‘Mortified’ TV news anchor falls asleep on air after late night with her teething baby. The hidden costs of returning to work after parental leave

“I was like, ‘Oh my goodness. I can’t believe this just happened to me. I am mortified,’” Dillon, who woke up right after, told Today. “I was pinching myself under the desk like, ‘This has to be a nightmare.’”

The show’s meteorologist joked that Dillon “looked like a perfect little angel taking a little nap,” while her co-anchor dubbed her “Sleeping Beauty.”

Within moments, the clip went viral on social media and, even though Dillon laughed it off and continued the broadcast, it highlighted a common, often hidden struggle that viewers didn’t know the exhausted anchor was facing.

The hidden financial cost of sleepless nights

Dillon told Today that her exhaustion stemmed from being up much of the night with her eight-month-old teething baby. And with her husband working a double shift, Dillon only slept for “a couple of hours” before getting up again to start work at 3:30 a.m.

Neither Dillon nor Fox 13 returned Moneywise’s request for comment, but her viral clip was reportedly accompanied by support from those acknowledging how exhausting being a new parent can be. (Dillon also has a two-year-old who, thankfully, slept the night).

The CDC recommends that adults get seven hours of sleep a night, but that can be hard for new parents.

One study found that “70% of mothers and 50% of fathers showed at least subclinical insomnia” in the first four months post-partum, while another noted that “sleep satisfaction and duration sharply declined with childbirth” and didn’t return to post-pregnancy levels “for up to six years.”

And that sleep deprivation can lead to financial consequences. In fact, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine reported that insufficient sleep is associated with reduced work performance and higher absenteeism rates — especially for “shift workers, who often must sleep at a time of day that is at odds with the body’s circadian rhythms.”

“Sleep is essential for every aspect of our health and daily function,” Dr. John Saito, a spokesperson for the AASM, told Moneywise. “When people don’t get enough sleep, they may experience difficulties focusing, slower reaction times and impaired decision-making, which can affect productivity and everyday choices.”

Further research showed that giving a mother an extra hour of sleep a night can increase household income by up to 11% — which shows the potential cost of losing Z’s.

Women, in particular, tend to sacrifice their own careers following a pregnancy, including declining or losing out on promotions, while also facing lower job retention. Those negative impacts are amplified when you consider the additional costs new parents face.

The national non-profit Child Care Aware of America (CCAoA) says that the cost of childcare increased 23% between 2021 and 2025, with the national average hitting $13,184 last year.

Overall, 2026 data shows that parents, on average, spend at least 20% of their annual income on childcare. And when you factor in the thousands in food, clothing and other costs of having a baby, new parents coming off of parental leave need a plan to ensure they can balance care for their child with the need to stay productive at work.

How to protect your sleep — and your finances —as a new parent

When it comes to improving sleep, Dr. Saito recommends “sharing nighttime responsibilities with your partner or a support person, accepting help with household tasks from family and friends and safeguarding any opportunities you may have for rest.”

He added that alternating feeding nights, when possible, with a partner and eliminating caffeine after noon can also help lead to better sleep. Those experiencing health, mood or other struggles due to lack of sleep, he says, should contact a physician.