Annabel Ang
BIO
Healthcare Administrator, mother of one.
Instagram: @annabel_ang
Annabel Ang
“I wanted to give all my energy and attention to the little one, but the transition at work wasn’t easy.”
It was challenging becoming a mum and progressing to a new job at the same time. In June 2020, I gave birth to little Celeste and shortly after, I took on a new job in healthcare administration. These changes in my life took place amidst the COVID-19 pandemic which has transformed how lives were led in many societies. I remember how much I had to read and learn to effectively care for a baby. At the same time, I was moving from teaching to healthcare administration.
I wanted to give all my energy and attention to the little one, like many other mothers, but the transition at work wasn’t easy either.
I was fortunate that there were many around me happy to share their experiences, always reminding me what to look out for as a first-time mum. Although the transition to a new job was challenging during the pandemic, there was some blessing in disguise when work-from-home became a default as the time saved from commuting was channeled to caring for the little one.
I always felt guilty for not having enough breastmilk, not having enough energy and insufficient patience when looking after my daughter.
However, I was very fortunate that little Celeste was such a sweet child. Her smiles and laughter brought joy to the family. She gave me the strength to push on and that motivated me to get things organised both at home and at work.
Having been trained in the laboratory gave me nimble hands and an agile brain to cope with the many new things I had to learn. The medical laboratory training and experience have provided me opportunities to hone my situational awareness, logical reasoning, sense-making, observational, communication and interpersonal skills.
I believe my STEMM education equipped me with these transferable skills that could be applied at home, as well as resilience to help me pull through tough situations. Like the saying goes, “tough times don’t last, tough people do”. I am grateful that I stuck with Biomedical and Public Health as they prepared me for even larger challenges in life.