In many societies, men are seen as the financial support of the home, while women, in addition to several roles, are considered the primary caregivers where kids are concerned. This assertion lends credence to why 51% of Americans believe women should rather stay at home and not fathers. Therefore, eyebrows are raised when a man decides to go against the ‘norm’ to become a stay-at-home dad. Indeed, it does come with challenges, and that’s what you are about to read on. However, the objective is to work through these challenges and become a successful stay-at-home dad. Read further to gain insight on this matter.
- Lack of support
Not many men are in the habit of becoming stay-at-home dads, and for this reason, there isn’t enough support out there to provide guidance. As a matter of fact, some opposition you are likely to face will come from members of the extended family who may have grown up in a different era. For example, elderly uncles, aunties, and grandparents usually do not understand why the roles should change where child care is concerned.
Their refusal to understand the role change inadvertently results in a blatant lack of support for a stay-at-home dad. Admittedly, sometimes it’s not a refusal; instead, it’s more to do with a clash of cultural expectations. Moreover, there aren’t many social groups that support stay-at-home dads compared to the opposite gender. Unfortunately, all these elements contribute to the utter lack of support (although sometimes minimal) for these dads.
- Depression
Already, staying at home as the primary giver may build feelings of anxiety and, if left unchecked, can spiral into depression. However, child care experts say these feelings of depression can be dealt with when you take deliberate steps to resolve the problem. First of all, be conscious about taking breaks to relax when your partner takes over the care of the kids. Secondly, acknowledge your feelings and if it’s affecting daily routines, seek expert help. If you’re not yet at that stage, there are things you can do on your own to handle it. You can try managing serotonin levels in your body, and one way is with cbd oil.
- Isolation
It’s not too surprising that fathers who become stay-at-home dads feel isolated at some point in their lives. They tend to feel lonely mainly because not so many stay-at-home dads are around to share moments. Moreover, it can be very uncomfortable planning playdates only to realize that everybody else is a stay-at-home mom and you’re the only dad among the group. Again, many parent groups are dominated by mothers, making feelings of isolation even more pronounced.
Indeed, raising a family is not the sole responsibility of one parent. Even though certain situations may account for why a man decides to become a stay-at-home dad, avoid letting others’ opinions affect your judgment. At the end of it all, the most important reason for doing it is to be hands-on in raising your children to become responsible people in the future.