COVID-19 Pandemic: War on a Mother’s Mental Health?

COVID-19 Pandemic: War on a Mother’s Mental Health?

Garvita Thareja and Medina Adem

COVID-19, also known as novel coronavirus disease, is an upper respiratory tract infection that has led to a pandemic since the year 2020. During these two challenging years, the world has been affected in all dimensions of health, especially both mentally and socially. Even though COVID-19 cases are declining at the moment, we are still seeing that mental illness and the demand for psychological services are increasing. According to the survey done at Ann and Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago in 2022 (1,5), approximately 71% of parents reported that their children’s mental health was highly affected either due to social isolation or long-term impacts of COVID-19 exposure. As shown in a study by Olff et al. (6) in 2021, people that have been affected by COVID-19 are at risk for various types of mental health issues such as depression, anxiety disorders, stress, panic attacks, irrational anger, impulsivity, somatization disorder, sleep disorders, emotional disturbance, posttraumatic stress symptoms, and suicidal behavior. A similar systematic review conducted by Xiong et al. (7) indicated that the general population developed mental health symptoms; in particular, women and individuals younger than 40 years of age were at risk for developing some form of mental health illness due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Though these mental health impacts are felt by everyone, they are more deeply felt by women, especially mothers. Mothers have disproportionately lost their employment and financial security during pandemic (11). Those working full time report a feeling of failure as there has been increased pressure to take care of their family while working either in virtual or in-person spaces. They have experienced an unreasonably excessive burden of the responsibility of all household chores: taking care of their children and spouse, as well as parents/in-laws, all in addition to working. This pressure has hit mothers mentally rather than physically, and mental health in this group has deteriorated during the pandemic (11). There is a broad range of symptoms and disorders they might experience, but the most commonly reported ones during the pandemic are depression, anxiety, and psychosis.

A survey conducted among mothers reported that they have developed mental health issues due to social isolation, lack of emotional and physical support due to social isolation, and fear of contracting COVID-19 for themselves and their children (3). This survey also indicated that the majority of mothers had reduced to no physical activity since the start of the pandemic as they were stressed about catching the virus. As recommended by CDC, performing 150 minutes per week of physical activity has strong positive associations with improved mental health. Mothers who are unable to engage in physical activity are at risk for developing mental health issues such as depression, anxiety, and stress. Furthermore, another study from the year 2020, indicated that one in seven moms reported having depression and anxiety. This research also identified an increase in preterm delivery and decreased mother and infant bonding, which further increases the chance of postpartum depression (3). Moms have also reported a feeling of guilt about not being able to take care of their kid’s physical and mental needs due to working from home, pay cuts due to the economic imbalance of the pandemic, lack of income, and social isolation (2,3). These studies also reported that mothers have been dealing with difficulties and time management issues regarding their kids’ schoolwork and academia (2,3). Kids have been struggling due to low focus and motivation as well, due to the limited accessibility of teachers and coaches.

Lastly, increases in domestic violence have also added to mental health issues among mothers (2,8). Based on the study led by Evans et al.), there has been “a pandemic within a pandemic” due to domestic violence against mothers (8). This uptick of domestic abuse during the pandemic has mostly targeted kids and mothers, which has taken an additional toll on their mental health. Especially during the beginning of the pandemic, when the lockdown was mandated, a conducive environment was created for domestic abusers. Social isolation, economical dependency on their partners, and lack of ability to provide for themselves as well as for their kids silenced many moms who were unable to remove themselves from their environment (8). According to Bright et al. (9), stress due to lack of income and quarantine has played a major role in the increase of relationship conflict, which further increases mental health issues for mothers.

In conclusion, women, especially mothers, have been affected in a multitude of ways by the pandemic and are still going through posttrauma effects and chronic illnesses. The pandemic is not over yet and its tragic socialemotional and financial impact will probably be here for the next few years as the world is trying to recover. While we are still trying to get back to normal, there are mutations and newer variants of the virus that can take us back to the era of lockdowns and social isolations. We need to find resources in public health, especially for mothers and other vulnerable populations such as children and elders so that their long-term health issues can be addressed in a timely manner. As a community, it’s very important to be compassionate, understanding, and helpful especially during these challenging times to create a welcoming and safe environment for all.