When two kids came along, I couldn't see how I could support them. The way it played out, I was away from the theatre for five years. I was a postie for the first part and then worked as an advertising copywriter, but I somehow found my way back.
There are generations of women who left the workforce to be moms, and their kids grow up, and they think, "Well, what now?"
I was in the family court for 25 years. And having started a second career, having a second act when you were 52 was something that I never thought would happen to me.
After I left the 'Daily Show,' I was kind of sitting out for five years. I know what it's like to not be able to have that platform for my voice the way I want it.
There are any number of reasons many talented people, particularly women, leave their careers for a period of time.
I'd retired for about six or seven years. Coming back to the business, I found that I was sort of not quite a has-been, and it wasn't a new career, it was just kind of difficult to crack the nut, so to speak.
In '48 when I left Metro, I tried to go back to radio, but somehow just didn't do well at it.
I've supported myself by writing since 1992, and I'm probably very nearly unemployable by now because employers are likely to be put off by the long gap.
I think I've had a bit of a stop-start career. I came onto the scene quite early, and then I paused for a bit.
I am bouncing back despite being a girl from Mumbai who didn't work for two years. A lot of others girls in the same situation would have had to walk away from the industry.
I could never have gotten back into my career without the undying support of my husband, who works full time at a stressful job! We decided that we were going to do this as total partners and it is a 50/50 deal with us.
People in academia and industry are not accustomed to people who have long lapses in their careers.
I had this career and then I was working and then I met Rob and then I kind of went off and got married and had kids, and in that process, which was amazing and fantastic, I lost my confidence as an actress and as a working woman.
One of the biggest challenges is for women to find an organization that's willing to accept them back after they leave the work force to raise children without taking a cut in compensation and responsibility.
I had a bonding problem when I went off and boxed for five years. I was over in Europe and Asia fighting because I wanted to do something different; I was tired of acting. But the thing is, when I was done doing that, I couldn't get a job.
After my extended hiatus I found myself at the age of 36 and knew the TV route could get me back out there with the biggest splash.
Well, these days, if you're away five years, you might not be able to get back.
Motherhood definitely took the focus off of my work. And I didn't mind. I had a few panics when I thought that if I wanted to work I couldn't get a job anymore and then I would get one once in a while and it would make me feel better.
For a decade, I was a stay-at-home mom. I sent my husband to his law office, sat on PTA boards and baked cookies - great cookies. All of a sudden, I had no husband, no job, few prospects, and two small children who had grown accustomed to eating.
I know I did the right thing by taking time off to raise my son. But it also came at a price. I turned down many opportunities over the years because I didn't want to leave him for long periods of time. And in Hollywood, as in any business, the calls stop coming when you don't answer.
Women need to understand that it is possible to stay in the workforce. A lot of women decide to take a back seat in their professional careers even before they are pregnant or are ready to have children.
