A mother's plea.

Abstract

“Please don't wake up,” I plead silently to my 10-month-old son as I log into another Zoom meeting from my tiny New York City apartment. I use a virtual background—a picture of my university office—to hide the fact that I'm in my kitchen, where it's easier to avoid the loud calls for “Mama!” from my 3-year-old daughter and the hunger cries of my infant son. Such meetings—a byproduct of the COVID-19 pandemic—add to the stress I feel as a working mom, trying to hide the messy reality of my life as a parent. It has led to a unique type of Zoom burnout, one I fear is specific to working mothers.