The Silent Crisis

If you're a new dad and you’ve been feeling like a stranger in your own home, or if the joy you expected has been replaced by a heavy, silent struggle, this episode is for you. You aren't a 'bad dad,' and you aren't weak. You are navigating a massive neurological, hormonal, and lifestyle shift that no one warned you about. There is hope and there are answers.

Dr. Shoshannah Guerrero has her PhD. in Marriage and Family Therapy and Dr Rachael Schmitz is the sole author for her first publication within the American Journal of Nursing on her dissertation work, the lived experience of fathers with paternal postpartum depression.

You can contact Dr Schmitz at rschmitz@coastal.edu

You can reach Dr. Guerrero at sguerrero.lmft@gmail.com

Special thanks to Smile Online Course & Books for sponsoring this episode. To learn more visit: https://thefatherhoodchallenge--smileteenskills.thrivecart.com/social-career-skills-accelerator/

Create your podcast today! #madeonzencastr

https://zencastr.com/?via=thefatherhoodchallenge

00:05.55

Jonathan Guerrero

We've all seen the commercials. the new The new dad glowing with pride, effortlessly rocking and a sleeping infant while his life... while his life feels perfectly in sync.

00:16.89

Jonathan Guerrero

But for many men, the reality of the new fatherhood looks and feels very different. Instead of a glow, there's a fog. Instead of instant connection, there's a crushing sense of isolation, irritability, or the feeling that you're falling ah that you're failing a task, that you're failing a test that you didn't even know you were taking.

00:38.55

Jonathan Guerrero

In our culture, we expect dads to be the rock. We are told to man up, to support the mother, to bury our own struggles under the weight of provision. But the data tells us a different story.

00:50.74

Jonathan Guerrero

One in 10 fathers will experience paternal postpartum depression. And yet, because it often shows up as anger or withdrawal rather than sadness, it goes undiagnosed and untreated.

01:04.73

Jonathan Guerrero

If you've been feeling like a stranger in your own home, or if the joy you expected has been replaced by a heavy, silent struggle, this episode is for you. You aren't a bad dad, and you aren't weak.

01:18.45

Jonathan Guerrero

You are navigating a massive neurological, hormonal, and lifestyle shift that no one warned you about. There is hope, and there are answers in just a moment, so don't go anywhere.

01:33.18

Jonathan Guerrero

Greetings, everyone. Thank you so much for joining me in this episode called The Silent Crisis. I have two guests with me. My wife, Dr. Shoshana Guerrero, who has her PhD in marriage and family therapy, and Dr. Rachel Schmitz, the sole author of her first publication within the American Journal of Nursing on her dissertation work, The Lived Experience of Fathers with Paternal Postpartum Depression.

01:59.06

Jonathan Guerrero

Welcome to the Fatherhood Challenge.

02:01.75

Rachael Schmitz 

Thank you.

02:03.06

Jonathan Guerrero

Thanks so much. So let's talk about, Rachel, let's start with you. You've noted that for men, depression is often, it often looks like sadness.</