Becoming a father, a dad, can be a painful experience. One in 10 men experience anxiety or depression within the first 6 months of the birth of their baby.

In today’s society, there is still a stigma around men talking about their mental health, opening up vulnerably about their emotional experience of fatherhood.

In this episode, I speak to Elliott Rae about his experience of PTSD following the traumatic birth of his daughter (trigger warning), and how this led him to his purpose of making an impact around fathers’ mental health, gender equality, masculinity and representing a diverse picture of fathers.

Elliott Rae is the founder of  MusicFootballFatherhood (MFF), the parenting platform for dads to share the ups and downs of parenting and promote a positive representation of diverse fatherhood. Elliott’s first book is called ‘DAD: untold stories of fatherhood, love, mental health and masculinity’. 

BBC article: ‘I got PTSD after witnessing my daughter’s birth’ - BBC News

Book: DAD: Untold stories of fatherhood, love, mental health and masculinity

(DAD: Untold stories of Fatherhood, Love, Mental Health and Masculinity: Amazon.co.uk: MusicFootballFatherhood, Elliott, Rae: 9781527290242: Books )

www.musicfootballfatherhood.com

Insta: @mffonline_, @iamelliottrae

We cover:

• PTSD from a traumatic birth

Order my book, The Lasting Connection, here

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Find me at www.thethomasconnection.co.uk

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This episode was edited by Emily Crosby Media