Fathers Can Struggle With Mental Health Too

Supported dads are good dads!

The transition to fatherhood involves a series of very difficult psychological tasks.

Many dads can struggle with mental health issues like depression. The mood disorder can appear with the birth of a new child or they can even emerge later in life. Lack of sleep, changes in relationships and lifestyle, and new responsibilities were most often the cause. 

Two in five new dads reported having concerns about their mental health. 

Facing the fiscal reality of a larger family as well as their spouse’s possible (if temporary) departure from the workforce, new fathers also often face a level of stress related to their work performance and income that they haven’t experienced since their first job.

Fathers are struggling and suffering with mental health difficulties at about the same rate as mothers. The majority of these mental health difficulties go unnoticed, undiagnosed, and untreated. 

With ample opportunities for mothers to seek help for mental health issues postpartum, men are sometimes left with fewer resources. Stigma also can be a factor, preventing many men from speaking up and seeking help. Psychiatric illness among fathers can have a devastating impact on their children’s wellbeing. For the sake of our families and our fathers, it’s time to stop pretending that men’s experiences and roles don’t matter as much as women’s do in the first years of a child’s life.

You’ve got this!

As a father, being mentally ill may affect how you talk to your kids, how often you play with them, and how much patience you have when tantrums happen.

Therefore, it is important to be aware of some warning signs that should incite seeking help early:

• Excessive worrying
• Feeling excessively sad
• Confused thinking or problems concentrating
• Extreme mood changes
• Strong feelings of irritability/anger
• Avoiding friends and social activities
• Changes in sleeping and eating habits
• Difficulty perceiving reality
• Substance abuse
• Ongoing aches and pains
• Thinking about suicide
• Inability to carry out daily activities

Never self-diagnose. Always reach out to a professional.

These are some tips to cope with fatherhood stress:

• Accept that you can’t fix everything: even difficult situations bring an opportunity to learn
• Talk to others: it is important to talk about this challenging phase of your life, you are not alone.
• Make some time for you: having a baby will impact your daily activities but it is important to continue enjoying some of your hobbies.
• Keep a check on your partner: if you’re concerned your partner may be suffering, talk with her about how she is feeling, and try to help her find solutions to cope with the situation too.
• Learn about mental health conditions that might occur during pregnancy and following the birth of a baby, and keep in mind that for both mothers and fathers, the first important step is to ask for help early.
• Schedule some quality time for the both of you to reflect on how things are going and support each other.