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This 1 Insanely Simple Fix Helps Working Moms Thrive Now


The US isn’t exactly right up there with other wealthy countries—or other countries, period—when it comes to supporting working moms. We’re one of a tiny handful nations that doesn’t offer paid family leave (though that could change with the Biden administration). And the COVID-19 pandemic has only underscored the pressures on today’s working mothers. With millions more parents working from home, often with children in remote or hybrid learning models, the line between work and family is blurry at best.

For new parents, having a baby in pandemic times has been more challenging—and isolating—than ever. Mommy-and-me classes halted, nannies have been scarce, and even those lucky to have family nearby saw their support safety nets fail as grandparents quarantined. And just as companies have had to take the initiative with financial benefits like paid family leave, they’ve needed to get creative, too, in supporting working moms’ mental and emotional wellbeing.

It Takes a Village

How can the modern workplace help? One way is by addressing mental load. While we hear a lot about mental health concerns during the pandemic (and the news is troubling), mental load is different. Think of it as a kind of overwhelm. It’s a feeling of being stressed, burnt out and stretched too thin—and working moms know it all too well.

While many have turned to wine, shared memes and the occasional scream, these coping mechanisms barely scratch the surface of supporting working parents through their current reality. Mental load can impact work performance and lead to mental health challenges if left unchecked. And it’s a widespread crisis that we, as a society, have not properly articulated, acknowledged or addressed.  

“It’s hard to measure what we cannot touch and feel,” explains Debi Yadegari, founder and CEO of Villyge, an employer-paid benefit program that works with companies to create parent-friendly, highly productive work cultures. “While employers have focused on the tangibles of securing childcare and society has focused on the number of layoffs and women opting out of the workforce [during the pandemic], we have yet to measure the impact of the mental load on working parents or the invisible cost to both employers and families.”

Some companies have resources in place to help, such as an Employee Assistance Program (EAP)—a benefit that helps employees navigate life challenges, stress and other issues that can affect wellbeing and productivity. Free for employees, EAPs let you access counselors via a hotline, with no problem deemed too big or too small. Yet, they are voluntary, meaning an employee must choose to participate and actively reach out for help.

Villyge does it a little differently, with outreach baked into the program. With its aim to connect employees with career coaches, parenting specialists and wellness experts, the platform is tailor-made for empowering working parents and reducing their mental load. And there’s no underestimating the power of 1:1 outreach, especially when it comes to easing the burden on mothers in the workforce.

Lightening New Moms’ Mental Load

For Marielle Coleman, a Bay Area working mom at a biotechnology company who had her first child in September 2020, being a first-time mom in the midst of a pandemic created a level of stress and postpartum anxiety she never anticipated. When she connected with Gaby Cavins, Villyge’s executive director of Employee Success, some of that darkness lifted.

“During one of my most vulnerable times, I was slow in responding to Gaby’s outreach,” recalls Coleman, “but she continued to check in with me and offer her support, and I am so thankful she did. Without Villyge, I would have probably stopped breastfeeding earlier than I would have liked, but didn’t because of Gaby’s support and encouragement. I’ve consulted with her on an endless list of parenting and working mom topics.”

Another high-powered parent who found support in trying times was Lisa Hornsby, a New York–based mom who is in charge of an investment team at a multinational asset management company.

“Having a newborn baby in March of 2020 in New York City presented challenges I never expected,” says Hornsby. “I always thought I would have more support, but because of the pandemic, everything changed. In the beginning, no one was at our house and we were completely on our own. Because I had access to Villyge through my employer, I had all the support I needed to care for my baby and be the employee I am committed to being each and every day, even during COVID’s added stressors and challenges.”

To maintain a productive workforce and retain experienced women in their roles, employers need to acknowledge mental load as a real issue—and help reduce it. “Our clients recognized early the need to support their employees throughout the pandemic’s hurdles and, as a result, have maintained retention rates of 96% during a time when working women have been off-ramping at historic rates,” says Yadegari. “This is proof that well-positioned support can have real results on employee success.”

Wine o’clock and primal screams can only do so much. Whether it’s through an EAP, a benefit program like Villyge or another solution, addressing mental load is a key step in lifting the heavy burden that working parents have been carrying for far too long.



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