A new Australian study of expectant dads has shown that 18.6% of men show high levels of psychological distress during their partner's pregnancy. Whereas it is widely known that many women experience PND upon giving birth, men tend to feel anxiety during the pregnancy. The men in the study felt a loss of control, struggled with financial responsibilities and worried about being protectors. Many also grieved the loss of their independence and the prospect of having to share their partner's attention with a third person.
I would have to agree. In my study, most of the male partners I interviewed felt a great deal of pressure to provide for and support their pregnant partners. Many men also felt very detached from the pregnancy at least until the first ultrasound when they could actually 'see' that the pregnancy was 'real' or until they could feel some movement. I found it interesting that although many of the men I spoke to were anxious about fatherhood, they were not so anxious that they felt the need to read books about the pregnancy or parenting. I think a number of men were in such denial that their lives were about to change significantly, they sort of pretended the pregnancy didn't exist until they actually had to confront the prospect of fatherhood right before the due date.
Source: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,22701670-2,00.html
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment