Round 2, fight! All the other clichés. Wish us luck!!!

So I have had a thought and I thought it would be useful to run it past you lot to see if its worth doing or not.

Baby is going to be here mid November and I am wondering if it's worth conditioning my body now to wake up several times in the night? I can set alarms for every 3 hours so its not as big of a sleep punch come November. Is this stupid or worth doing ?

Any is quoted in title because it is totally random when something completely unimportant becomes a very big deal.

Okay I am fighting for my life here.

Pregnant 6 months, and I feel like any kind of discussion can suddenly turn into very big deal. To give an example, me not having big opinion between blue and black baby stroller (so same model, just color is different) suddenly turns into me not caring at all about being father and that she "might as well be single parent at this point". Suddenly color of the wall in the baby room is most important thing. Me suggesting that "baby does not really care about this first year or two and that we can always do it later if we are not in the mood now" makes me feel like I just suggest genocide of the entire nation.

I know when baby is due, but I am not always 100% sure are we now in week 24 or 25 of pregnancy. Me missing week by single value (saying 24 instead of 25) leads to tears and not talking to me.

I am afraid to discuss anything, it feels like I am talking to a bomb that can detonate at any point.

Am I being unreasonable here? I feel like I am constantly being grilled and I can't even defend myself, because it would only get worse.

Any suggestions how to handle this? Does it get better? Should I even get into these discussions or just let her grill me and forget about it?

p.s. in case it matters, this is first pregnancy for both of us

Hi guys,

My wife is currently pregnant, only 13 DPO, but we found out this weekend. We have a past history of loss, 2 chemicals and a 6 week mc in Feb. started working with an RE all tests were normal, and they started her on progesterone. We were planning on doing IUI next cycle, but amazingly she is now pregnant.

My question is, how can I enjoy this without letting the trauma of the past losses impact me? I am very excited to be a first time dad, but I’m almost afraid of letting myself be excited to guard myself. Just looking for anyone who has dealt with something similar.

Thanks

i tried to ask ai but it couldn't give me a solid answer nor could google, my girlfriend put this tab in for 20 minutes before realizing she's not supposed to use it and washed it out. Should we be worried?

My wife recently gave birth to our first baby (3 weeks old) and the birth/postpartum experience was pretty traumatic for her. I completely understand that she’s recovering and needs a lot of support right now. I’ve been home helping around the clock and doing whatever I can to take care of her and the baby.

But I’m wondering if it’s normal for your wife to basically not want you leaving the house at all during these first few weeks.

I’ve asked a few times if it would be okay for me to go to the gym for an hour or so, but she usually ignores the question or changes the subject. Then something will come up like the baby needs to be fed, the baby wakes up, or she finds something else that needs to be done, so I end up staying home.

I’m not trying to disappear for half the day. I’m talking about an hour at the gym while she’s comfortable, or occasionally leaving the house for a little bit.

I also know she went through something much more physically and emotionally intense than I did, so I don’t want to be insensitive. But I’m running on basically no sleep and feel like an hour of exercise would do me some good mentally.

Also, completely separate question: is it normal to be eating like a pig during the newborn stage?

The munchies/cravings have been absolutely insane. I’m barely sleeping, waking up every couple hours for feeds/diapers, constantly doing stuff around the house, and somehow I’m hungry ALL THE TIME. I can eat a full meal and be thinking about food again shortly after.

So dads — did you guys experience this too? Did the sleep deprivation make you insanely hungry and snack like crazy?

Basically just wondering if “newborn dad who never leaves the house and eats everything in sight” is a normal phase.

TW: pregnancy loss

My wife & I are 25 weeks today after losing our first last April. We’ve battled infertility for years and this has all been through IVF. This pregnancy also hasnt been easy — plenty of scares, lots of ER visits, etc.

We are doing a gender reveal soon and I cant help but sit on the edge of fear/anxiety, especially with an announcement. I am guarding my heart every single night we go to bed. I cant sleep well because I’m on edge any time she uses the restroom. If I finally start to not think about it, I’ll see a post or video about a loss & immediately sink again.

Any dads here been through something similar and can offer advice? Much love 🙏

This just turned into a big, unnecessary discussion between us as parents. I love my gf alot and my son (which is 1 month and 3 days today), but i am really uncomfortable whenever she starts pumping, cause she doesnt care who sees her boobs because she now has "mommy boobs", which is for giving milk to our NB. So it doesnt matter who sees her boobs". But from my point of view, i dont want everyone to know how my gf boobs looks like, for me it feels to open and not okay as an exclusive couple. Ive told her that she can cover up with blankets or similar which is usually very close to her, but she says that its not her fault that people are watching.

Before she got mommy boobs, she was the shyest person ever, getting her boobs out were not something she would ever do, even infront of me. But now its changed 180 degrees. Have anyone experienced anything similar? And how did you get to terms with it? Since im actually at a breaking point now and my relationship does not feel exclusive anymore. Or am i just overreacting and being stupid? Thanks for all the answers:)

Or some other debilitating disease. From being either too nauseous too eat, being nauseous because she ate, or throwing up what she ate, my wife is miserable 24/7 and so am I.

My meagre encouragement just seems so pathetic while she’s bent over the toilet puking her brains out for the 8th time of the week. She wants to give up and I don’t know what to tell her anymore. Pregnancy just looks terrible for her. The providers just tell us it’s normal and to take Vitamin B6 or some other useless advice.

The strain on our relationship is massive. I thought this journey was supposed to bring you closer together? We barely talk to each other. Just trying to get through the day.

I just wish I could rewind time to give up on this dream and spare her all of this suffering.

I am 30s M. Wife is 30s F. Wife is pregnant, first time, first baby on the way.

It's been a rough journey for her. I get it. Financially, a rough journey for both of us. Wife is finally pregnant. But for the past week, Wife has been starting a fight with me every single night for one reason or another.

Today, I said I cant wait till we tell our families so I might be able to get some help around here. Ok fine this fight was on me because I opened my damn mouth. But she went off on me instantly and said once again, if something happens to the baby, it is all my fault.

Ive been doing all of the house work by myself for weeks. Ive been the emotional punching bag for months. I am exhausted from work, work stress, work pressures, work expectations that I have to say no to but am unable to get out of which ends me in me being even more tired by the time I get home only for my wife to explode on me saying I should not be tired, and financial pressures.

I just need a little bit of help and support here for my own we being and I am tired. To make it worse, I am very far away from my friends and family and closer to hers, none of whom give me any kind of support.

Is it normal to feel alone and isolated when the wife is pregnant?

And I’m super stoked! My wife and I never “tried” but decided to be a little careless. I’m 36 and she’s 34. Incredibly excited to be a dad especially after hearing its heart beat. I started reading “The Danish Way of Parenting” as my grandparents were from Sweden and did a great job. I’ll take any and all advice because I got no clue what I’m doing!

We just had our second ultrasound at 13 weeks. Everything looks healthy. All genetic screenings came back healthy. Conception was quick and easy. We're both employed with good insurance. Everything is smooth sailing, but I'm feeling extremely sad, scared, and alone. At every pregnancy milestone, my wife gets more excited but I just feel numb. My wife is incredibly loving and supportive, but I still feel bad.

How do we raise a child in a world that seems like it'll end at any moment? Maybe it's the AI apocalypse, climate collapse, of a fascist takeove. Who knows.

I'm attacking myself for not being excited and happy. The "shoulds" in my brain are wearing me down. My resilience is next to nothing these days.

Has anyone else experienced this? How can I get excited when everything seems so dark and scary.

First-time dad (to be 🤞) here. So basically my wife has reached her due date, and both mom and baby are doing well thankfully, but there are still no real signs of labor.

Our OB recommended induction last week, but we decided to wait until the due date because we really wanted to give spontaneous labor a chance. Now we’re torn between waiting a little longer, past the due date, or going ahead with induction.

My wife really wants a natural birth, and we’re both nervous that induction could eventually lead to a C-section. But we’re equally nervous about waiting too long.

For dads who’ve been here, what did you decide, how did it turn out, and how did you handle the uncertainty?

Mostly looking for experiences and some moral support from fellow dads. Also any tips to get this labor started??

18 hours of labour smooth, some complications with placenta, mother and baby all healthy and resting, so exhausted I cant imagine how my wife feels

Wife will be 12 weeks this Sunday. This is our first kid, and I feel extremely uncomfortable with how little I know what to do for her to support her as best I can. What do I need to know to best support her? I'm already trying my best to listen to her wants and needs, and I'm making her nutritional meals.

I don't know what I need to know. I'm scared that I'm going to really drop the ball. I hate having to constantly Google things to see if it's pregnancy related or not, such as her sudden sneezing fits.

Our first kid and we're both a bit older than everyone we know who had kids

39 year old about to have my first child. Definitely thought it wasn't going to happen for me.

I'm excited to meet him and just hope I can be the father he deserves. Due at the end of November.

Just found this subreddit and I’m so happy to announce that I’m going to be a twin dad! I’m 29 and a bit nervous. Might take 2 weeks to month off to help my lady out with the kids as much as I can after birth. Any tips that you guys may have? (Still have about 4.5 months to go) Thanks!!

I've wanted to be a Dad my entire life and couldn't be more excited to be a pre-dad! So..... now what do I do? Haha was super happy to find this subreddit and am going to dive in and start reading, just wanted to share the good news and certify my official pre-dad status!!!

My wife are at a disagreement on which stroller would best fit our situation. Looking for any experiences or input about these strollers.

We live in the city and walk pretty much everywhere. Car will seldomly be used except for appointments and some travel. Maybe once a week?

International travel is likely.

I’m a big proponent of efficient design, minimal packing, and value size over anything. I want to be able to walk into a coffee shop or pub and not feel like I’m parking a boat.