When it comes to pediatrician visits, the primary parent that attends is I. It’s not that her daddy doesn’t love her and doesn’t want to be there for her, but he’s also has a phobia about needles. He went to the first two pediatrician visits when she was a newborn, but when the needles started coming out for the cycle of shots, he elected to keep his distance rather than let his fear infect her.
Still, shots are only a very small portion of what happens at the pediatrician visits for your baby in the first year and Daddy is missing out on a lot of information, education and the chance to ask his own questions when he doesn’t go to the pediatrician. So if you need some reasons to convince Daddy that even if he needs to step out for the shots and swoop in to play the hero when they are over, he needs to go with for the pediatrician visits, here are a few:
- Understanding the developmental milestones helps dad to be more engaged in what is going on with his baby. He can get ready for extended childproofing as well as participate and get feedback on feeding solids, activities and more
- Dads worry that they don’t know enough and will often let Moms make all the decisions and even when asked, may resist offering input because they don’t feel like they are the experts that Mom is. Going to the pediatrician can give them confidence to make suggestions and get their own questions answered
- Taking time off work may be problematic, but most bosses are understanding of doctor’s appointments. Schedule the visits for late in the day if possible and if time off isn’t doable, ask Dad to make a list of questions that Mom can get answered. Some pediatricians will answer emails as well and that can be a way for Dad to establish a rapport ahead of time
- Emergencies happen and it is better for Dad to be prepared and if he’s already involved in seeing the pediatrician as well as discussing development and more, he’ll be more prepared
My husband goes with my daughter to the pediatrician regularly now and he’s more than willing to make the trips. But it took a lot of time to convince him – it’s good for Dads to go too whether their child is a baby or older.
Have you ever had trouble getting Dad to go to the pediatrician?
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