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The biology of dads

aeon.co

61–70 of 285 posts

Re: The biology of dads

#61

My personal experience as a dad of a 16 month old: new, intense anxiety about what the future will look like for my child.

The way I look at it is that I need my kids to be super smart, hard working, and principled to help extricate humanity from the hole it's currently digging itself into. I can think of many ways the future could suck more than the present, but in none of these scenarios will it be better off without my children, assuming I raise them well.

Re: The biology of dads

#62

My personal experience as a dad of a 16 month old: new, intense anxiety about what the future will look like for my child.

You know, I've had some bouts of that but I talked myself out of thinking too far into the future. Our children are better off if we don't have anxiety, if we are present and somewhat confident. I am aware the situation is not good but it really won't help at all by being anxious.

Re: The biology of dads

#63

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

I don't see this as paradoxical. For babies past a couple months old a lot of cries are actually manipulative, and a more empathetic person can better distinguish them. I think my wife and I started sleeping training our son at around 12 weeks old, and quickly learned to tell the difference between a "complaining" cry that meant he was unhappy but he could probably soothe himself, and a "real" cry that meant he was really upset and needed our attention. Both of those were quite different from the sharp cries that indicated physical pain or something very distressing.

Re: The biology of dads

#64

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

> The newborn phase was really hard for me

So many people led me to believe that I would fall in love with my kid the instant I first laid eyes on her, and it simply wasn't the case. I love her so much now, but it definitely wasn't the immediate flip of a switch that some may believe

Re: The biology of dads

#65

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

> The newborn phase was really hard for me So many people led me to believe that I would fall in love with my kid the instant I first laid eyes on her, and it simply wasn't the case. I love her so much now, but it definitely wasn't the immediate flip of a switch that some may believe

Anecdotally, all of my father friends felt the exact same way.

Re: The biology of dads

#66

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

> The newborn phase was really hard for me So many people led me to believe that I would fall in love with my kid the instant I first laid eyes on her, and it simply wasn't the case. I love her so much now, but it definitely wasn't the immediate flip of a switch that some may believe

I’ve never felt that way about any of my kids, nor have my (male) friends of theirs. I don’t know if it’s a guy thing or not. My daughter was the closest I got to those warm fuzzies. My two sons... I found them more irritating than anything else for the first six months or so.

Re: The biology of dads

#67

My personal experience as a dad of a 16 month old: new, intense anxiety about what the future will look like for my child.

this only gets worse when they get older. A dangerous thing that can happen is when you over-identify with your kids. Like being the overbearing sports-parent that pushes their kid to succeed because you see it as an extension of your success. I think every parent runs into this to some degree. I have to remind myself they are different people with their own wants, needs, values, and criteria for what "success" means…

If you have any resources on how to manage anxiety please bring them on. My old son has a mild development impairment, I am the sole bread earner, and we have no family support (we live abroad).

Anxiety is crippling me to the point of rupture.

Re: The biology of dads

#68

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

I don't see this as paradoxical. For babies past a couple months old a lot of cries are actually manipulative, and a more empathetic person can better distinguish them. I think my wife and I started sleeping training our son at around 12 weeks old, and quickly learned to tell the difference between a "complaining" cry that meant he was unhappy but he could probably soothe himself, and a "real" cry that meant he was r…

Did you have a hard time convincing your wife to do sleep training on your kid? My wife thinks it’s abusive. I think it’s abusive to everyone else in the house not to do it!

Re: The biology of dads

#69

Any ideas on how to get them to stick around after their kids are born? Asking for a friend.

There are many men that do not want to sacrifice their pursuit of happiness for children. This is why almost half of US children are not raised under the same roof with their biological father.

If you're still at a point in life where having children means "sacrificing your happiness", then you probably shouldn't be having children yet anyway (assuming it's a case where you're making a conscious decision on the matter). That's not a healthy starting point for either party.

Re: The biology of dads

#70

>Paradoxically, we found that fathers who activate the anterior cingulate the most when listening to infant crying report the most negative emotional responses to those cries, in particular being more likely to label the cry as spoiled or manipulative. How can greater engagement of a brain region associated with empathy be linked with such negative subjective reactions to the cry? We suspect it relates to a phenomeno…

Same experience. I wrote it off as a big change and sleep deprivation, but there were some days that the cries of my son seemed very difficult to deal with. I hadn't had much experience with newborns/babies prior. It could also be generalized anxiety. Mine would take uniquely weird forms, including awakening from a dead sleep convinced my son was buried/lost somewhere in the house. I'm convinced that the biological i…

Have a sleepwalker. Related to needing to pee. Absolutely will end up anywhere in the house, in any bucket or shelf. Or out the door. Caught her peeing in Landry buckets, on her sisters head, etc.

We have barriers to keep her on top floor. They have to be sturdy.

Moment we can get kid to pee she is instantly fully awake, confused as to how she got there and goes back to bed for the night.

We’ve leaned to sleep lightly. The moment we hear her first stirrings we swoop in and stick her on toilet.

Crazy times

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