Women have sudden and serious hormonal changes after childbirth, so it makes sense that many suffer from post-partum depression. Throw in the major life-changing circumstances that new mothers experience—being on maternity leave, loss of sleep, isolation—and it becomes clear that both physical and circumstantial factors would create a very stressful time in the first few years of motherhood.
Do new fathers experience a form of post-partum depression too?
Obviously we can rule out the hormonal issues that women face, but new dads also face new challenges and fairly drastic lifestyle changes as well. Their partners are suddenly absorbed in taking care of a newborn, and fathers traditionally consider the financial well-being of the family to be primarily their responsibility. Fathers may also face sleep disruption, and increasingly modern dads are more involved in the day-to-day care of their children.
In fact, research has shown that depression is more likely in fathers (as well as mothers) during their child’s first year of life,[i] and particularly during the three month to six month stage.[ii]
In an article published in February in the online edition of Maternal and Child Health Journal, a team led by Micheal Weitzman, M.D, professor of medicine at the New York University School of Medicine found that of the factors they studied, paternal unemployment was the greatest predictor of depression in new fathers, followed by maternal depression.[iii]
It is predictable then that new dads without jobs or trying to cope with their partners’ post-partum depression will be prone to depression. (I would suggest that under-employment would be a likely risk factor as well.) This is valuable information for family doctors 
or pediatricians to keep in mind when interacting with new parents.
While the previous study was primarily concerned with the predictably negative impact of fathers’ depression on children, it seems to me that we should be concerned about paternal depression anyway, not only for its impact on the family but also because depressed fathers deserve to have their mental health considered as important too.
[iii] Grace Rattue. “Fathers With Depression – Who Might Benefit From Screening?.” Medical News Today. MediLexicon, Intl., 28 Feb. 2012. Web.
28 Feb. 2012. <http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/242245.php>
Very informative. Definitely something that caregivers looking after families with new babies should be aware of.
By: mypathforward on February 29, 2012
at 3:27 am
New fathers actually do experience a sharp drop in testosterone after the birth of a child.
By: Walter Piper on November 26, 2012
at 1:40 am
I really hadn’t heard that before. That is interesting!
By: jedwardswright on November 30, 2012
at 9:31 pm