We’ve just had Men’s Health Week and before we know it it’ll be Father’s Day. Two important times for all of us dads out there.
A quarter of a million babies born are each year in Australia and ten times that in America – that equates to a whole lot of new fathers every single day!
Happy, excited, scared, stunned, delirious and flustered fathers. First time dads, experienced dads, happy dads and depressed dads. Yes, fathers who are suffering from Depression following the birth of their babies. While there is ample evidence and research about Post Natal Depression in women, it seems we have understated the effect on fathers.
“The birth of his first child marks one of the most profound changes a man may undergo, transforming his standing in the community, his most intimate relationships and his identity. Yet he may come to the moment of his infant’s birth naïvely, unprepared for the speed of the changes taking place, and unaware of the range and depth of the demands he will face.” MJA, Addressing depression and anxiety among new fathers.
Becoming a parent is a very different experience for males and females. Pregnancy and birth necessarily focuses on women. It is after all, a physical reality. No escaping a pregnant belly. But what about the dads? A father’s role and its impact can be misunderstood, understated or neglected. We know that having a baby is one of the most blissful and stressful events in a relationship. It’s also fair to say that many men enter fatherhood are unprepared for the lifestyle changes that the bundle of joy will bring. We don’t read the manual for the DVD player, so how many new dads will we find propped up in bed reading What to Expect when you are Expecting? Did you? Even as a Pediatrician, I left much of that emotional preparation up to my wife.
Unfortunately ignorance is not bliss in the case of parenting. Difficulties after the birth of a crying baby hit men too. It is believed that in half of the cases where a mother is suffering PND, the father is depressed too. But where is the research? Why are we not talking about this?
A review of the literature over the last two years has shown that there is very little new research on the effect of parenthood on fathers. The frequency and severity of impact on fathers and post natal depression in fathers is currently under-rated and undiagnosed. It’s time we heard from the dads.
Please take our 10 question, 3 minute survey and tell me about how it was for you. It won’t be anywhere near as difficult as changing that first nappy or diaper, and the evidence gathered will be much more useful! Go, do it now. Let’s help put the attention on fathers.
“Any man can be a father. It takes someone special to be a dad”
(Author Unknown)
