Scott Keyes is a Husband, Dad, and Friend. Scott is married to Katie, a stay-at-home-Mom, and Dad to three beautiful children, ages 4, 2, and 8months. Follow him at @scottkeyes on twitter.
Here are some tips to help you be a successful Dad, a great husband/partner, and keep your sanity.
Congratulations! You’ve found out you’re going to be a Dad. You’ve found out your life is going to change in ways that you really won’t understand until you’ve left the hospital. Once you leave the hospital, and the visitors stop coming over you will be totally on your own. You won’t have an owner’s manual for this baby, or a nurse periodically stopping in to make sure you’re ok. Reading this you may start to feel worried or scared because you haven’t considered all of this yet. I’m here to tell you, DON’T BE AFRAID! You can start preparing now! I’m going to you give you a couple tips that will help you be prepared so you’ll know what to expect during the pregnancy and once baby arrives.
- Sign up for all the classes! – the hospital you plan on having the baby at will have some classes that you need to sign up for immediately. These classes include (and will vary slightly from Hospital to Hospital. I’ve included links for MidMichigan Medical Center. McLaren may have different names for these classes.) Breast Feeding Class, Preparation for Childbirth, and Baby Boot Camp. Sign up for as many as you can afford or attend. The more you can learn now, the less will surprise you on the big day and beyond. I know a lot of guys who didn’t think they needed to go to these classes and were really surprised by the birthing process.
- Read “What To Expect When You’re Expecting” – this isn’t a very manly book but, by reading it or even just glancing through it periodically you will be able to understand what is happening to your wife/partner’s body, and what is happening with the baby’s growth. The way the female body changes and adapts to be able to accommodate the growing baby is pretty amazing. By knowing what is happening to her body you will be better able to understand why she is having pain in certain areas or why she is so tired/has a surge of energy. The book also gives you ideas and pointers on what you should start preparing or working on in order get ready for the birth and bringing the baby home.
- If you haven’t already started, begin figuring out possible names. This is fun and sometimes aggravating. My wife and I had a lot of fun with this as I would always suggest outlandish names that I knew she would veto and we’d have a good laugh together.
- Sign up for all the classes! – this is important enough to list twice.
- Ask a lot of questions – to your doctor, your parents, your friends & your coworkers. Remember the important stuff but take most of it with a grain of salt.
- Prepare yourself now to be supportive of your wife/partner for the next year. She’s going to be going through some major changes and will need you for support. It’s my opinion that the manliest thing you can do throughout this process is to support your wife.
This list is a long winded version of what I tell all my friends when I find out they are having their first baby. If you don’t have time to follow these 6 tips just do what I tell most guys, “Take all the classes, and don’t hesitate to ask me any questions. You’ll have a lot of questions.”