Yuliana Shametavets from the "Cyberpartisans" Becomes a Mother — Tells About Maternity Leave in the USA and Whether It's Truly Possible to Combine Work with Motherhood

Yuliana Shametavets, a representative of the "Cyberpartisans," says that she gave birth to a child in December 2025, although she only recently publicized this fact. This is because privacy is important to the Belarusian woman.

Her son Adam is the first child in the family. And Yuliana doesn't hide that her experience with motherhood isn't the easiest — she says much depends on the specific child, as it's not at all easy to put Adam to sleep.

The Belarusian woman recalls the popular saying that "it takes a village to raise a child," meaning one needs an environment ready to support them. In emigration, Yuliana admits, she greatly misses such a "village." On the other hand, Yuliana's husband strives to participate in childcare as much as possible.

"It's really hard, but it's the best thing there can be. You need to find joy, always remind yourself that he won't always be this small; in every moment, I look for some joy and always find it. Being a mom is great," Yuliana shares.

Motherhood brings many moments that help overcome difficulties:

"I like that little ones have their own sense of humor, I like how much we laugh with him. I never thought that a child at such an age could do something so funny, but it's really there, and these are very important moments, especially after a difficult night.

Your child's sense of humor, little jokes — that's so great. He seems so small, yet he's already trying to joke and really loves to laugh at things himself. And you do anything to make your child laugh as much as possible."

Павялічыць

Yuliana recalls that her pregnancy was easy: she managed not to stop living, eat what she wanted, exercise, and attend interviews. But when Adam was finally born, many things had to be put on hold.

The Belarusian woman reflects on the popular idea that nowadays a woman can do everything: build a career, be a good mother, wife, and friend. Now she cannot agree that this works:

"Of course, it's an illusion in some sense, though perhaps not entirely a lie. You can manage, but not at the same level; it's simply impossible. You either sacrifice your time with your child or put your career on hold.

A choice needs to be made, and it's difficult, but young children need their mother, especially in the first years of life. This needs to be understood. Sometimes you have to put your career on hold, but it's a conscious choice I made. I understand that for some women it can be difficult, and it's impossible to adhere to any kind of equality, because men don't have this."

Yuliana lives in the USA, and local parents cannot count on long parental leave. Her husband works in the financial sector, so he was only given a month of leave, and the family had to split it into parts.

Павялічыць

Yuliana's maternity leave at her main job is longer, but she still had to take unpaid leave. As for her work with the "Cyberpartisans," Yuliana continues it, albeit with limitations — for example, she can't fly to Europe for conferences every two months as she used to.

The ability to work from home helps. Adam's father doesn't have such an opportunity, but in his free time, he strives to help with childcare.

Yuliana herself, however, doesn't like the word "help," and she tells her husband about it:

"I don't need him to 'help'; I need him to be a father and do everything necessary for the little one at that moment, to be involved. It's very important to have such a person who helps — a dad, a grandma, a grandpa; all of that is very helpful in the moment."

Earlier, Yuliana says, she was warned that with the arrival of a child, she shouldn't count on good sleep. But, the Belarusian woman says, she didn't expect her sleep to be so disrupted.

"I used to think: surely, I'll sleep during the day when the baby sleeps — and everything will be fine. But it's really hard. And if you're breastfeeding, of course, the baby wakes up very often; there are also gas issues and many other things. If something else happens, for example, the child gets sick, then your sleep suffers greatly.

People told me about this before, but I didn't take it very seriously. But I found some formula for myself and stopped hoping that things would improve someday. And when I let go of this situation, I truly felt lighter. If there's an opportunity, I really do sleep with the little one during the day, and that saves me," says the Belarusian woman.

Yuliana admits that she thought she would be a calmer mother. She is indeed calm, but sometimes she also feels anxious. She has to work on herself, learn to let go and not be an anxious mother, because a child feels a mother's emotions.

Especially since there's incomparably more good — so much so that it's difficult for Yuliana to choose the most pleasant aspect of motherhood:

"Your heart grows, a love appears that cannot be described in words. It's great to watch a little person change before your eyes every day. To feel a connection with your child, to watch him learn from you, how he grows — even from an anthropological point of view, it's a very cool experience. But when it's your child, you additionally feel love, desires, and the strength to raise him.

This is the best thing there can be, and I am very glad we did it, no matter how hard it was. Our son is awesome, and we are very happy."

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