If We Want Healthy Children & Youth, We Need to Support Mothers and Teachers 

The first week in May is Maternal and Youth Mental Health Week, Childcare and Teacher Appreciation Week. This serves as a reminder to value the people who shape our children’s minds and hearts. It also offers an opportunity to reflect more broadly on the state of mental health for those who are foundational to our collective future—mothers, youth, and educators. While these groups may seem distinct, they are part of a deeply interconnected ecosystem. 

When mothers are not supported, babies, children, and youth are not able to thrive! When teachers are burnt out, both students and parents feel it. And when youth struggle with anxiety, the whole community is impacted.

It’s time we shift away from symptoms-focused approach around mental health and move towards a holistic framework rooted in connection, belonging, and proactive care—for parents, children, and educators alike.

In this post we look at:

• Statistics of mental health in motherhood, educators & youth

• Ways to empower holistic health for mothers, educators & youth

• Common threads and the need for systemic change

• Practical support available now!

What the Statistics are Showing:

I wrote an article on motherhood and youth mental health in 2022 and the statistics have still not changed. This is troublesome as we co-regulate as a system, with parents, youth, and educators being a deeply intertwined loop.

The Motherhood Mental Health Crisis: A silent epidemic

One in five mothers experiences postpartum depression or anxiety, and at least 70% of moms have feelings associated with postpartum depression (Psychiatry.org & Maternal Mental Health University of Arizona). Furthermore 75% don’t get the help they need. These figures are not only heartbreaking, but they are preventable. If we stop expecting mothers to "bounce back" in isolation and begin honoring their transformation with care and community.

A recent poll found that 42% of working moms have depression and/or anxiety, which is 14% higher than the average population (Business.TalkSpace). I'm not the least shocked by this with everything we are balancing from our children's needs, to work demands, to rising costs. Unfortunately, our children feel it too but don't have the context for it and so it shows up in big emotions and behaviours.

When mothers go unsupported it can lead to dire consequences, to include mom and baby bonding, which can affect the child’s prefrontal cortex development, affecting their attachment, social-emotional development and more.

Too often, maternal mental health is only acknowledged after a crisis. Mothers are told they are the "foundation of the family" while being offered little emotional or systemic support. This dissonance feeds shame, guilt, and exhaustion.

When mothers are nurtured—not just after birth, but throughout the identity shifts of motherhood—they are more resilient, and their children thrive. We can’t raise emotionally regulated children when we’re dysregulated adults. We can’t give from an empty well.

Holistic motherhood support means more than therapy or medication—it includes supportive parenting community, cultural rituals of community caregiving, somatic support, time to rest, and flexible systems that acknowledge a mother’s full identity—not just her productivity. 

Educator Burnout: Is on the rise

Teachers and educators deliver more than content. They are emotional anchors, trusted adults, surrogate caregivers, and sometimes even first responders to student mental health needs. And they are exhausted.

The data tells us nearly 50% of teachers report symptoms of burnout (National Education Association & American Educational Research Association). Many leave the profession within five years. And while gifts and thank-you notes during Teacher Appreciation Week are well-deserved, they’re not enough.

Educators are often caught in systems that underpay, under-resource, and over-expect. They're required to support student wellness while receiving little support for their own.

One in Eleven Youth Have Anxiety: And many go undiagnosed

Mental health challenges among youth are nothing new, but they too are on the rise. One in eleven youth experiences anxiety, and even more experience stress and other mental health concerns, often without ever receiving a formal diagnosis—or help (StatsCan & Mental Health Canada).

Given the stats for teachers and mothers, is this really a shock, particularly after the last 5 years? This just highlights that we are co-regulating beings and need holistic support that considers the world of the child. If we support parents and educators, our children would be far better off. And when we can offer a strong foundation in early years, this gives our children the tools they need as they grow and face more complex challenges in their own lives.

So How Can We Offer Holistic Support for Mothers, Educators & Youth?

Supporting youth mental health holistically:

We tend to treat children as isolated individuals rather than mirrors of their environment. When a child is struggling, it’s often a cue that something in their system—home, school, or community—is also in distress.

• Embedding social-emotional & somatic learning in every classroom
  

• Training caregivers in co-regulation and nervous system literacy
  

• Offering sensory-friendly spaces to decompress, including more nature time
  

• Valuing rest, movement and expression as much as achievement

When youth are given the tools to honour their whole self, they are better able to ask for proactive help, show empathy, and build authentic relationships.

Supporting educators holistically: 

If you’re an educator, don’t feel badly about setting one boundary this week to protect your energy! Your wellbeing is important for your health and your capacity to support those you care for. 

• Reducing the load on teachers, which will increase education costs but is a worthwhile investment!

• Offering teachers greater support and resources, including assigned EA’s to each classroom

• Valuing teachers and including their voices in decision-making 

• Supporting teacher’s mental health including support systems outside of school hours

Long days absorbing and moderating everyone’s energy to create a cohesive, supportive environment is not easy. What’s one small, nourishing thing you can do for yourself today?

Supporting motherhood holistically: 

We hear it all the time: “It takes a village.” But what happens when that village feels out of reach? Maybe you’ve moved away from family. Maybe your friends aren’t in the same season of life. Or maybe, like so many of us, you’re surrounded by people but still feel unseen in the day-to-day trenches of motherhood.

Motherhood is full of love, but also full of quiet moments where it feels like everyone else has it figured out but you. That feeling of isolation is real. So is the longing for someone to say, “Hey, I see you. I get it. I’m right there with you.”

• Motherhood circles and online communities like the free MomsBeyond App, to reduce isolation
  

• Honoring birth & motherhood as sacred transformations that are unique to each mother and child
  

• Advocating for paid parental leave and part-time reintegration when the time is right
  

• Support for our young children - affordable childcare that pays educators well, or paid support for grandparents like in Sweden

Your child doesn’t need a perfect parent—they need a connected one who can model emotional awareness and healthy coping. It’s normal to have rough days and to lean on others - this is why we truly do need a village. 

The Common Thread: Connection and belonging to foster safety

Whether we are speaking about maternal mental health, student anxiety, or educator burnout, the common denominator is this: we heal in relationships. Disconnection from our bodies, our sense of self, and our communities is at the root of much modern suffering.

This means shifting from pathologizing individuals to nurturing the ecosystems in which they exist. A mother isn't broken because she’s overwhelmed—she’s not adequately unsupported. A child isn't bad for melting down—they are overstimulated or misunderstood. A teacher isn’t lazy for taking a mental health day—they’re managing the invisible emotional labour.

• When we listen to our bodies and honour human needs, we foster resilience.

• When we support mothers, we nurture the earliest roots of emotional development.

• When we support teachers, we safeguard the environments where children spend most of their day.

• When we prioritize youth mental health, we build emotionally intelligent generations.

Mental health is not separate from education, parenting, or policy. It’s the foundation and how we can begin to create systemic change for the better.

This Teacher Appreciation, let’s go beyond thank-you cards and look at the big picture. Let’s choose systems of care over systems of burnout. How we support caregivers now shapes the world our children will inherit.

Want to Learn More?

• Download the MomsBeyond app today and come find your village!

• Explore 3 powerful courses to empower Mothers & Educators

• Reach out to me for 1:1 Counselling & Somatic Therapy here