11 Comments

Molly, this is such a (maybe somewhat?) obvious point that I’m sure has already occurred to you several times over. But it clicked in my head as I was reading through all of your work. We know that the number one killer of women is cardiovascular disease/heart disease. What is cited as a preventative measure? You guessed it - “just manage your stress!”

So maybe, stress is actually the #1 killer of women when we think about this in terms of your map and how all roads lead back to stress in some way. However, I also know you said in the "A quick(ish) lesson about stress" that stress doesn't exist as a clinical term/diagnosis (only in the subclinical space is it recognize). How do we reconcile with the idea that stress seems to be a primary contributor/risk factor to so many other diagnoses and health issues?

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Hi Molly, amazing work. Unrelated fields, but see how SCOR represented connected data here with frequency and intensity depicted (see bottom left caption): https://dcm.ascm.org/. Click on big circles then little circles to see it change. As for the map itself, one thing is missing for me (in a heteronormative marriage) is the stress on top of it all of also having to maintain (work at) a marriage. At one point or another, a husband can be like having another toddler, and that is a cause of maternal load and an more stressor.

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thanks for sharing that resource, Anna!

And, ooooh boy, yes. That is missing. I think that is worth exploring when taking on all the layers of mental load. From there, yep, it might need to be split out. TBD. Thanks for calling attention!

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Hi Molly, I love this work! This is a beautiful first draft to show the long term complexities of motherhood.

I’m a designer working in healthcare innovation who is passionate about these issues. In fact, that’s what moved me from corporate to healthcare last year. I would love to help you communicate this vision if you’re looking for support, pro bono.

If that sounds interesting, let’s connect!

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oooh! That does sound interesting. Thanks, Sara!

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🤯 Holy crap, this is amazing. I've been mentally piecing together stressors mothers face, especially related to careers and invisible labor/caregiving since that's my niche, but the robustness of this diagram is incredible. Especially since I know it's just the first to come-- wow. Please, keep up the much needed work!! I can't wait to see more, especially related to the 'work/career' category (selfishly, ha).

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😄 thank you, Lydia!

Lots to explore on the work/career side of things for sure!

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Oh wow. This is amazing! Thank you for undertaking this massive project. I'm excited to see it in the early stages and hopeful for what's to come!

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Thank you!!!

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This is brilliant work. Hope to connect!

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“maybe, stress is actually the #1 killer of women”

DAMN, Shannon! Yes! I definitely want to dig into this statement and your question at the end. So many ideas on this!

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