Preparing for Fatherhood: 11 Ways To Get Ready

Congratulations! We often focus on a mother’s preparation for parenthood and forget about our dear fathers, who are just as important.

Finding out you will be a father can be a life-changing moment, thus making it important for you to start preparing for fatherhood. 

You may have to adjust a few aspects of your life to help you accommodate your new bundle of joy.

To ease this process, try to prepare yourself psychologically and purchase all the requisite items. This article will enlighten you on some aspects of fatherhood.

Preparing for fatherhood in 11 simple steps

Research

As a new father, there is a chance that you do not know a lot about handling infants.

But in-depth research is all you need. You could read plenty of fatherhood books, sign up for newsletters or do internet research. 

These sources will give you diverse fatherhood experiences from dads, and you could learn from them.

Additionally, you should not limit your research to only baby care as, at times, you need to step in for your pregnant or newly delivered partner. 

You need to understand the labor process, birth, and even recommend what a pregnant woman can eat for breakfast.

Decide on the father you want to be

Parenting is a process that is unique to every guardian as there is no standard way.

One of the things you need to do before the baby arrives is reflect on the type of father you want to be. You should narrow it down to one specific fatherhood approach. 

You could choose an approach based on your fatherhood role model.

You can also come up with one that you think is effective.

Talk with other fathers

As a father-to-be, you will get mixed-up emotions you may not know to handle.

At first, you may be happy and excited. But with time, you may feel unprepared. The truth is that you can never be fully ready. 

It’s just like on-the-job training. You will learn on the way or with the help of others.

Therefore, it may be helpful to be part of a social group with other dads. You will meet regularly to discuss the uncertainties of fatherhood and how to navigate through them. 

Attend parenting classes

Suppose your close circle of friends and family are not parents.

You should consider signing up for a parenting class. Conventionally, people think that parenting classes are only for mothers. However, it is not gender-specific, and you can learn a lot from those sessions. 

It would be best if your partner may accompany you to avoid the discomfort of being around other mothers.

You can opt for a father-only parenting class. You can learn techniques such as holding the baby, their feeding habits and changing diapers. 

Agree on the division of labor

During pregnancy and after birth, there are many activities that one person cannot do.

Therefore, it is necessary to agree on roles that each has to play. The shared responsibilities also help ensure that you both have quality time with the baby for equal bonding. 

More often, the baby quickly bonds with the mother through breastfeeding and playtime.

Therefore, you will need to be more invested in having a connection with your child. Furthermore, parenthood comes with long sleepless nights, but eventually, you will learn how to sleep train your 12 month old

But with the division of labor, you might be able to get some sleep to get you going the next day.

Prepare the nursery

Preparing an extra room for the baby should not be left to the mother.

You should be part of it too.

You could design the room while taking in inputs from your partner on how it should be. Ideally, this is done after knowing the gender of the baby. 

It helps when coming up with patterns and decorations that are gender-specific. However, you could still develop a gender-neutral design. Designing the baby’s room will also inspire some excitement. 

Start doing low-level baby proofing

Before the baby arrives, there is no need to start baby-proofing around the house. It should only worry you once the baby starts rolling and crawling. The best thing is starting with items that are on ground level. 

Do not forget to find a way of managing your wiring systems to keep the baby from electrocution.

Be financially prepared

Apart from being mentally prepared, it would help if you were financially ready to avoid financial stress. It is common among most dads. Being a parent comes with financial responsibilities. 

Therefore, instill a saving culture early on to ensure your baby gets all the necessities.

It is done by monitoring your spending and making wise financial decisions. You can opt for financial advisory services to help you develop and stick to a new family expense.

Talk about parenting with your partner

Parenting is characterized by making critical decisions.

For instance, do you want the baby to always sleep in the nursery? Will your partner be working? Or will she stay at home and nurse your little one? What are your plans for childcare? 

These are some of the questions that you cannot decide alone.

You need to include your partner in the decision-making process as it affects both of you. Also, this should not be a conclusive decision as, with time, other factors might come into play.

You must act as a team and be effective in communication.

Celebrate your milestones

Fatherhood is not an easy task, but at the same time, not impossible.

You will need to give yourself credit for the achievements you have made. Additionally, you can document some of the exciting moments and milestones you made.

It will help you relive some of the experiences you had.

Sleep whenever you can

After the arrival of the baby, your sleep patterns are likely to change.

At times, the baby might cry all night, leaving you tired and sleepy. Therefore, you must figure out the proper sleep schedule for you and your partner since it is essential for your physical health.

You can also sleep in turns and take naps whenever you can.

One last thing on, Preparing for fatherhood

Fatherhood is a fantastic journey, even though it comes with its challenges.

Therefore, to navigate through such moments, you need to be physically, mentally, emotionally, and financially prepared for them.

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