The first days as a new Dad are tough. Long hours filled with raw emotions, exhaustion and change. Add the impact of this life-changing day on your mental health and no wonder many Dads struggle.
If you are struggling, or struggled when your kids were small you are not alone. Friends of Dad.info, Scott Mair and Mark Williams, passionate campaigners for Dad’s Mental Health are working with the Letters of Light project to send handwritten letters offering peer support from Dads to other new Dads who might be struggling.
Let’s be clear, many Dads find a new baby joining their household can challenge their mental health.
1 in 10 Dads suffer from post-natal depression.
That is 75000 dads in the UK each year.
With 20% of new Dads feeling completely isolated in the year following the birth of their new child & 50% of Dads whose partners are struggling with depression are suffering too, now is the time to take action
So how can we all help?
Did having kids change your mental health? Got time to write a quick note to a new Dad as part of the Letters of Light campaign?
To support another Dad’s mental health all you need to do it is HAND WRITE a supportive note. Start your letter by saying #DearFellowDad and then just share some brief thoughts about your experience, there is no wrong way to write, just letting other Dads know you’ve been through it will help.
Register here to be part of this special project with Letters of Light who can forward your compassionate letter to a dad to read when in need of a little light
– Your letter can be used to help start a conversation with loved ones about how they feeling
– Your letter could be used by a parental mental health professional to aide a patients recovery
Parents with lived experience of a parental mental health illness, understand how powerful words from someone who has recovered from a similar experience can be. By writing you can inspire hope, solidarity and belief that recovery is possible!
Share
If you feel you want to please take a photo of your letter and share it with us @dad_info or email it to us at info@dad.info and we can share it for you on our social media and website. If you can, include a selfie of you holding it, but of course remember that wouldn’t be anonymous so perhaps ask any family about this before deciding how you share. (you might choose to sign off only with an initial if that feels more comfortable).
Read Scott and Mark’s letters here and here.
Thanks for your support.
