Dr. Vivek Murthy:
So fundamentally, we need to change the culture of how we value parenting, and see it as essential to the well-being of society.
And we have to take that change and make changes in three areas: policies, programs, and individual practice. And I actually talked a little bit about programs. These are things that workplaces can do differently. And also health systems can put a lot of emphasis on screening for mental health issues, especially for parents.
But at the policy level, we must do much more: For example, we must invest in paid leave so parents can be with their sick children; we must make child care more affordable; we must make mental health care more accessible; and we must address the harms of social media, which are a major concern for parents who are largely navigating it on their own.
But finally, I don't want people to lose sight of what we can do as individuals, because the truth is, we all have parents in our lives. Most of us. And when we reach out to those parents, when we help them with basic errands, when we offer to watch their kids for even 15 or 20 minutes so they can sit down and take a breather, take a shower, eat a meal, that's a really important moment. We're not only offering assistance, we're reminding the parent that they're not alone.
The truth is, parenting has always been a team sport; it's only relatively recently that we've started putting pressure on parents to feel like they're failing as parents if they don't do it all themselves.
And the truth is, we need each other. We need fellow parents. We need friends. We need family. We need neighborhoods and communities that support us in parenting. And if we can do that, kids, parents, and we'll all be happier.
