If you’re a stressed parent, you’re not the only one. New Surgeon General’s Recommendations A study released Wednesday found that over the past decade, parents have become more likely to report higher stress levels than adults without children.
“The work of parenting is important not just to the health of children but to the health of society,” wrote U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy, 47, himself a father of two. “We know that the well-being of parents and caregivers is directly linked to the well-being of their children.”
According to the recommendations, parents are overworked and spend a significant amount of their time raising children. “The demands of both work and childcare take a toll on quality time with their partner, sleep and leisure time for parents,” the recommendations say.
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The report looks at parental mental health for the 63 million children in the United States and its impact on children’s well-being. “Parental mental health can affect the emotional climate in the home, responsiveness, and consistency of parenting, all of which are crucial for children’s emotional and cognitive development,” the report states. “Children of parents with mental illness may be at increased risk for symptoms of depression and anxiety, earlier onset of mental illness, relapse, and longer-term functional impairment.”
a 2023 Survey In an American Psychological Association survey of adults, 33% of parents reported high stress levels, compared with 20% of other adults, Murthy’s report said. Nearly half of parents surveyed reported feeling overwhelmingly stressed most days, compared with 26% of other adults. And a survey by health insurer Cigna found that 65% of parents said they felt lonely, 10% more than parents without children.
The top stressors for parents include financial worries, concerns about their children’s safety, anxiety about not having enough time away from work, and worries about minors’ unhealthy relationships with social media and technology. “Nearly 70 percent of parents say parenting is more difficult than it was 20 years ago, with children’s use of technology and social media cited as the main reason,” the report said.
Potential solutions range from policy changes to individual action. The report calls for government reforms including paid family leave and expanding access to mental health programs. It also recommends workplace reforms, such as training managers on “stress management and work-life balance” and providing “access to comprehensive, affordable, high-quality mental health care.”
In 2023, Murthy issued recommendations calling loneliness an “epidemic” and outlining ways individuals can seek connection. Similarly, the Surgeon General’s report on parental mental health encourages parents to find social support, talk openly with friends about the stresses of parenting, and “recognize how mental health issues may manifest and seek support when needed.”
