Motherhood is the privilege of a woman only. The experience of keeping a child in the womb for nine months and the joy of seeing the new born baby for the first time is a feeling only a woman can relate to. While maternity brings with it a roller-coaster emotional ride, have you spared a thought about the financial ride which you are undertaking?
Motherhood, though a joyous experience, has a considerable financial implication too. Right from the time you get pregnant till the time you deliver, substantial financial expenses are incurred. Even bringing up a child requires money. In most of the cases, it becomes you husband’s prerogative to shoulder the financial burden. But, what if you are a single mother? Or, what if you are a career woman who shoulders the responsibility equally with your partner? Wouldn’t maternity put a dent in your financial independence?
Ideally, it shouldn’t. But, practicality is a far cry. Maternity incurs financial strain a strain which many find challenging. If you don’t want to strain yourself financially, prepare in advance. If you need help, the following guide would tell you how –
- Create a financial portfolio early in life
It is always advised to plan in advance and maternity is no exception. Create a financial portfolio early in your life. Don’t wait for marriage or pregnancy to awaken you. If you are a working woman, set aside little money every month and create a financial portfolio. If you are a housewife, save a little from your monthly budget and invest it. Your investments would supplement your husband’s investments and would help you a great deal when you become pregnant and the expenses start piling up.
- Invest regularly
Just as was pointed out in the above point, invest. However, your investments shouldn’t be sporadic or a one-time affair. It should be done regularly. Regular investments have various advantages. One, you can save small amounts and still build up a considerable corpus. Two, the investments are affordable. Three, you can earn high interest on regular investments which lead to a sizeable corpus. So, make investing a regular habit.
- Step up your investments after pregnancy
Once you become pregnant you know that you would face expenses. Your investments should match the expected investments or you would face a financial crisis. So, after you become pregnant, increase your investments. These investments which are done during pregnancy would help you meet the expenses incurred in raising your child. You can also use your increased investments to bear the cost of child-birth and/or the expenses incurred on the new-born baby’s medical care.
- Continue investments after delivery
You should not stop investing simply because you have delivered your baby. The expenses do not end there. A new born child demands extra care and this extra care comes at a cost. Besides the expenses incurred on the care of the new born, you face the baby’s education expenses once the child is admitted in a school. We all know how expensive modern-day education has become. If you want your child to receive the best of everything when growing up, you need money, loads of it. So, don’t give up on your investing habit. You might put a break to it for some time when you are getting back on your feet. But, after that, don’t stop. Continue putting aside a small sum regularly to create a fund for your child for his/her future use.
How do you want your maternity experience to be? The physiological experience varies between mothers but your financial experience should not be bitter. If you plan in advance, maternity would not break you financially. Take a maternity break for your health but don’t let this break wreak havoc with your finances. Remember these tips, invest your money and prepare yourself to face the challenges motherhood throws at you, both emotionally and financially.
