Too often, after something tragic like El Paso and Dayton, we don't learn enough lessons. I simply wanted to share some lessons learned from a dad who lost his life at the El Paso shooting. 

As it turns out, 1 in 10 dads get a form of depression or anxiety. Nobody really talks about this, and this is dumb. It's a very nuanced topic, to be fair, and I can't do it justice in 20 minutes, but at least it's a start. Seeking help to deal with depression or anxiety is an absolute form of strength. It is not weakness. 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5675308/ 

The second best advice I got leading up to our delivery was "own the room." This is what empowered me to develop a plan with my wife and feel confident to execute the plan during the labor and delivery process.

Whether people mean to or not, often times, dads' status is reduced down to less than we deserve. True, dads aren't always given the respect they deserve, but it also doesn't mean there aren't lessons to be learned. A recent experience left me both a little amazed at how derogatory people can be, but it also left me really pondering my behaviors and how my behaviors are benefiting my family...or not. 

More on millennials, here. There have been substantial changes in how dads are portrayed in popular media. A lot of these changes happened during prime TV watching years of most millennials. No doubt there are some lasting consequences of these changes in media. 

I'm a millennial and I, along with all other millennials, get a lot of flack for it. We millennials sure have a lot of problems, I'll admit, but we're also winning in some ways too. I think there are some interesting trends we can be excited about. 

The first and best advice I ever received about becoming a dad was, "you are the dad...nobody cares about the dad." It caused some deep reflection as I awaited the arrival of my baby girl. This advice was spot on and it helped me prepare mentally for my role as a dad. 

Thanks for joining me here at Take Back Dad. As a new dad, my world became a lot bigger, more complex, and simply amazing. That said, I believe dads are under attack. I believe dads are being marginalized and deemed as unimportant and unnecessary. So, I'm here to advocate for dads and defend our role in our families and in society.