Surgeon General Advisory
This month, U.S. Surgeon General Vivek H. Murthy, MD issued a new advisory in which he called for attention and action related to an urgent public health issue: parental mental health. For many child-serving professionals, the idea that the emotional health and well-being of parents is a critical area of need is not breaking news. Still, the advisory is a well worth a read; it concretizes the scope of the problem and what’s at stake, as well as provides actionable strategies for different stakeholders, including employers, schools, community organizations, and friends and family members.
Dr. Murthy’s data regarding the current state of parental stress and well-being is compelling: 48% of parents report that most days their stress is “completely overwhelming” compared to 26% among other adults. Forty-one percent of parents say that most days they are so stressed that they cannot function (as opposed to 20% of other adults). Dr. Murthy makes links between these statistics and possible explanatory factors, such as the fact that child care process has grown by 26% in the past decade, the well-documented increased mental health problems of children and teens (nearly 75% of parents say they are at least somewhat worried that their child will experience anxiety or depression), and the rapid rate of increase in the use of technology and social media (more than 50% of parents report being worried about their child’s use of social media). He also identifies financial strain, time demands (such as the increased number of hours spent on work and caring for extended family), isolation and loneliness (endorsed by higher rates of parents as opposed to non-parents), concerns about children’s physical safety, and the pressure to meet societal and cultural norms and standards, as other contributing factors.
When he discusses the implications of parental stress and mental health conditions, Dr. Murthy describes what many of us find to be true in our work with children and families every day: parents’ mental health impacts the well-being of their children. Dr. Murthy cites one study that found that the children of parents with poor mental health were four times more likely to experience poor general health and twice as likely to experience mental, behavioral, or developmental disorders. He notes that parental mental health poses greater risks for children when it occurs in combination with other risk factors such as poverty and exposure to violence. He reports, too, that a parent’s poor mental health may not negatively impact their child if it does not disrupt the child’s safety, stability, and relationship with the parent.
In addition to promoting macro- and system-level policy changes (e.g., paid parental leave, universal mental health screenings) and access to affordable, high-quality mental health care, Dr. Murthy’s advisory contains helpful recommendations for parents at the individual level. He makes a solid case for self-compassion and engaging in stress-reducing activities as well as those that bring joy. Dr. Murthy emphasizes the need for parents to seek out social support, and specifically to nurture connections with other parents. He advises parents to empower themselves with information about mental health and to prioritize mental health just as much as physical health. While not exactly ground-breaking, following these recommendations would undoubtedly increase the quality of life for millions of parents and children nationwide. As Dr. Murthy states in his foreword, “raising children is sacred work.” Caregivers need care too.