Ahn Ji-sun was looking forward to going back to work after she had given birth to her second child. But she had no one to baby-sit the kids.

Guilt made her stay home and give up a flourishing career as an event supervisor in Seoul. Three years later, the 38-year-old is still torn between the demands of home and unfulfilled ambition, and may have to switch careers to find a suitable job.

"If there had been some place where my children could have been taken care of . . . I would still be working," she said.