Is Our One Big Beautiful Bill Beautiful for New Moms?
a therapists take
It’s the 4th of July! So let’s talk about this new bill that you may have heard buzzing around, and the potential impacts it could have on families.
They’re calling it the One Big Beautiful Bill. But when you peel back the glittery tax breaks and the shiny new savings accounts, you’ll find something more familiar than beautiful: a policy package that gives working families crumbs—while gutting the very safety nets that hold many of them together.
And once again, mothers—especially low-income, single, and caregiving mothers—are the ones left holding the (unpaid, unsupported, unacknowledged) bag.
The Headline: Child Tax Credit and a One-Time Baby Bonus
The bill expands the Child Tax Credit (CTC) from $2,000 to $2,200 (indexed to inflation), and offers a one-time $1,000 deposit into a so-called “Trump Account” for each new baby. These changes are being celebrated as pro-family and pro-baby.
While the extra cash may help middle-income households a bit, it’s far from the transformative, recurring support that modern caregiving requires. Meanwhile, many of the women who need support most—those navigating birth, parenting, and work with fewer resources—stand to lose far more than they gain.
What It Gives with One Hand…
Let’s be clear: tax credits aren’t nothing. But they’re also not care infrastructure.
They don’t offer paid leave. They don’t provide affordable childcare. They don’t reduce the cost of formula, diapers, or housing. They don’t replace a village, or a broken maternal health care system.
And while the "Trump Account" sounds flashy, it’s essentially a long-term savings vehicle that assumes parents have the disposable income to contribute to it each year. For families already struggling to keep the lights on, this is a nonstarter.
…It Takes Away with the Other
While touting support for “families,” the bill:
Guts Medicaid and SNAP—programs disproportionately used by mothers and children.
Adds work requirements that penalize caregivers, many of whom are already performing unpaid labor at home.
Scales back energy and climate investments that benefit long-term family health and safety.
Cuts funding to public schools and child nutrition programs.
Undermines women’s economic security in the name of fiscal “discipline.”
This isn’t just penny-pinching—it’s structural misogyny. It reflects a continued refusal to see caregiving as labor, or to value mothers outside their roles as economic producers.
Where Are Mothers in the Conversation?
Let’s name it: mothers don’t hold the pen in drafting bills like this. If they did, we’d see:
Universal paid leave, not just one-time baby bonuses.
Childcare subsidies and postpartum support, not tax shelters for the already stable.
A recognition that raising the next generation is not a private luxury—it’s a public good.
Instead, policymakers distract us with modest credits while quietly slashing programs that actually stabilize households.
Feminist Policy ≠ Family Branding
Calling a bill “beautiful” doesn’t make it just. And slapping a savings account on a birth certificate doesn’t repair what’s broken for new parents in this country.
An approach to policy would ask:
Does this reduce the unpaid labor burden on women?
Does this support the health, safety, and dignity of all families?
Does this move us closer to gender and racial equity?
So What Now?
If you’re a mother reading this, here’s what I want you to know:
You deserve more than a tax credit for the work you’re doing.
You deserve health care that covers your birth and your recovery.
You deserve structural support, not performative soundbites.
And if you’re furious? Good. So am I. Let’s use that fury to build something better—together.
Therapist Tips: How to Cope When the System Feels Like It Fails Families
Let’s be honest: policies like this don’t just impact your finances—they hit your mental load, your identity, your sense of safety. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, dismissed, or just plain angry, you’re not alone.
Here are a few therapist-backed strategies for navigating the emotional toll:
1. Name the Structural, Not the Personal
When support is pulled and pressure rises, it’s easy to blame yourself. Don’t. If you're feeling like you're failing, pause and reframe: "This isn't a personal failure—this is a policy failure."
🧠 Try this mantra: “I am not broken. The system is.”
2. Set Boundaries Around Overwhelm
Constantly reading news about what’s being taken away can lead to burnout. Protect your peace.
🛑 Limit doomscrolling to a designated time.
📵 Mute accounts or conversations that spike your anxiety.
3. Anchor in Micro-Agency
You might not be able to rewrite federal policy—but you can reclaim your voice in small, meaningful ways:
Join a local parenting or advocacy group.
Share your story on social media or in a community forum.
Call your reps and tell them what real support looks like for families.
✍️ Journal prompt: What’s one thing I can do this week that feels powerful, not just productive?
4. Normalize Grief and Anger
Anger is not “too much.” Grief is not weakness. Both are valid responses to abandonment by systems that were supposed to help.
👂 Talk about it in therapy, with friends, or in a mom group that gets it.
5. Find or Build Your Village
You are not meant to navigate motherhood alone. Whether it's one text thread, one therapist, or a digital space like Real Good Mom, connection is key.
📬 Subscribe to this newsletter if you want real talk about motherhood, not policy gaslighting.
👥 Join the waitlist for the Real Good Mom Community—a space for honest connection, support, and advocacy.
Because motherhood is not a political pawn. It’s a foundation. And it’s time our policies reflected that.
xo,
Erin
