Struggling with anxiety about being a good enough dad

Aug 61 min read

I've been dealing with pretty bad anxiety lately and it keeps telling me I'm screwing up my kids. Like I'll lose patience over something small and then spiral thinking I'm damaging them somehow. I'm in therapy now which is helping but some days are harder than others. Anyone else deal with this? I feel like I'm the only one sometimes. I love my kids so much but my brain won't stop telling me I'm messing them up.

6 comments234 views

Comments(6)

PPaul M.New DadAug 7

Hey man, I really feel this one. I've got three kids and some days I'm absolutely convinced I'm messing them all up. But then I remember that my anxiety is basically lying to me - it picks out the one time I lost my patience and ignores the hundred times I showed up for them. The fact that you're worried about being a good dad means you already are one. Have you talked to someone professionally about it? Made a huge difference for me.

CChris M.RegularAug 6

Dude this is real and you're not alone. I coach little league and I see so many dads who care way too much about perfection. The kids don't need perfect. They need present. Sounds like you're present based on the fact that you're even thinking about this. Give yourself a break.

PPaul M.New DadAug 6

The fact that you're worried about being a good enough dad means you probably already are one. I know that sounds cliche but seriously, the dads who don't care aren't losing sleep over this. Might be worth talking to a therapist if you haven't already.

BBrandonRegularAug 7

I'm a new dad and literally think about this like every other day. My therapist told me that anxiety about parenting is actually pretty common and doesn't mean anything is actually wrong. The worry is the thing telling you that you care. Anyway, if you ever want to talk about it there's a bunch of us going through the same spiral.

SSteveRegularAug 8

Hey man, I get this hard. The anxiety loop where you replay everything and convince yourself you're messing up? That's real and you're not alone. Have you talked to someone about it or just been riding it out solo?

DDaniel M.RegularAug 8

This hits different. I've been there too, especially when work stress piles on top of everything. Some days I feel like I'm just going through the motions. You're doing better than you think.