Before my kids were born I had it under control but now every little thing sends me spiraling. Did my son hit his head too hard? Is my daughter eating enough? What if something happens to them when I'm not around? I've tried therapy before but I'm thinking I need to go back. Just wondering if this is normal dad stuff or if I'm losing it.
Man, I felt this hard when my kids were younger. The anxiety hit different once I realized there were two little humans depending on me. It does get easier as you learn what's actually worth spiraling over versus normal kid stuff.
The head hits and food stuff are so real. My daughter goes through phases where she barely eats and I'm convinced something's wrong, but she's fine. Kids are more resilient than we think, even when our brains won't let us believe it.
Yeah dude, every bump and scraped knee used to send me into overdrive. I started realizing a lot of it was me projecting my own fears onto them. Talking to someone about it really helped me separate my anxiety from actual problems.
Yeah the anxiety ramped up big time for me after becoming a dad. It's like the stakes feel higher now. Every decision feels like it could mess them up forever. I've had to work really hard on separating my anxiety from actual problems.
Becoming responsible for another person's mental health while managing your own is heavy. I didn't realize how much my anxiety had gotten worse till my therapist pointed out it started right around when my first was born.
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It gets worse before it gets better. But you can get it back under control. Mine spirals less now because I've accepted I can't control everything. Kids are resilient. That helped with the anxiety more than anything else.