How life changed since becoming a dad. Identity shifts, things you miss, things you gained, the transformation of fatherhood.
70 threads
Real question. Because I love my kids more than anything but I also miss the freedom and autonomy and just not being responsible for another human's entire life 24/7. Some days are
Before kids I was absolutely gunning for that promotion. Stayed late, took extra projects, the whole thing. Now I'm the guy who leaves at 5:30 sharp and honestly I'm fine with it.
So last Saturday my wife watched the kids for a few hours and I hit up my old CrossFit box that I used to go to 5 days a week. I walked in expecting to feel like I was back in my e
Honest question. I used to be the guy who could wake up at 11am on Saturday and just... exist. Now I'm up at 6 with my 2 year old asking for pancakes. Don't get me wrong, I love my
Confession: I was really scared before my first kid was born. Thought I'd resent the loss of freedom and feel trapped. And don't get me wrong the first year was ROUGH and sometimes
I used to be that guy who could talk about music production for hours. Had a whole setup in my apartment. Now I'm covered in spit-up and I can barely remember the last album I list
Two years ago I was completely glued to my phone, doom scrolling for hours, checking work emails at night, taking pictures of food nobody asked to see. My 5 year old literally call
So I was grilling last Saturday and my son came running over. Instead of thinking 'ugh kids are annoying' like old me would have, I got this weird proud feeling and spent the next
I thought I'd miss the freedom. Instead I miss being patient with my own self. Used to be cool when I'd mess up. Now I try to be perfect because I'm teaching someone to live. That
I don't mean that in a depressing way because I love my kids more than anything. But man, I miss just sitting in my car with nobody talking to me for like 20 minutes. Or being able
Trade off nobody warns you about. My wife and I are a real team now, like actually solving problems together. But my best friends? Haven't hung out with them in 18 months. We text
Got some perspective this week. I realized I'm not the guy who stayed out till 2 AM anymore and that used to bother me. But then I watched my daughter learn to smile and I'm like..
Real talk, I used to sleep til like 11 am on Saturdays and it was glorious. Now my 3 year old is up at 6 am every single day regardless of what day it is. I've accepted this is my
Seriously. My house is not clean. My car has a thousand snack crumbs. I'm wearing the same 3 shirts on rotation. But my kids are thriving and I'm not stressed all the time. Used to
I get it now. Like actually GET it. My dad always seemed tired but never complained. Now I'm tired and complaining constantly and my kid is only one. That man had four of us. I leg
RANT WARNING. My wife and I used to have actual conversations that weren't about poop schedules and sleep regressions. We used to go on dates without planning logistics for 3 hours
Not in a sad way. But if you're about to become a dad, stop trying to be the cool guy who has it all figured out. Just accept now that you'll probably be tired, smell like kid stuf
I switched from consulting (60 hour weeks, constant travel) to a boring but stable desk job that pays less. My old self would be horrified but my new self goes home by 5 and actual
Seriously though. I had this sweet 2015 Mustang before kids. Sold it for a minivan. Everyone was like 'oh no what a loss' but honestly? I'd trade that car back in a heartbeat if it
So I used to have this big group of friends and we'd hang out constantly, bar nights, road trips, just being stupid. After the baby came maybe half of them actually stuck around an