08/28/2026
Who Takes Care of Her?
A Joint Statement on Women's Mental Health
As mothers, we can say without hesitation that being a mom is one of the greatest joys of our lives. Children have a way of filling places in our hearts we never even knew were empty. They change us, challenge us, worry us, inspire us, and yes, in so many ways, they complete us.
But motherhood doesn’t have just one face. There are biological mothers and adoptive mothers. There are stepmothers, foster mothers, and grandmothers who step in and raise children as their own. There are women who mother children they didn’t give birth to and women who quietly become the safe place for a child who needs one. There are countless ways to be a mother.
And behind all of those women is something we don’t talk about nearly enough: women’s mental health.
We celebrate women for being strong. We depend on them to hold families together, remember what everyone needs, care for aging parents, raise children, build careers, manage homes, and somehow keep moving through their own heartbreak, exhaustion, anxiety, and loss.
But who checks on the woman who is always checking on everyone else?
Motherhood brings extraordinary joy, but being a woman should not require quietly carrying everything.
We need to make room for women to say, “I’m tired. I’m overwhelmed. I’m struggling. I need help.” And we need to hear those words without judgment.
Because taking care of mothers and taking women’s mental health seriously is also a way of taking care of the children, families, and communities they love so deeply.
Women who spend their lives caring for everyone else deserve to be cared for, too
From the staff of Waterford Youth and Family Services, Waterford Senior Services, and Waterford Cares
