Putting My Career on Pause: Why I’m Stepping Away for Now

It’s been radio silence from me on LinkedIn for much longer than I anticipated, and I’ve gone back and forth over whether to post something explaining why. 

Typically, I’ve always kept LinkedIn, and my professional life more generally, fairly separate from my personal life. But over the past 18 months, the two have influenced each other enormously, and I am, after all, only human. 

And as a woman who has actively engaged in the women’s sector for several years, I feel that some of the things I’ve faced, and the decisions I now need to make, should perhaps be spoken about more openly in professional spaces. 

So… here goes. I will inevitably not keep things brief because I am who I am, but I’ll try to keep things relevant. 

For as long as I can remember, I’ve wanted to be a mother. I never really doubted that future for myself. 

By 28, having been happily single for several years, I realised the journey might look a little different for me. By my early 30s, I was putting things in place to pursue solo motherhood: moving closer to family, remortgaging my home to fund fertility treatment and planning how I could make it all work. 

The pandemic delayed things, but by 34 I had started IUI through a private clinic. Six rounds, around £18,000 and 18 months later, I still hadn’t fallen pregnant. 

Having unsuccessfully undergone six rounds of IUI, I then became eligible for NHS-funded IVF as a solo woman and, towards the end of 2023, joined the waiting list. 

Life, as always, had other ideas. 

In February 2024, I met someone quite by chance, when I wasn’t really looking. We had a very frank conversation early on and established that we were on the same page about wanting a child. We decided that if we were still together a year later, we would start trying. 

I knew time wasn’t necessarily on my side. My previous fertility experience suggested we might ultimately still need IVF and, now that I was in a relationship, the eligibility rules had changed. We would first need to try naturally for 12 months before becoming eligible for NHS treatment again. Riddle me that! 

Fast forward 12 months, two holidays, and still very much in love and happy, and we started trying. 

Unbelievably, I fell pregnant in the first month. 

At the time, I was working at NCVO and still within my probation period. I was finding some of the expectations of the role incredibly stressful, probably through a combination of hormones and unrealistic expectations, and, for the first time in my life, I decided to walk away from a role without another job lined up. 

I had to prioritise. And to me, this dream trumped all the others. 

Unfortunately, despite actively reducing the pressure I was under, I miscarried at around eight weeks at the end of April 2025. 

I was devastated. 

I allowed myself time to grieve, went on holiday, and eventually started thinking about working again. 

Then, quite unexpectedly, I fell pregnant again in August 2025. Once again, my partner and I decided to focus on the pregnancy rather than my career. 

Sadly, I miscarried again at the end of October, this time at around ten weeks. 

I was broken-hearted and really started to question whether my dream of becoming a mother would ever become reality. 

Then, just three weeks later, I was diagnosed with combined-type ADHD. 

It didn’t come as a huge shock to anyone, it has always been fairly obvious that I am neurospicy and naturally chaotic, but it did give me a lot to think about. 

I felt let down by a system that had failed to give me the right diagnosis earlier in life, and angry about the support I might have missed out on. At the same time, I felt incredibly validated. Finally, I felt seen. 

All in all, 2025 was a very difficult year. 

In January this year, I decided I needed a new focus, a new challenge and something that would both distract me from my ongoing fertility struggles and complement my strongest skills while working with, rather than against, the way my ADHD brain works. 

After a lot of consideration, I launched KTB Consultancy. 

It felt like the perfect roadmap for that point in my life. For the first time in a long time, I was genuinely excited about my career. I was creating my own path and full of enthusiasm and ideas, something I think was reflected in how active I suddenly became on LinkedIn. 

And then, in April, I found out I was pregnant again. 

This time I was less excited and much more frightened. Rather than focusing solely on the pregnancy, I continued throwing myself into launching the business. 

Until I hit six weeks pregnant and became incredibly unwell. 

I was diagnosed with Hyperemesis Gravidarum, and, despite anti-sickness medication and injections, there were days when I could barely get out of bed, let alone build and promote a consultancy. 

I had no choice but to step away from the desk without really knowing when I would be able to return. My ADHD treatment also had to go onto the back burner because the medication options available to me weren’t suitable during pregnancy. 

Which brings me to now. 

The amazing news is that I am now over 23 weeks pregnant and, most importantly, our baby is healthy and doing well. 

My sickness has eased considerably, and I’m beginning to come off the medication. But I’m also now more than halfway through my pregnancy, due in December, and increasingly busy getting our lives and home ready for our baby’s arrival. 

So where does that leave KTB Consultancy, and my career more broadly? 

The honest answer is that I don’t know. 

Technically, I’m well enough now to put some focus back into the business and take on work. But I’m also conscious that maternity leave is rapidly approaching. I remain anxious about my pregnancy and about increasing my stress levels unnecessarily, and I know there may still be health challenges ahead. 

So, I’ve made the decision that feels right for me and my family: to put KTB Consultancy on hold for the foreseeable future. 

That has not been an easy decision. 

I’ve spent the last 15 years building and developing a career I’m proud of, often prioritising it at the expense of having much of a personal life. I have a strong work ethic, a creative mind, and a constant thirst for knowledge and challenge. Taking a lengthy career break has never really been something I imagined myself doing. 

But I am so, so excited to finally be realising my dream of becoming a mother, albeit still a little nervous, and I recognise how incredibly fortunate I am to be in a position where taking this time out is financially possible for our family. 

I suppose I’m writing this for two reasons. 

Firstly, to explain my absence of late, not as unprofessionalism or a lack of commitment, but simply as life and circumstance. 

And secondly, to say cheerio for now to the wonderful world of volunteering and the brilliant peers and colleagues I’ve met within it. 

I honestly don’t know when I’ll be back. 

But I do know that I absolutely will be. 

I’ve spent so long working in this sector because, for me, it has always been a vocation rather than simply a job. Whenever the time is right, I know I’ll be back speaking passionately on behalf of the voluntary sector and the incredible people within it. 

For now, another part of my life needs me more. 

If you’ve stuck with me this long, thank you for reading. 

And bye for now 😊 

Katie