Surgeon General reports increased stress levels among parents in Metro Detroit

If you are a parent, chances are you are stressed.

According to a new recommendation from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, parents have consistently been more likely to report high levels of stress than other adults over the past decade.

According to the warning, 33% of parents reported experiencing high levels of stress in the past month, compared to 20% of other adults.

“As mothers, we know this is the hardest journey we all go through,” said Amanda Fournier of the MOMS Club of Southern Macomb County, a support group for mothers. “We're all trying to find our way right now.”

In the United States, there are approximately 63 million parents with children under the age of 18, and millions more caregivers are primarily responsible for caring for the children.

According to US Health Secretary Vivek Murthy, in addition to the traditional challenges of raising children, there are new stressors that previous generations did not anticipate.

“I hear from many mothers that the support our parents are increasingly receiving is not comparable to the support we see today,” Fournier said.

According to the recommendation, stressors that affect parents include financial pressures, time pressures, children's health and safety, parental isolation and loneliness, technology and social media, cultural pressures and the future of the children.

“The main thing I'm hearing right now is child care. It's not just about the cost, it's about finding child care,” Fournier said.

The mental health of parents can affect the well-being of their children, the recommendation states.

They may be at increased risk for depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as earlier onset, relapse, and longer-term impairment of functioning due to mental illness.

“You want to make sure you have emotional support, whether it's through therapy, whether it's through community, whether it's through whatever is good for you, so that you are able to raise the child from a position of emotional strength,” said clinical psychologist Dr. Rose Moten.

She said that some parents have been under stress for so long that they consider it normal.

“Stress symptoms can be anything from emotional, just feeling stressed, just feeling overwhelmed, but it can also be physical, like trouble sleeping or changes in appetite,” said Dr. Moten.

To ease the pressure on parents, the Health Minister is calling for the promotion and expansion of funding for programs that support parents, caregivers and their families. He is also calling for the introduction of a nationwide paid family and medical leave program and the guarantee of paid sick leave for all workers.

Click here to read the US Secretary of Health’s recommendation.

Tiesha Johnson, 56, of Farmington Hills, a former analyst with the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, pleaded no contest in 6th District Court in Oakland County to fraudulently obtaining Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) from the federal government.