Surgeon General: parenting is “an urgent public health issue”

While warnings from the Surgeon General are typically reserved for dangers like alcohol, cigarettes, and other substances, the office has been expanding its description of what constitutes “an urgent public health issue” in recent years. Earlier this summer, for example, the current US Surgeon General, Dr. Vivek H. Murthy, asked Congress to include social media among those other threats to public health, particularly as it relates to children. 42 state attorneys general have since echoed Murthy’s call, and it looks like this might be one of the few issues to truly garner the necessary bipartisan support to become law. 

Perhaps buoyed by that support, Murthy’s office recently added another topic to its list of public health crises: parenting.

As Murthy described, “The work of parenting is essential not only for the health of children but also for the health of society.” He went on to write, “Additionally, we know that the well-being of parents and caregivers is directly linked to the well-being of their children. The stresses parents and caregivers have today are being passed to children in direct and indirect ways, impacting families and communities across America.”

And those stresses are on the rise:

• One-third of parents with children under 18 put their stress level at 8 out of 10
• Two-thirds of parents experience loneliness
• Two-fifths of parents claim to be “so stressed they feel numb”
• And two-thirds of parents cite money as a primary source of stress at a time when the average household spends 18.6 percent of its weekly income on childcare.

But while finances, time commitments, and a host of other factors have combined to make parenting difficult, that has always been the case to some extent. Instead, concerns about the world in which their children will grow up are what have many parents most worried while convincing others to forgo having kids altogether.

“Is it right to bring another person into that?”

The same study cited above found that nearly 75 percent of parents “worry their child will struggle with anxiety or depression,” with school shootings, climate change, and the state of modern society also amplifying those concerns. As Jade Sasser asked in the LA Times, “Is it right to bring another person into that?”

Across a series of interviews with millennials and members of Gen Z, the answer was often a fairly resounding “no.” And while some of those with whom she spoke were planning on adopting or fostering kids, the general consensus seemed to be that having children of their own was simply not the moral thing to do. 

To be clear, that is a deeply flawed and jaded conclusion, drawn more from a hypersensitivity to the issues cited above than a rational assessment of the world around them. Yet, it’s important to recognize that it is not necessarily a unique conclusion either. More and more people are choosing not to have kids, and it’s not a trend that shows signs of changing anytime soon. 

Regardless of whether you are a parent, grandparent, or don’t have any kids of your own, the Surgeon General’s warning and the practical impact that these issues are having on the future of our culture should serve as an important warning for each of us today.

You see, parents aren’t the only ones who experience stress or worry about the state of our society. We often view those concerns through a different lens than those who do not have to worry about how they’ll impact our kids, but the temptation to allow fears and worries to cloud our perception of the world around us is common to all people. And the solution is the same for all of us as well. 

The greatest blessing we have to offer

Just before his arrest and crucifixion, Jesus endeavored to prepare his disciples to cope with the changes that would come from not having him physically present with them all the time. To that end, one of the last things he promised was that “In the world you will have tribulation” (John 16:33). 

It was, perhaps, not the most encouraging lesson given the circumstances, but understanding that no level of faithfulness could insulate them from the pain and struggles inherent to this life was important. In fact, Jesus understood that such faithfulness would actually increase the problems they would face in the years ahead, and God’s answer to those problems is never to naively ignore them or simply hope that they will go away. 

As parents and people who are equally incapable of escaping the traumas of this life, we should not be surprised when things get hard and stress begins to feel overwhelming. There were always going to be days, weeks, months, and even years when that was the case, and lamenting that fact does little to solve it. 

Fortunately, Jesus didn’t stop with the warning. Instead, he commanded them—and it was a command—to “take heart; I have overcome the world” (John 16:33). 

The Greek word for “take heart” more literally translates as “to be emboldened with courage,” and that is how God expects us to approach the very real problems and concerns that confront us every day. And it’s how he expects us to teach our children to respond as well. 

If we, as Christians, were to better model Christ’s courage on a daily basis, it would quickly become one of the greatest blessings we have to offer to the lost around us, as well as one of the most effective ways to demonstrate the power and authenticity of the gospel. But we can’t do either unless we truly believe that Jesus has overcome a world that so often seems to be winning in the struggle for our culture’s soul. 

So where do you need to be emboldened with courage today? What fights are you losing against the stress and concerns of this life? 

Know that the same God who has already overcome those problems stands ready to help you do the same. And while he does not guarantee that it will be easy or that you will emerge on the other side unscathed, he does promise to walk with you every step of the way. 

Will you join him?