Our Storytellers: Natasha Collins' system of support when she needed it most

A lot of employers claim to have wonderful work/life balance, and say they support their employees and families. While that may be true, it doesn’t ring truer than it does at SAS. I’ve never felt more supported as someone who struggled to become a mother. When I finally did become a mother, SAS stepped up once again.

A system of support when you need it most

When you think about trying to start a family with your partner, you don’t assume it’s going to take a long time or that you would experience any loss during the process. Unfortunately for my husband and I, we suffered three miscarriages. It was a dark time for me and SAS was there. Through the Work/Life Center, I was able to talk to staff who helped me find a pregnancy loss therapist to start my healing process. At the same time, I met with the nutritional staff at the Health Care Center and the Recreational Fitness Center staff to focus on my nutritional and physical health.

In addition, because of our wonderful health insurance benefits, I was able to meet with a fertility specialist and acupuncturist to understand the underlying issues with my fertility. It was all a beautiful orchestra that came together to bring me out of my dark hole and into the light. The people at SAS became my extended family. They cared about me. They were rooting for me. And after six months, I became pregnant once again. It’s through the help of SAS that my son is now here and just turned two.

Raising the bar at work while raising a family

Once I became a mother, SAS supported me in my transition back to work in every way. My office was set up so I could privately have a place to pump for my infant. Whenever I visited other offices on campus, there were mother rooms I could take advantage of as well. The Health Care Center offers so many resources to support new mothers and their transition back to work. Being a new mom is stressful and SAS made sure this was not something I had to worry about.

Being a new mom also comes with sick days taking care of my son, doctors’ appointments or days where I need to come in late or leave early. I’ve read articles where a lot of mothers at other companies are made to feel guilty for tending to their families and feel their colleagues don’t think they put 100% into their jobs. Fortunately, SAS’ culture of trust and flexibility empowers me to have a work/life integration like no other. Not once has a colleague at SAS ever made me feel guilty for putting my family first when I need to.

And this past year was a big year for my development and growth at SAS. I transitioned to a highly visible role within my department that required me to get additional training and a certification. Through the whole process, I had a personal cheerleading squad in my managers and colleagues.

SAS truly understands what it’s like to be a working parent, especially a working mother. I couldn’t be more fortunate to work here.

This story was written by Natasha Collins, and shared on the SAS Life blog.