In Episode 17 of After the Quiet, I share what it was like returning to work as a new mom while still living inside a coercive controlling relationship. As I went back to teaching just before my son’s first birthday, I was still breastfeeding, still managing night wake-ups alone, and carrying the pressure to do everything perfectly. With my parents providing childcare, I was expected to rush home immediately—no stopping, no talking, no support—because dinner and household responsibilities came first. This episode explores emotional control, isolation, unrealistic expectations, and the imbalance of parenting and domestic labor, including being discouraged from school events, inservices, and extracurriculars. I also share how my love for teaching and connection to my students became something he resented, and how a family trip to Cuba reve ...