

[MegaMom]

I got pregnant my last semester of college graduated with a Bachelor’s degree with not knowing what to do. I stayed at the job I had been at for 6 years & then made a decision to leave when my daughter turned 1 to stay home with her because I barely saw her with working over 40 hours & I was not happy working there anymore. I would see her in the morning & just before she went to bed so I knew something had to change. BEST decision I ever made. I am now home with my daughter & pursuing & starting an online business in order to continue to stay home & have more children! LOVE this video.

[AbujaYummyMummy]

its such a difficult and thankless job and people often look down on it, and i just cant wait till when society wakes up and realize that its the most selfless and one of the hardest job.😣

[vanessaboek]

I don't see why people have to explain why or why not they stayed home or went back to work. Everyone does what they can in their situation.