I had a baby while working at the White House, where I served for three years as special assistant to and spokesperson for President Obama and as deputy White House press secretary. Jobs at the White House are demanding and often all-consuming whether you have children or not. But I know from my own experience that it’s possible to make these jobs more family-friendly than they’ve been in past administrations. The White House should and can be a place where working parents belong.

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The administration I served made a decision that it wanted the White House to be a place that was friendly and welcoming to working parents. The president and most of the staff couldn’t have been more supportive, more excited and more open to letting me navigate this big change in my life in whatever way I needed. They always got that yes, our jobs are important, but bringing a human life into the world was an event on a whole different level. Republicans and Democrats alike can always agree on that.

A few fun examples of many: The president, who has two daughters, loved talking to me about having a baby girl. One time while I was staffing him for an interview, he asked me what my husband and I were going to name our baby. I told him we weren’t telling anyone. Feigning outrage (very convincingly, to me in the moment), he called me back in the Oval Office and said: “Are you really not going to tell me? I’m the president of the United States. I keep secrets really well!” I did end up telling him that we would name our daughter Lincoln Rose in honor of equality, opportunity and my late father, who treasured the legacy of Abraham Lincoln and dreamed of a world where a Barack Obama could be president. That conversation was one of the most meaningful experiences of my life.

President Obama always seemed visibly thrilled to have a moment to take a break from his stressful life to talk about how wonderful it is to be a parent and the awesomeness of the responsibility, and I never doubted how much he liked having other people around him with that perspective in the White House. Parents, my boss thought, added great value to his team. He stopped me in the hallways to ask how I was feeling; he regularly commented on how strong and amazing women are in every way. Valerie Jarrett, one of his most trusted senior advisers, threw me a baby shower dinner. She invited some of my current and former bosses to her home for a wonderful meal to celebrate the occasion. She was the first friend to come to the hospital to hold my daughter — a moment I will always cherish.

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The White House can’t be a family-friendly workplace without careful attention. We all know that having a baby, or a child of any age, is a gloriously big deal and also hard — no matter what job you have. It’s difficult on your body, your finances and so much more. And it’s made much more challenging if you don’t have the necessary resources to support your family. Working at the White House is a round-the-clock job, and to do it all well, you certainly need to be very type A. But if there was ever a place where colleagues can figure out how to help parents navigate complicated logistics between home and work, it’s the White House — a workplace explicitly set up to deal with any challenge on a global, domestic or local scale at any moment. The people I worked alongside were an extremely nimble bunch of professionals at the top of their game, and by design, no single one of us was indispensable.

The West Wing is also usually filled with thoughtful people who have dedicated their lives to making the world a better place. In the Obama administration, I met people who work in the residence who helped personally ensure I had everything I needed in the newly created “Mother’s Room.” The communications staff bought me a baby carrier, sent me flowers many times and checked in with me regularly to see how we were doing while I was on maternity leave. Back at work, I received many unsolicited recommendations on how to navigate everything from baby food to binkies to nanny shares and other affordable child-care options. I would never say that any of what I was attempting to do wasn’t logistically or emotionally overwhelming at times or that anything was perfect. But I can say, without a doubt, that I received more than enough positive messages from the top down that this White House was going to be a place with a welcome mat for working mothers.

And even with all the stress of my job, for the first time in my complicated, busy existence managing so many moving pieces and dynamics, there were officially now only two silos: Silo A, everything that mattered to my child; Silo B, everything else. All of the smaller, ridiculous things that I had given attention to over the years literally melted away. For me, life had really never been simpler, clearer to navigate or more peaceful now that I was a parent. Everything I do, I do for my children — everything, including my work.

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President Obama often remarks that having a child means “walking around the planet for the rest of your life with your heart outside of your body.” I’m sure most parents agree. And I would hope that every parent would also agree that it is them, and only them, who can decide what that means for their family. If you feel that you cannot work at the White House while raising children, then don’t. If you want to try it, then do. And the Trump administration — and every administration that comes after that — should make every effort to support parents who join it.

It’s very simple, really: Life is about making personal choices, and we all should be able to make them in whatever way works for us and our families. No one — not the president, not the staff, not Congress, not anyone — should be telling anyone else what decisions to make about their jobs or their parenting choices. Period.

Ultimately, the president’s staff helps him turn his ideas into action. The Department of Labor estimates that 57 percent of working-age women are in the labor force; those women comprise 47 percent of the labor force overall and will make up a larger share in the future. Every president should surround himself or herself with a team that’s as representative and diverse as America. That team should include people who know what it’s like to be a working mother.

I’m biased, but I think we will all be better for it. I’d like to believe that Kellyanne Conway — a smart, strong working woman herself — would agree.