The Dad Edit

Episode 49: First-Time Dads - What Nobody Tells You About Becoming a Father

Nobody is fully prepared for the moment they become a dad.

You can read the parenting books, build the crib, install the car seat, pack the hospital bag, and ask every father you know for advice. Then someone places your baby in your arms and suddenly you realize that becoming a father is something you can’t completely prepare for.

In Episode 49 of The Dad Edit Podcast, Andrew and Ryan talk honestly about what first-time dads actually experience during those first days, weeks, and months of fatherhood.

The sleepless nights. The pressure to protect and provide. Supporting your partner after birth. Feeling completely unqualified. Learning how to care for a newborn. Wondering whether you're doing enough. And discovering that the bond with your child may happen instantly or grow slowly through thousands of ordinary moments together.

Andrew shares what it was like bringing Lincoln home after a difficult delivery and watching Niki recover from a C-section while trying to figure out his own role as a new father. Ryan reflects on becoming a dad at just 22, the fear he carried into fatherhood, and how quickly his love and instinct to protect his daughter took over.

They also get into some of the practical advice new dads rarely hear:

• Do everything else. If mom is breastfeeding, there are still a hundred ways you can contribute.
• Change diapers, wash bottles, make food, handle laundry and take ownership without waiting to be asked.
• Communicate constantly with your partner, especially when neither of you knows exactly what you're doing.
• Protect her ability to rest and recover.
• Prepare food and support before bringing the baby home.
• Ask family, friends or your community for help.
• Give yourself permission to admit when you're overwhelmed.
• Understand that you don't have to know how to be a perfect dad you have to be willing to learn.

And maybe Ryan's most important advice for those first few weeks:

Be a yes man.

Fatherhood isn't something you master on day one. It's something you build by participating, learning, apologizing, adapting and continuing to show up.

If you're an expecting dad, first-time father, new dad, new parent, or you're currently surviving the newborn stage wondering whether anyone else feels as overwhelmed as you do, this episode is for you.

We also open the episode with an important update about the future of The Dad Edit Podcast as Jeff steps away and Andrew and Ryan move forward together into the next chapter of the show.

Share this episode with a first-time dad or expecting father who needs to hear that he isn't supposed to have everything figured out yet.

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Can you be an ambitious dad without missing your kids’ childhood?

In Episode 48 of The Dad Edit Podcast, we have an honest conversation about one of the hardest challenges many fathers face: balancing career ambition, providing for your family, and actually being present for your kids.

Dads are often told that being a good father means working hard, building financial security, chasing success, and creating a better life for their family. But what happens when the thing you're building for your family starts taking you away from them?

We talk about the pressure ambitious fathers feel to provide, build businesses, advance their careers, create financial stability, and leave a legacy while still wanting to be there for bedtime, practices, school events, conversations, family trips, and the ordinary moments that eventually become our children's childhood.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How to balance fatherhood and career ambition• Why providing financially doesn't automatically make you a present dad
• The difference between a demanding season and a damaging pattern
• How successful dads can pursue big goals without sacrificing their families
• Why your kids experience your availability, not just your intentions
• Setting boundaries around work, business, and personal goals
• Communicating sacrifices with your spouse and children
• Teaching kids hard work, discipline, resilience, and ambition by example
• Why small moments with your children often matter more than expensive experiences
• Building a definition of success your family actually gets to experience

We also share our own experiences with demanding careers, long work weeks, building The Dad Edit Podcast, pursuing businesses and personal goals, and learning how to make family the priority without completely abandoning ambition.

Because ambition isn't the enemy of being a good dad.

Your children can benefit from watching you work hard, chase difficult goals, fail, adjust, and keep moving forward.

But they're also watching what your ambition costs.

The goal probably isn't perfect work-life balance. It's making sacrifices consciously, communicating them honestly, protecting the things that matter most, and making sure your family gets more than whatever energy you have left at the end of the day.

If you're a dad trying to build a career, grow a business, provide for your family, become financially successful, or chase a dream without missing your kids growing up, this conversation is for you.

Ask yourself one question after listening: Does my family currently experience my ambition as love, absence or a combination of both?

🎙️ The Dad Edit Podcast is a fatherhood podcast built around honest conversations about being a dad, relationships, marriage after kids, parenting, men's mental health, personal growth, work, family, and the realities of modern fatherhood.

If this episode resonates with you, follow The Dad Edit Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts and share it with another dad who needs to hear it.

📍 London, Ontario dads: Join us for The Dad Walk, held every third Saturday of the month at Kiwanis Park. Walk, talk, connect. No speeches. No pressure. Just dads having real conversations.

Follow @TheDadEditPodcast on Instagram for new episodes, clips, conversations, and upcoming Dad Walk details.

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Marriage after kids can slowly start to feel less like a relationship and more like managing a household.

Who is handling daycare pickup? Did anyone order diapers? What is for dinner? Who is getting up with the baby tonight?

You may still love each other, share a home and work well together as parents but, somewhere between work, exhaustion, chores, bills and the constant responsibilities of raising children, you can begin to feel more like roommates than partners.

In Episode 47 of The Dad Edit Podcast, we have an honest conversation about what happens to marriage and relationships after having kids. We explore how couples become emotionally disconnected without a major argument or dramatic event, and how resentment, scorekeeping, exhaustion and the invisible mental load can create distance over time.

We discuss:

• Why marriage changes after children
• How parenting can push relationships into autopilot
• The damage caused by resentment and scorekeeping
• Why arguments about chores are often about something deeper
• How exhaustion affects communication, patience and intimacy
• The importance of recognizing everything your partner carries
• Why couples need to keep rediscovering each other
• How phones and routines can quietly replace real connection
• Small ways dads can rebuild friendship, affection and emotional intimacy
• Why checking in with your partner matters before either person checks out

The “roommate phase” does not always mean your relationship is broken. Sometimes it is what survival looks like during an exhausting season of parenting. But survival cannot become the permanent standard.

Your relationship cannot always receive the final ten minutes of your day, the last bit of your patience and whatever energy your children did not use.

This episode is for dads who love their partner but feel disconnected, couples struggling to reconnect after having a baby, and fathers who want to strengthen their marriage while raising a family.

Finding your way back may not begin with a vacation or an elaborate date night. It may begin with putting down your phone, expressing gratitude, offering affection, listening without defending and treating your partner like someone you are still trying to understand.

Send this episode to your partner and use it to start a conversation not an argument.

Follow The Dad Edit Podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube and Instagram for honest conversations about fatherhood, marriage, mental health, relationships and the realities of being a dad.

Can you love your kids more than anything and still not love every part of being a dad?

In Episode 46 of The Dad Edit, we have an honest conversation about dad burnout, parental guilt, resentment, exhaustion, and the parts of fatherhood that many men are afraid to admit they struggle with.

Fatherhood can be meaningful, rewarding, and full of love. It can also feel repetitive, overwhelming, isolating, and relentless. Dads can miss their freedom, hobbies, relationships, sleep, identity, and the person they were before having children, without being bad fathers.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why loving your children does not mean loving every moment of parenting
• How unspoken resentment affects your partner, children, and the energy inside your home
• Why dads internalize stress instead of talking about it
• The danger of keeping score in your relationship
• How work stress, financial pressure, and exhaustion can become resentment toward family life
• Why fathers need hobbies, friendships, exercise, travel, and time to reset
• How to communicate when you are overwhelmed before frustration becomes anger
• The difference between sacrificing for your family and quietly resenting everything you gave up
• How to remain an individual while becoming a present and responsible dad

Healthy fatherhood is not pretending that every sacrifice feels worthwhile in the moment. It is being honest about what is difficult, taking responsibility for how those feelings affect the people around you, and building a life that allows you to remain a person while becoming a father.

You are not a bad dad for finding parts of fatherhood difficult. What matters is what you do with those feelings.

Share this episode with a father who may need to hear that he is not alone.

Follow The Dad Edit on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, and Instagram.

Join us for the Dad Walk every third Saturday of the month at 11:00 a.m. at Kiwanis Park in London, Ontario. No speeches, pressure, or expectations just real conversations with other dads.

Continue the conversation in the Dad Edit Discord through the links below.

Why is it so easy for dads to name every mistake they have made but so difficult to admit when they are doing a good job?

In Episode 45 of The Dad Edit, Andrew, Ryan, and Jeff have a raw and honest conversation about accountability for fathers and why accountability should include more than owning our failures. Good dads also need to recognize their growth, effort, patience, consistency, and the quiet wins nobody else sees.

The guys explore why fathers often minimize their accomplishments, why pride can feel like arrogance, and how negative self-talk can affect men’s mental health. They discuss learning from mistakes without constantly tearing yourself down, celebrating small parenting wins, supporting other fathers, and teaching children to recognize their own progress.

Because being a good father is not about being perfect. It is about showing up, learning, adjusting, and trying again.

This episode also introduces the Dad Spotlight, an upcoming short-form interview series created to highlight real fathers from all walks of life. No perfect parenting. No polished highlight reels. Just honest conversations about fatherhood, family, personal growth, challenges, wins, lessons, and the everyday reality of being a dad.

If you are looking for one of the best podcasts for dads who want real, unfiltered conversations about parenting, fatherhood, marriage, identity, community, and men’s mental health, this episode is for you.

You should own the moments when you get it wrong but, you should also be honest enough to recognize when you are growing. 

You are doing better as a father than you think.

Follow The Dad Edit on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts. Share this episode with a dad who needs to hear it, join the Dad Edit community, or message us to share your story through an upcoming Dad Spotlight.

Fatherhood changes your priorities, routines, relationships, and sense of purpose. But what happens when being a dad becomes your entire identity and you begin to wonder where the rest of you went?

In Episode 44 of The Dad Edit Podcast, we have an honest conversation about identity after becoming a father, why so many dads feel like they lose themselves in parenthood, and how men can continue growing without stepping away from their responsibilities at home.

We explore the transition into fatherhood at different stages of life, from becoming a young dad to raising adult children and adjusting to a quieter home. We also discuss the guilt dads often feel when taking time for themselves, the hobbies and dreams that sometimes disappear, and why personal growth is still an important part of being a present father and supportive partner.

This episode is about more than trying to become the man you were before having children. It is about respecting the life you have built, accepting that your dreams may change, and discovering who you are becoming through fatherhood.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why becoming a dad can change your entire identity

• The guilt fathers feel when prioritizing themselves

• Losing hobbies, friendships, freedom, and personal goals

• How fatherhood changes through different seasons of life

• Adjusting when your children become more independent

• Reconnecting with your partner after years of active parenting

• Letting go of the person you used to be without losing yourself

• How fathers can use their experience to support other dads

• Finding balance between family responsibilities and personal growth

• Becoming a better version of yourself through fatherhood

Your children do not need you to erase yourself completely. They need to see a father who continues to grow, evolve, care for his health, pursue meaningful goals, and show them what a fulfilled man looks like.

Maybe the goal is not to hold on to the person you were before becoming a dad. Maybe the goal is to become someone better without disappearing in the process.

If this conversation resonates with you, share it with another dad who may be struggling with his identity, purpose, or place within his family.

The Dad Edit Podcast is a fatherhood podcast created by dads, for dads, covering parenting, marriage, men’s mental health, relationships, personal growth, community, and the everyday reality of raising a family.

When your kids will not listen, it can turn into frustration fast: repeated instructions, raised voices, tantrums, power struggles, and that feeling that you are losing control right alongside them.

In Episode 43 of The Dad Edit Podcast, we talk honestly about listening and tantrums for dads. From toddler meltdowns over the small stuff to teenagers slamming doors and pushing boundaries, this conversation is about what is really happening underneath the behavior and how fathers can respond without making the moment worse.

We get into how to handle toddler tantrums, what to do when your child is acting out for attention, discipline without yelling, setting clear boundaries, staying calm in public meltdowns, and why consistency and structure matter so much in parenting. We also talk about the importance of parents being on the same page, circling back after emotions cool down, and recognizing that kids are still learning how to communicate big feelings.

This is not about raising perfectly behaved kids. It is about becoming the calm, steady dad your child can learn from when things get messy.

If you are a dad trying to figure out how to get your kids to listen, manage tantrums, build better communication, and parent with more patience, this episode is for you.

The Dad Edit is a fatherhood podcast by dads, for dads - real conversations about parenting, family, relationships, mental health, and the everyday pressure of raising kids.

Work-Life Balance for Dads: Stop Chasing Perfect Balance | The Dad Edit Podcast Episode 42

Is work-life balance actually possible for dads, or is chasing it making us feel like we are constantly failing?

In Episode 42 of The Dad Edit Podcast, Andrew, Ryan, and Jeff get honest about the pressure modern fathers carry: providing for your family, being present with your kids, showing up for your partner, taking care of your health, building friendships, and somehow keeping it all together.

This conversation is not about becoming a perfectly balanced dad. It is about recognizing that fatherhood moves in seasons. Some weeks, work needs more from you. Other weeks, your family, mental health, fitness, relationship, or personal life has to come first. The goal is not to do everything perfectly at once—it is to communicate, stay organized, ask for support, and be fully present where you are.

The guys talk about the comparison trap on social media, the myth of “having it all,” why dads need community, and how admitting you are overwhelmed can be one of the strongest things you do as a man.

If you are a dad feeling stretched thin, behind, burned out, or like you are dropping the ball everywhere, this episode is for you. You are not failing, you are carrying a lot.

In this episode:

• Work-life balance for dads and why “perfect balance” is unrealistic
• Dad burnout, stress, self-talk, and mental health
• Balancing fatherhood, marriage, work, fitness, and personal goals
• The pressure fathers put on themselves
• How social media comparison affects dads
• Why communication and support systems matter for men
• Staying organized during busy family seasons
• Building a real community for dads

Follow The Dad Edit for raw, honest conversations about fatherhood, men’s mental health, relationships, community, and becoming better dads, without pretending we have it all figured out.

Join us for our monthly Dad Walk every third Saturday at Kiwanis Park in London, Ontario. Come walk, talk, connect, or just be around other dads. No pressure. No speeches. Just community.

This is one from the archives.

In this special Dad Edit Archives episode, Andrew, Ryan, and Jeff share one of their first ever attempts at recording the podcast - a raw, early trial conversation about the “dad toolbox” and the skills every modern father is still learning to build.

The guys talk about the practical side of fatherhood, from being handy around the house to knowing when to ask for help, tap into your village, or use the resources around you. They also get into the modern challenges dads face today, including technology, internet safety, social media, misinformation, and how fast the world is changing for our kids.

But this conversation goes deeper than tools, repairs, and DIY projects.

Released during Men’s Mental Health Month, this archive episode also highlights the emotional tools dads need: emotional intelligence, active listening, empathy, difficult conversations, stress management, and learning how to model healthy coping skills for your children. The guys reflect on what it means to be vulnerable without feeling weak, how to support your partner and kids through hard moments, and why being present matters more than pretending to have all the answers.

This episode is rough, honest, and unpolished because it comes from the early days of The Dad Edit. But that is also what makes it special. It captures the beginning of the show’s mission: real conversations about fatherhood, parenting, masculinity, mental health, family, and the everyday work of becoming a better dad.

If you are a father trying to grow, lead your family, support your kids emotionally, have better conversations, or simply level up your own dad toolbox, this episode is for you.

Welcome to The Dad Edit Archives: The Dad Toolbox.

Before The Dad Edit became what it is today, there was this conversation.

In this special archive episode, Andrew, Ryan, and Jeff share one of their first ever attempts at recording the podcast a raw, honest, and unpolished conversation about modern fatherhood, dad stereotypes, and what it really means to show up as a present father.

The guys break down the familiar labels dads often get boxed into: the fun dad, the clueless dad, the disciplinarian, and the provider. But instead of accepting those stereotypes at face value, they explore what sits underneath them, creating a safe home, being emotionally available, supporting your partner, leading with love, and learning how to be involved even when you do not have all the answers.

Released during Men’s Mental Health Month, this hidden episode from The Dad Edit archives feels especially important. So much of fatherhood happens quietly. The pressure to provide, the fear of getting it wrong, the desire to be better than what you saw growing up, and the challenge of balancing strength with emotional intelligence are all real parts of being a dad.

This conversation is not perfect. It was never meant to be. It is one of the first steps in what would become The Dad Edit — three dads having honest conversations about parenting, marriage, masculinity, mental health, family, and the everyday reality of raising kids.

If you are a father trying to be more present, more emotionally aware, more involved, or simply better than yesterday, this episode is for you.

Welcome to The Dad Edit Archives: Breaking Dad Stereotypes.