Australian broadcaster Katie Fielder has lifted the lid on what it’s really like juggling motherhood and the demands of her career.
The TV anchor has been living in Dubai with her husband and their two children – son Ben, aged three, and one-year-old daughter Amelia – for nearly 10 years.
Speaking candidly to Whimn, the mother-of-two, originally from Sydney, opened up about her extraordinary life – and how it’s far from glamorous.
Working part-time as a news anchor for Emirates News on Dubai One, the 32-year-old splits her time between her media job and raising her young kids.
Australian broadcaster Katie Fielder has lifted the lid on what it’s really like juggling motherhood and the demands of her career
Working part-time as a news anchor for Emirates News on Dubai One, the 32-year-old splits her time between her media job and raising her young kids
She recalled having sleepless nights when her children were suffering from ‘bad silent reflux’ – leaving her between 20 to 40 minutes of sleep at a time.
Under the Dubai Government, the mother said she was only entitled to 60 days maternity leave at the time – meaning she was back on the job two months later.
Her husband travels for work – so sometimes she’s left looking after their children on her own while he’s away.
And the challenges she has faced included bringing her babies to work and staying up til the early hours of the mornings memorising her lines or researching interview topics.
‘But there were certainly a few times where I had to bring Ben to meetings, or where I had to try and hide my leaking boobs during filming if I hadn’t been able to express milk,’ she said.
The challenges she has faced included bringing her babies to work and staying up til the early hours of the mornings memorising lines or researching interview topics
Balancing her professional and personal life, Ms Fielder said she would try to plan her schedule in advance because of her early starts and late finishes
Balancing her professional and personal life, Ms Fielder said she would try to plan her schedule in advance because of her early starts and late finishes.
And while she may seem like she’s on top of everything, the stylish mother admitted she does feel guilty when she leaves for work without her children.
‘There are those days that I’m wracked with guilt when on occasion I leave for work, and both my children cry for me,’ she said.
‘Real, gut-wrenching screams as they grab for me when I have to eventually close the door, and it just breaks my heart.
‘But I try to remember that I’m showing them the importance of being independent, setting goals and pursuing a career – something that I think all young boys and girls should see.’
Despite the family calling Dubai home for now, Ms Fielder said she’ll love to return to Australia within five years to pursue a job at one of the top news channels
The family of four live in an old villa, surrounded by a children’s playground, nursery and swimming pool.
But Ms Fielder said she does miss Australia, especially the ‘proper car parks’ because she ‘literally drive through sand dunes each day’.
Despite the family calling Dubai home for now, Ms Fielder said she’ll love to return to home within five years to pursue a job at one of the top news channels.
And she said the best piece of advice she received was from her mother, who came to stay with her family in Dubai following the births of her children.
‘She told me, “you’ll have good days and bad days, but you are the only person who can give your children a happy mother who enjoys life”,’ she said.
Ms Fielder said as long as she can read stories, eat ice cream, play hide and seek and count stars in the sky with her children, she’s happy.