Mom of Toddler Overwhelmed by Mental Load—Then Finds a Eye-Opening Solution
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content.
A mom of two reached breaking point until she had the genius idea to hand over parenting responsibilities to AI.
Lilian Schmidt (@heylilianschmidt) posted a clip on TikTok about how she was "fed up" of carrying the mental load solely on her own. The German native, who lives in Switzerland, turned to ChatGPT, not just for support, but also to assume a co-parenting role.
Girl, 3, playing with mini cook and stove set.
Girl, 3, playing with mini cook and stove set.
@heylilianschmidt
"It's not that I have to carry everything alone, but I still often feel that way," Schmidt told Newsweek. "Even if my partner and I try to split things 50/50, our brains just work differently."
Schmidt, who has a 3-year-old with her partner, shared her daily routine which tired moms will know all too well.
"I wake up, try to be present during the morning chaos, jump straight into back-to-back meetings, then race to day care pickup," she said. "Most evenings, I walk through the door with a toddler who's completely overstimulated and needs emotional co-regulation when I'm already running on empty batteries."
Schmidt said that her partner is an involved dad, and he is also the default parent for his 14-year-old son from a previous relationship.
Schmidt described herself as being "10 steps ahead," especially as the full-time working parents don't have a support system.
"Parenting isn't just … changing diapers or school drop-offs," Schmidt said. "It's all the invisible work: the planning, anticipating, remembering, emotional regulating, and making 1,000 tiny decisions every single day."
ChatGPT now plans a week of healthy meals her kids will actually eat, writes the grocery list, finds the perfect birthday gift, creates day care and travel packing lists to tick off and, most importantly, helps her brain to switch off.
According to Schmidt, the chat bot has lightened the mental load.
"My life has gotten 10 times easier and, for the first time in a long time, I feel like I have space to breathe," she told Newsweek.
Her clip has gone viral in a matter of days, amassing over 710,000 views. In the comments, it seemed that Schmidt isn't the only mom to rely on AI.
"ChatGPT was my doula, patient advocate and now my post c-section advocate. I can definitely add more roles," one user wrote.
"Without ChatGPT, I don't know where I'd be," another added.
Among the advice on how to navigate toddler tantrums and grocery lists sorted by aisle, Schmidt said that the most important thing ChatGPT has given her is mental relief.
"It's my sparring partner when I need to make a decision; my research assistant when I don't have three hours to scroll through Google; and my emotional buffer when I'm about to overthink something," she added. "It's not about doing more or doing it better. It's about doing the same things faster and with help."
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