New research has found that many mothers are being forced to go back to work after having a baby because they are worried about financial issues.
More than half of those mums who go back to work after their child is born say they do so because of financial constraints.
One in 10 are cutting short their planned maternity leave and going back to work because they find they can't manage.
Only 22 from £3,431 to £2,266 a month while on statutory maternity pay.
This is at a time when parents are spending more, because they're splashing out on the baby. They spend an average of £2,152 in the months before the birth and another £2,521 after the baby is born.
Just a thought - perhaps if they weren't buying so much rubbish, these mums could stay at home longer if they wanted to...
The survey also shows that many parents weren't fully prepared for the financial implications of having a child.
More than half of the 1,000 mums surveyed said they were not prepared for what it would be like living on a reduced income.
More than four in 10 mums said they had ended up in debt while they were on maternity leave, running up debts of £1,329 on average.
Ann Robinson, consumer policy director at uSwitch, told the Guardian: "Debt and financial considerations combine to be the biggest motivating factor behind new mothers returning to the workplace.
"Despite women being told that they can 'have it all' and can choose whether to be a working or stay-at-home mum, the fact is that most have this choice stripped away from them by the financial realities of modern life.
"With the new government planning to cut child trust funds and the impending budget causing concerns over pay freezes and redundancies, family finances are under more pressure than ever.
"The high cost of living coupled with the often crippling cost of a mortgage means that many households today need two incomes to get by. Unfortunately, new mothers are often paying the price for this by seeing their choices taken away."
Are you a stay-at-home mum? How do you manage financially?
Source: The Guardian