Working While Managing Your Child’s Mental Health | Women at Work | Podcast

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[upbeat music] You're listening to Women at Work from Harvard Business Review. I'm Amy Gallo.

And I'm Amy Bernstein. [upbeat music] Most working parents in the US are at least somewhat concerned about their children's mental health. Just over half are either very or extremely concerned. A third of them said they didn't think it would be okay to leave work to attend to their child, and a quarter of parents agreed that no matter what's going on with their child, they are not allowed to let it interrupt their work. Those are a few of the insights that the children's mental health advocacy group On Our Sleeves unearthed in surveying working parents over the last two years. Here are some more. Over half of working parents had turned to their child's pediatrician or reached out to a psychologist or counselor to get them professional help, and then over half of those families received a diagnosis.

When your child is struggling, whether it's with social anxiety or anger management or autism, it's nearly impossible to focus on anything but how they're doing. So I wasn't surprised to read that parents on average estimated that a third of their thoughts during the workday were about their child's mental health and wellbeing. For a quarter of parents who were especially concerned and whose work had been regularly disrupted, that average was nearly 50%. These disruptions, the calls that must be made, the appointments that must be attended, the unexpected pickups from school, affect parents' productivity and the way they feel toward their job. Half reported feeling hopeless about finishing certain tasks, underprepared in a meeting, and like the quality of their work was slipping. Even among parents who were just somewhat concerned about their child's mental health, a significant fraction said they were also missing work and falling behind.

And being repeatedly torn between protecting your child and meeting a project deadline is simply unsustainable. No wonder 32% of parents changed jobs or quit altogether in the past year. Many more plan to do the same in the coming year because they're not receiving the flexibility, understanding, and paid time off they need. That's bad news for companies that don't have