Emma Brooks

Navigating work and family with empowering support

As a parent, we often spend most of our energy working to set good examples for our children, see them happy, and take care of them. But sometimes, caring for others starts with caring for yourself. Being a working parent can be hard. When my home life started to feel overwhelming, Deloitte and our Integrated Mental Health Services team helped me find support to make caring for myself a priority again.

Navigating daily life and work responsibilities can be as challenging as it is rewarding. When my son was diagnosed with a hyperactivity disorder that caused some shifts in our family dynamic, little sleep turned into little patience which turned into lots of stress for all of us. This, coupled with calls from school, specialists, and traveling to doctors’ appointments, were causing my hours outside of work to have an exhaustive impact on me.

During my work at Deloitte on tax communications, I kept hearing our professionals talk about Deloitte’s Integrated Mental Health Services (IMHS). Stories of professionals who had benefitted from these services resonated with me, and I reached a point where I felt like it was time to explore these resources. I wasn’t the one that had been given a diagnosis, but I needed help too.

Reaching out to IMHS felt like a leap into the unknown – partly because I was unsure of what exactly I was asking for. All I knew was that I needed support to be the best parent and caregiver possible. The response I got gave me instant relief. They spent the time to understand the situation, help figure out my needs, explain the resource options for my unique situation, and then went on to connect me with a professional parenting consultant that was flexible with my family schedule. The pressure-free communication from IMHS made me feel supported and understood, not just as a professional, but as a parent too.

IMHS not only found a suitable program, but also helped take the mental load off my shoulders of having to hunt down these resources myself, freeing up my energy to focus on my family and my work. My therapist, who specialized in helping families navigate the complexities of a diagnosis, such as my son’s, offered practical parenting techniques, and guidance on stepping away and taking a moment to myself when needed, which was something new to me and could help me stay resilient while implementing parenting plans. This type of assistance was something I didn’t even know existed but turned out to be exactly what I needed.

While I was a little unsure about seeking help, from the moment I connected with IMHS, I felt welcomed in an accepting and non-judgmental approach. IMHS helped lessen any fear I had. If there’s one thing I’ve learned from this journey, it’s the importance of reaching out, and now I want to share my experience. I felt prioritized and cared for, which empowered me to be able to improve care for my family. Being a working parent is inherently challenging, and having support as a Deloitte professional helped me accept and navigate these challenges more effectively. Today, with help from IMHS, I am a better mom, I’m a better employee, and overall, a better version of myself.