Dads also juggling jobs and housework

WHILE much is made of ikumen – fathers who take an active parenting role – some men struggle to balance work and childcare. Surveys show that these men sometimes experience postpartum depression. The cause appears to be the effort they make to fit in housework and childcare, which they are unaccustomed to, with increasing workplace responsibilities.

Postpartum depression, which is caused by changes in hormonal balance after childbirth and other factors, was once considered an ailment specific to women. Since 2005, however, Western research indicated that men also can experience the same symptoms including anxiety, depression and self-injurious behaviour.

After his wife returned from giving birth to a son in her hometown last year, a 33-year-old company worker in Tokyo fell into a state of depression, which worsened until he eventually took leave from work.

Daichi Watanabe, who represents a company called ainaloha that offers postnatal care as well as childcare courses for fathers, was consulted by this man. Eager to support his wife, he said he had initially pared back his hours of sleep and helped with the housework and childcare.

“There are lots of guys who, out of a sense of responsibility, help out with the household chores and parenting duties,” Watanabe said.

The man received treatment at a hospital and, after he enlisted a housecleaning service and other help, his symptoms improved in about three months.

In a survey conducted from the end of 2012 to the spring 2013 by National Centre for Child Health and Development (NCCHD) in Tokyo, among 215 fathers who had children up to three months old, 17% showed some tendency toward depression. About 40% of these men were raising their first child, while about 60% had two or more children.

According to NCCHD researcher Kenji Takehara, surveys in other countries show that male postpartum depression affects about 10% of men. This is roughly the same ratio as in Japan.

“The burden of housework and childcare is increasing for men in Europe and the United States,” he pointed out.

“Even in Japan, we’ve had an ‘ikumen boom’, and the role for men at home has suddenly become bigger. However, as there has been no change in long working hours, many fathers end up having a breakdown.”

While the time men spend on housework and childcare is small compared to women, it may indicate that they have a hard time trying to balance work with duties at home.

“Men tend to keep their anxiety bottled up, so the depression does not show itself easily,” said Fuminobu Ishikura, a medical doctor and professor at Osaka Shoin Women’s University who has experience examining male postpartum depression.

As more people delay marriage, many men around 40 have young children. Men of this age, however, already have heavy responsibilities at work, financial worries about their future and other sources of stress that, according to Ishikura, create an environment in which it is easy to succumb to depression.

Shinsuke Shimizu, a lecturer of community health nursing at the International University of Health and Welfare, is concerned about the impact on children.

“There have been cases of child abuse, including child neglect, caused by stress,” he said, emphasising the importance of dealing with such issues early, before depression becomes more serious.

“Support for mothers and their children is the current focus of postnatal care.

“Local governments need to improve measures for men, such as parenting classes for fathers and health examinations followed by home visits,” he said.

Since 2014, the Tottori prefectural government has distributed parenting booklets to fathers to counter stress. These include such advice as, “Parenting is a part of life,” “Take it easy and don’t let your mistakes get you down,” and “Swap ideas with other fathers.”

According to Ishikura, many men who receive treatment recover from postpartum depression from three to six months. He hopes fathers will realise that the burdens of parenting become lighter as their children grow up.

Men tend to keep their anxiety bottled up, so the depression does not show itself easily. Fuminobu Ishikura