“When women leave the workforce, they are largely unaware that they are leaving aspects of their best selves behind,” states Dr. Hilary S. Berger, Ed.D. To address this sense of loss that some women may feel upon leaving their careers, along with an often unspoken-of phenomenon of feeling shut down professionally, Berger has designed a program for stay-at-home moms who are seeking a way to regain the satisfaction they may be missing.
The 6-week series, being held at the Wilton Family Y, is entitled “A Fast Track to Reinvention, Overcoming Your Silent Struggle for Reinvention” and will be facilitated by Berger, the director and founder of Work Like A Mother. Classes will meet on six Wednesdays, from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m. beginning Sept. 17 through Oct. 22.
During each meeting, topics will be discussed pertaining to the career and life issues that plague women who seek to be devoted caregivers, but who also may wish to engage in activities that provide them with professional fulfillment, intellectual growth and a sense of purpose outside the needs of the family. Preregistration is required.
As a result of a dynamic group experience and careful introspective self-examination, class participants engage in the careful examination and repackaging of their skills, accomplishments and interests they had acquired from educational and professional experiences (pre-children) and combining those with volunteer activities and other accomplishments made during the time they have been at home with children. Women gain a new sense of their professional relevance and confidence to reclaim their life.
“Career development for mothers is a fluid, adaptable, ever-changing path through the entire life-cycle,” Berger says, adding that stay-at-home parents should be encouraged to “plant the seed of your future in small, on-going ways, while your children are young,” so that as their dependency changes you can invest more time in doing things for your life outside of your kids’ lives.
Berger, is the founder of Work Like a Mother, a Career Counselor and Board Certified Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselor, and obtained her Doctoral Degree from Columbia University’s Teachers College. Berger has pioneered a solution-oriented career counseling system, and has counseled women in transition throughout the country in university settings, non-profit organizations, and has been in private practice for over twenty years She is a mother herself, and elected to leave her full-time career to stay at home with her four children, ages 13-20, thus has first-hand knowledge of her clients’ experiences.
The fee for the 6-week course, “A Fast Track to Reinvention, Overcoming Your Silent Struggle for Reinvention” is $300 for Y members and $350 for non-members. Seating for classes is limited and reservations with payment in advance are required. Contact Kim Murphy at kmurphy@wiltonymca.org or 203. 762.8384 ext. 214 to register or for more information. For additional information about Berger and her organization, Work Like a Mother, please visit www.worklikeamother.com.