Q&A: Motherhood in the Pandemic

My teammate at Berlin Cameron, Elsa Gonzalez, our Senior Director of Strategy, is a new mom who not only gave birth during the pandemic, but went through so much more; Early on in the pandemic, she and her husband, Franco, picked up quickly and moved from New York City all the way to Texas, got COVID eight months into the pandemic, and had to weather the worst snowstorm in Texas history — all while still caring for their newborn daughter Frida, mostly without help.

Given her struggles over the past year, Elsa herself has seen a shift in how she approaches work and how motherhood has made her better at her job.

“I just feel more comfortable with myself and with what I can offer. I have less imposter syndrome because I don’t have time to deal with it anymore,” she told me.

With Mother’s Day on the horizon, we sat down this week to chat about what it was really like giving birth during a pandemic, how remote work has been a lifeline, and how companies can better support mothers. I thought that Elsa sharing her story might be relatable for other new moms and provide some comfort. Being a new mom is stressful enough on its own, so I wanted to help her share the fact thats other people are in the same boat.

Here’s more from our conversation.

How did you feel about bringing a baby into the world into the pandemic?

I don’t know what it’s like to bring a baby into the world not in a pandemic, so in some ways, ignorance is bliss. It’s been a lot of intuition and survival kicking in, and really listening to that. But it has been way lonelier than I expected, because when the pandemic started, I expected to go to Texas for my baby shower. That ended up being my exit from New York. I didn’t get to experience some of the usual milestones people talk about. My extended family didn’t get to see me pregnant, and to this day, they haven’t met my baby. Only two friends have met my baby. So it’s been lonely, but it’s also been a time for unity in strength in my core family: my husband, Frida, my dog. It’s been a bonding experience. We’re all much tighter and are appreciative of all the time we spend together.