Expecting Dads

A free evening event for men expecting their first child

Congratulations!
Meet up at a relaxing venue and a chat about the changes ahead

• what might change
  
• ways you could prepare
  
• what to do if the wheels fall off
  

Event arranged by appointment for 3 or more men

The Village Bar
10-531 Hay Street, Subiaco Village, Subiaco (120m West of Rokeby Rd)

For future dates, more info & RSVP contact Dawson Cooke
dawson@familyworks.com.au
0403 990 251

Why?

For many reasons - based on my own experience becoming a father and working with fathers, and plenty of research with first time fathers.

• Increasingly men are expecting to be involved with parenting and expected by others to be involved and competent.
• When fathers are involved in positive ways during pregnancy and early parenting, there are benefits in the health and well-being for the man, the mother and the child.
• Men generally want a number of things from fatherhood - to share the responsibilities of caring for their child with the mother, to be the best dad (and person) they can be for their child, and to bond with their child. See the model of fatherhood strengths.
  
• Most antenatal classes focus only on the birth and the mother (both important of course), and because of this, men can miss out on getting support for their own preparation for becoming a parent.
• Many new fathers do not feel prepared for the role of fatherhood and have not given much thought to what being a father means.
• When men do have a chance to discuss parenting at antenatal classes they report it is helpful, they want more of it, and they say the best part was chatting with other men in the same situation.
• Surprisingly, the period of pregnancy has been found to be the most stressful time of parenting for many men. Fathers can also develop postnatal depression symptoms similar to mothers and this has been shown to be a risk for the child's development.