Key TakeawaysResearchers find that anxiety in new fathers is much more prevalent than what is commonly reported.Anxiety affects both new mothers and fathers, and clinical attention should be on the parents as a whole, clinicians say.Toxic conceptions of masculinity may play a role in anxiety related to the transition to fatherhood.

Key Takeaways

Researchers find that anxiety in new fathers is much more prevalent than what is commonly reported.Anxiety affects both new mothers and fathers, and clinical attention should be on the parents as a whole, clinicians say.Toxic conceptions of masculinity may play a role in anxiety related to the transition to fatherhood.

Mental health struggles in new parents are common; many have heard of the difficulties of postpartum depression in mothers, for example. However, a new study suggests that while attention should continue to focus on maternal health, the well-being of fathers should not be overlooked.

What This Means For YouIf you’re a new parent, or are expecting, and are struggling with anxiety and depression reach out to a mental health professional for help. SAMHSA’s National Helpline,1-800-662-HELP (4357), (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service) or TTY:1-800-487-4889is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. They can provide you referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.If you are having suicidal thoughts, dial988to contact the988 Suicide & Crisis Lifelineand connect with a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call911.

What This Means For You

If you’re a new parent, or are expecting, and are struggling with anxiety and depression reach out to a mental health professional for help. SAMHSA’s National Helpline,1-800-662-HELP (4357), (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service) or TTY:1-800-487-4889is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. They can provide you referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.If you are having suicidal thoughts, dial988to contact the988 Suicide & Crisis Lifelineand connect with a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call911.

If you’re a new parent, or are expecting, and are struggling with anxiety and depression reach out to a mental health professional for help. SAMHSA’s National Helpline,1-800-662-HELP (4357), (also known as the Treatment Referral Routing Service) or TTY:1-800-487-4889is a confidential, free, 24-hour-a-day, 365-day-a-year, information service, in English and Spanish, for individuals and family members facing mental and/or substance use disorders. They can provide you referrals to local treatment facilities, support groups, and community-based organizations.

If you are having suicidal thoughts, dial988to contact the988 Suicide & Crisis Lifelineand connect with a trained counselor. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call911.

Difference in Prevalence

The WHO estimates that anxiety disorders affect between 2.2 and 3.8% of men.Researchers wanted to see if that statistic held up when compared to other studies examining anxiety in men, but specifically related to the perinatal period.

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Drawing attention to this discrepancy between the WHO and anxiety studies data, the authors note, could encourage more conversation around the mental health and anxiety of new fathers, and assist them in getting care.

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This study does not, however, mean to downplay the struggles of women during the perinatal period; researchers found that about 17.6% of women experience anxiety during this time.Rather, Leifermanadds, it raises awareness about the mental health struggles of both parents. “The prevalence of anxiety and depression among men is talked about less as a society, even though research shows men are more likely to commit suicide or abuse alcohol than women,” she said. “It’s important that we create more transparency around men’s mental health issues.”

New Dads in Therapy

Singley is happy to see a study point out the mental health struggles of men during the perinatal period. “It’s like the worst kept secret,” he says. “You see far more anxiety than you do depression.”

However, depression, Singley adds, tends to get more media attention because of its link to suicidal thoughts. “And so mortality and lethality tend to be what drive headlines and funding briefly,” Singley says.

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In his therapeutic work, Singley finds that many men have a relationship with anxiety that isn’t well-represented or understood. “We’re directly socialized to believe that [experiencing anxiety] is a weakness,” he says. “So having anxiety means you’re weak and you feel vulnerable. And if you take the traditional guy box view of that, you can’t let anybody know that and you just got to power through it.”

This experience of anxiety in the perinatal period, Singley says, can play out in various ways. Within more than 15 years of working with clients, he’s worked with many fathers who present with acute stress disorder, a predecessor to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), especially in the first six months postpartum.

Daniel Singley, PhDIf we, as a society, could make the changes necessary to socialize boys to be healthier, then we don’t have to fix broken men and fathers.

Daniel Singley, PhD

If we, as a society, could make the changes necessary to socialize boys to be healthier, then we don’t have to fix broken men and fathers.

Many men who go through this stress can cope, get therapy, and move on, but others don’t. This applies to all types of perinatal experiences—stillborn, maternal death, infant death, and medically uncomplicated procedures.

When people think of PTSD, they may not associate the condition with parenthood, but Singley says these perinatal experiences are enough to lead to an anxiety disorder for some men. He often sees dads who are self-medicating with alcohol and video games while isolating.

The Importance of the Conversation

Experts hope this research can help draw media attention and research funding to male anxiety, ultimately lowering barriers such as stigma and false conceptions of masculinity.

“Say ‘masculinity’ to somebody, and maybe they’ve already filled in toxic,” Singley says. “That’s really unfortunate because there are now solid studies being done about healthy masculinity and positive masculinity.”

In order to achieve healthy masculinity, Singley says we need to start early. “If we, as a society, could make the changes necessary to socialize boys to be healthier, then we don’t have to fix broken men and fathers,” he says.

These socialization skills, Singley adds, involve teaching boys how to keep from shutting down emotionally, and how to navigate intimacy in platonic and romantic relationships. “Being able to say what they’re feeling—the good, the bad and the ugly, and not to teach them that it’s weak.”

It’s important to keep in mind too, he adds, that the current generation of new fathers is being held to a higher standard than any generation of fathers before—now, it’s not as socially acceptable to work and be emotionally absent. That second piece has to be there, too. “But we as a society haven’t really carved out a place for the respect that goes along with it,” Singley says, “So it still activates their insecurity about being feminine because we have feminized the role of parenting infants.”

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1 SourceVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Leiferman J, Farewell C, Jewell J et al.Anxiety among fathers during the prenatal and postpartum period: a meta-analysis.Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2021:1-10. doi:10.1080/0167482x.2021.1885025

1 Source

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Leiferman J, Farewell C, Jewell J et al.Anxiety among fathers during the prenatal and postpartum period: a meta-analysis.Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2021:1-10. doi:10.1080/0167482x.2021.1885025

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Leiferman J, Farewell C, Jewell J et al.Anxiety among fathers during the prenatal and postpartum period: a meta-analysis.Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology. 2021:1-10. doi:10.1080/0167482x.2021.1885025

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