Motherhood and Mental Health Under Pressure

Collected as part of Make Mothers Matter’s European survey with Kantar, the data shows that German mothers report some of the highest rates of mental health challenges across the 12 countries surveyed.

Key Figures

• 26% of mothers report depression (EU average: 20%)
• 46% feel mentally overloaded
• 68% change their employment status after having children (EU average: 55%)
• 21% leave paid work after their first child
• 44% feel society does not value their role

What’s Behind the Numbers?

Structural and cultural pressures combine to make motherhood especially challenging in Germany:

• Tax disincentives like Ehegattensplitting
• Shortage of childcare and full-day schools
• Stigma against working mothers (Rabenmutter)
• Lack of recognition for unpaid care work

Experts like Prof. Jutta Allmendinger and advocates from VBM and the Unpaid Care Work initiative warn that without reform, these pressures risk driving more women out of the workforce — and into long-term financial insecurity.

Need for change

MMM calls for urgent action to:

• Invest in maternal mental health
• Support unpaid care work
• Reform family and employment policies

The German findings will be shared publicly at the Mothers of Europe exhibition on July 9 at 17:00 CET in Cologne.

🔗 Download the Germany snapshot (PDF)
🔗 State of Motherhood in Europe home page