A survey reveals how the COVID-19 pandemic has taken a toll on the mental health of working women, especially mothers, who are struggling between work-at-home routines and everyday chores

The COVID-19 pandemic is taking a heavy toll on the emotional well-being of working women in India as nearly one in two of them (47 per cent) are experiencing more stress or anxiety, said a new survey.

Worryingly, more than two in five working mothers are working outside their business hours to provide childcare, nearly twice as many men (25 per cent), according to the ‘Workforce Confidence Index’ survey by Microsoft-owned LinkedIn that was based on the responses of 2,254 professionals in the country. For working men, the number stood at 38 per cent, pointing towards a disproportionate impact on women in these testing times.

Around one in three (31 per cent) working mothers are currently providing childcare full-time, when compared to nearly one in five (17 per cent) working fathers.

“One factor is balancing office and domestic work, the bulk of the latter being shouldered by women. Studies reveal increased participation of men during the pandemic, but women still spend most time caring for children,” said Neha Bagaria, CEO of online portal JobsForHer.

The data suggested that working mothers are more likely to bear the brunt of distractions from childcare while men seek support from friends and family. Only one in five (20 per cent) working mothers rely on a family member or friend to take care of their children, when compared to 32 per cent men.

The findings showed that more than 46 per cent working mothers report working till late to make up for work, and 42 per cent are unable to focus on work with their children at home.

About one in four freelancers anticipate an increase in their earned income (25 per cent) and personal savings (27 per cent), while close to one in three (31 per cent) expect their number of investments to increase in the next six months, the survey revealed.

Having said that, exercise has been shown to reduce anxiety and stress, but now in another major study, the researchers have revealed that it may not be enough for the levels caused by COVID-19. People who reported increasing their physical activity after the start of COVID-19 stay-at-home orders reported higher levels of stress and anxiety than those whose activity levels stayed the same, the study, published in the journal PLOS ONE, reported.

“Certainly, people who don’t exercise know that there are associations with mental health outcomes, yet the ones that increased their exercise also reported increased anxiety and stress,” said lead author Glen Duncan from the Washington State University.

For the study, the research team analysed data from over 900 pairs of identical and same-sex fraternal twins from the Washington State Twin Registry. Of the survey respondents, 42 per cent reported decreasing levels of physical activity since the COVID crisis began, and 27 per cent said they had increased their activities. Another 31 per cent reported no change.

Participants were asked about changes in their physical activity compared to one month ago. Those who reported a decrease in physical activity within two weeks after the start of stay-at-home orders had a perceived higher level of stress and anxiety, which was expected.

But surprisingly, many of the respondents who increased their physical activity felt the same way. The researchers found that the association between decreased physical activity and stress was confounded by genetic and environmental factors.

The researchers found some association between decreased physical activity and anxiety — within a pair of twins, the sibling with decreased physical activity had higher levels of anxiety than the sibling who reported no change.

In addition, anxiety levels were higher among older people and working women. “It’s not necessary that exercise won’t help you personally manage stress. It’s just that there is something genetically and environmentally linking the two,” Duncan said.