Parents Under Pressure

A new advisory report was just issued by the U.S. Surgeon General called Parents Under Pressure: The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory on the Mental Health & Well-Being of Parents.

One part of the introduction from Vivek Murthy exclaims, “In addition to the traditional challenges of parenting—protecting children from harm, worrying about finances, managing teenagers who are searching for independence—there are new stressors that previous generations didn’t have to consider. These include the complexity of managing social media, parents’ concerns about the youth mental health crisis, and an epidemic of loneliness that disproportionately affects young people and parents, just to name a few.”

If you’re a parent, this no doubt resonates with you. Even if you’re not, you can likely imagine the extra stress parents might be under.

Dr. Murthy later writes, “Something has to change. Supporting parents and caregivers will require a series of thoughtful policy changes and expanded community programs that will help ensure parents and caregivers can get time
off to be with a sick child, secure affordable child care, access reliable mental health care, and benefit from places and initiatives that support social connection and community.”

These are exactly some of the topics that our benefits can help with. Additional negative stress can cause a person to have more difficulty with their mental health as well as their physical health. Therefore, when we provide additional support in these areas we can help them improve their overall health and continue to build resiliency when dealing with stressful conditions in life.

Additional information from the report was directed at employers, urging them to do the following:

– Expand policies and programs that support the well-being of parents and caregivers in the workplace.

– Implement training for managers on stress management and work-life harmony.

– Provide access to comprehensive and affordable high-quality mental health care.