It upsets me so much whenever I hear about the maternity leave situation in the US. It's so unfair.

In Norway you get 49 weeks, usually. The mother goes on leave three weeks before the due date, and also gets at least the first six weeks after the child has been born. Beyond that, both parents need to take at least 10 weeks off each. If the father doesn't take his 10 weeks, those weeks of paid leave will be lost. Most will take longer than the 49 weeks, though.

Before 1990 it used to be just six months, and because I was born two weeks late I had to go into daycare when I was five and a half months old. I was a very sensitive child, and strangers scared me, but my mother wasn't in a position where she could afford to take more time off from work. I developed separation anxiety, and this may have played a part in the onset of my childhood bipolar disorder. Not saying I wouldn't have ended up bipolar anyway, but I was the only one who was sent to daycare that early; I have three sisters who stayed home until they were at least a year old, and they are all mentally healthy.

The first year of a child's life is crucial. The first three years are formative years, and so much more important than most people seem to be aware of.