Katie Piper has opened up about her “irrational” guilt at being a working mum after leaving her kids to film a show in the States.
The campaigning TV presenter has just returned from her stint across the pond, where she shot the new documentary Katie Piper: Babies Behind Bars.
And she has found it tough to balance parenting her two girls and having a successful career.
Kate said: “Like many women, I have this irrational guilt about working and leaving the children.
“I was really struggling with it with regards to my US trip – I missed the school play, I missed their homework.
“It’s very much a female thing. I think if you have a career and a family, you feel a responsibility to make sure no cracks show in any of the roles. You want to show colleagues you are capable but also to not let your family down.”
Katie, who has daughters Belle, eight, and Penelope, five, says it was one of the reasons why she signed up to front AXA UK’s Mind Health campaign.
“Their campaign is all about running on empty or burnout, and I was sitting there thinking, ‘I am in the wrong time zone, I am overworked, I haven’t seen my kids for three weeks and have all this irrational guilt about leaving my children. I can definitely talk about that.’” It won’t get any easier with Katie – who turns 40 in October – is more in demand than ever.
As well as the documentary and her hosting duties on Loose Women, a second series of her Sunday morning programme, Katie Piper’s Breakfast Show, has been commissioned. Then there is her recent children’s book and a new BBC podcast.
But it's her campaigning, and her Katie Piper Foundation that supports burns survivors, that she is most proud of. She is spearheading a campaign for a minimum sentence for acid attacks and has already had meetings with the Ministry of Justice.
“We’ve made positive steps forward,” said Katie, who was left scarred by an attack in 2008.
“It’s not going to happen overnight, but it’s moving in the right direction. It’s not really a personal campaign about my story, It’s for victims who haven’t yet become victims. We’re hoping to make a positive change.”
Katie Piper is currently working with AXA UK on its Mind Health campaign to raise awareness on how to better look after your mind health using tools like the Mind Health Meter. For more information, go to: https://www.axa.co.uk/about/inside-axa/helping-minds-flourish.
