The baby in this photo isn't the story. What it reveals is

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The sun is still hours from rising, but Western Australian senator Fatima Payman is already on her first coffee, getting ready for another day of work — and caring for a newborn.

It could be 2am or 3am. She isn't sure anymore. These days, she says time is more of a concept than a clock.

The independent senator isn't just working to an east coast time zone from Perth; she's working around the unpredictable schedule of a new mum.

"Some days it is really tough, and there are some really good days," Payman tells SBS News during an interview in Perth.

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Payman is the first WA senator to have a baby while serving in parliament — a distinction that comes with its own challenges, including the more than 3,600km distance between Perth and Canberra.

Between herself and her husband, Jacob Stokes, a former WA Labor staffer, Payman says they are juggling the demands of parenthood with support from their respective families in Perth.

Their daughter, Aliyah, was born in May this year, the couple's first child, and the family spent the first four months in Perth before Payman returned to Canberra to work earlier this month.

Payman's experience highlights a question that goes beyond one senator: As more women enter politics, has parliament changed enough to accommodate the realities of having a family?

Payman's working day now unfolds around the needs of a newborn, with the routines of motherhood squeezed between emails, meetings and the demands of parliamentary work.

There are feeds, nappy changes and playtime, followed by putting Aliyah to sleep and expressing breast milk to ensure there is enough for the day.

In between, Payman reads emails, keeps up to date with political developments and attends virtual meetings.

By the afternoon, she is often driving to community meetings and other events, sometimes with Aliyah in the baby seat, before returning home for the evening routine.