Harrington Meyer Talks to HuffPost About ‘Depleted Grandmother Syndrome’
October 15, 2026
HuffPost,The Washington Post
Grandparents who provide regular childcare for their adult children’s families often feel physically, mentally and financially strained, a pattern some call “depleted grandmother syndrome” (though not an official diagnosis), yet their help is described as vital to families facing high childcare costs.
Madonna Harrington Meyer, University Professor and author of “Grandmothers at Work: Juggling Families and Jobs,” says, “Childcare is physically, emotionally and cognitively demanding, and it can wear out even very fit grandparents.”
In regards to the financial challenges of childcare, Harrington Meyer says, “In my research, grandparents reported spending money they meant to use for an oil change to buy diapers for their grandchildren, foregoing meals so their grandchildren can eat and delaying retirement so they could continue to bankroll the younger generation.”
Read more in the HuffPost article, “Grandma's Tired: America Experiencing 'Depleted Grandmother Syndrome' — Here's Why.”
In Other News
Harrington Meyer was also quoted in the Washington Post article, “Gigi or Nana? The difficult process of picking a grandmother name.”
Firstborn grandchildren sometimes get “naming rights,” according to Harrington Meyer. “There can be the name you prefer, but there's also what the child is able to say,” she says. “Those are the best stories of all; somebody names them and then it sticks.”
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