Life Kit - Practical advice for modern dads

Episode Date: June 18, 2026

We often talk about the mental load of parenting as something mothers carry. But active, involved dads have questions, too, and not many places to ask them. In this episode, Kevin Maguire, author of The New Fatherhood, and clinical psychologist David Defoe answer listener questions from dads.Sign up for Life Kit's skin care newsletter.Follow us on Instagram: @nprlifekitSign up for our newsletter here.Have an episode idea or feedback you want to share? Email us at [e-mail] the show and listen to it sponsor-free by signing up for Life Kit+ at plus.npr.org/lifekitSee pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

This is NPR's Life Kit. I'm Mariel Segarra. LifeKit reporter Andy Tagle. Hi. Hi, Mariel. Good morning. One of your favorite topics I feel like on Life Kit is the mental load. What does it mean? The mental load. The mental load is so many things. It's sometimes called invisible labor. It's all that behind the scenes, thinking, planning, organizing, executing. It's everything it takes. to keep a household running. And oftentimes it falls on one person more than the other. Yeah, I feel like when we talk about the mental load,

we're often talking about women and moms. Why is that? Because, you know, in aggregate, that's what the data shows. You know, in most heterosexual relationships, it's the female that takes on the lion's share of the work. Because, you know, socialization. Even when both partners are working, even when both partners make the same amount of money.

That's not the truth of every individual relationship or every individual family. I know lots of super involved dads. My dad is one of them. My husband is one of them. I know dads who are the primary parent. But in aggregate, overall, that's what the data shows. Yeah, the data doesn't tell the whole picture. And I guess that is something that you heard after you did your last episode on the mental load.

You heard from a bunch of dads, right? Yeah. So a big inspiration for today's episode is a recent story we did that wasn't exclusively for women and moms. But because it was about the mental load, a lot of the language was directed toward only them. And some of the examples were gendered. So I heard from a lot of men and husbands and fathers being like, hey, you know, we want to be a part of this conversation. They felt, you know, excluded. They said, you know, like we are really involved too.

You know, we are here, we contribute, what gives? And I was like, fair. And, you know, the research backs these guys up. The winds are changing. One recent study found that American dads are spending more time on household and child wearing activities than in the previous two decades. So this is a mailbag episode, a Father's Day mailbag. Who are your experts? One of them is Kevin McGuire.

So he's a consultant and author of the new book, The New Fatherhood, which is also the name of his very popular newsletter. and community about all things fatherhood. There is just this huge scope for really kind of, like, the dads who embrace fatherhood. It's almost dad maxing, right? Like, really seek to get the very most that they can get out of their relationships with their children. And then our other expert is David Defoe. He's a clinical psychologist and also a friend of the pod. I think that it's important for us to sort of, you know, give men credit because men are showing up more.

And I think a part of that is because while we have so much longer to go, we are beginning to develop the emotional strength to, you know, express ourselves better so that we know how to show up better. There is no shortage of things to talk about. So that's what we have for you for this episode. Lots of practical advice for modern dads. Things like anger and how to express it in a healthy way, friendship and where to find it. And how to navigate high stress parenting situations with your partner and lots more. A lot of us have basically a mini beauty product store in our bathrooms, and it's easy to feel like if you don't use the right serums, creams, acids, and toners,

you're somehow doomed to having bad skin. But do you really need all those products? LifeKit made a special newsletter series to help you figure out your skincare goals and what you actually need. Sign up at npr.org slash skincare, or find the link in the description for this episode. First up, we've got a question surrounding gender roles. Hi, like kid, friends. This is Rob Teran from St. Louis. I'm a single dad raising a five-year-old daughter,

and I find myself wrestling with questions about what should I teach her about men. On one hand, I see the real dangerous women face. Stories of harassment and assault are everywhere. What should I be teaching her so she can feel safe, strong, and respected without growing up, seeing every man as a danger? I thought that was an excellent question. I know that as a mother to a son, this is something I struggle with. I wonder if you have any advice for our listener. That's a very courageous question. I applaud you 100% for the question. And I think the most important thing that we can do for our daughters is to be that present example.

Where I am now, my daughter is 14. I think for me, it's making sure that she knows that what a man provides should look safe, it should look steady, and that she's protected, that she's loved, but it's also about how that person shows up to handle your emotions, to handle the myriad of concerns that come to you. And for me, I think that one of the things that was most challenging was when my daughter hit puberty, I noticed that I started to retreat because things got a little, I'll be honest, things got a little, awkward and I don't understand. And so for this gentleman, that's a single father, I would just say that when that does come, you know, make sure that you stay engaged, make sure that you stay

attentive, that you don't get uncomfortable when things do change. But, Jeff, you know, you stay that present help to her. I love that, David. And, you know, it really feels like as a father of a daughter who's on the verge of entering her teenage years, really kind of keeping those channels of communication open and making her feel safe and secure that she can come to me with anything. You know, it's not just like go to your mom. And I think that's one of the, one of the big shifts that we've seen in fatherhood is really the idea that, you know, more men are really taking responsibility, not just for the things that fatherhood has traditionally been known for, but the emotional side of things as well. Just to address the question, you know, I think this is kind

of just one of the biggest things that we're all trying to navigate. as parents today, which is like how do we raise our children to be just aware of what is going on in the world without being terrified of it. You know, it could be the dangers that a young woman will face from other men. It could be the kind of the climate crisis, it could be political. What I often think about when I think about my daughter is just like, how do I allow her to keep that curiosity and excitement that she has about the world and not to death. dampen that. And the job that we do as parents is to try and help shepherd them through that, that path. Okay, moving on to our next question. It seems like there are an infinite number of

resources for mommy meetup groups, but not a ton of options for fathers. I'd like to have more of a support group the way that my wife does, specifically something separate from just the partners of her friends. But I don't really know what to do about it when I barely have enough time and energy in the day to spend with my family. Yeah. I mean, we don't prioritize friendships and connections. It feels like a heavy load. Like we feel that we need to be invited to these things. When like everyone is crying out, like there's so many men are yearning for any kind of community. And all it takes is just to start something up.

I host a meet up for dads. It's on the third Wednesday of the month. And I made it as low stakes as possible. I said, I am going to go to this bar. I'm going to bring a book. If anyone joins me, I would rather talk to you than read the book. But if nobody turns up, it's fine. And regularly now, there's 20 of us that have connected to each other over this idea of a deeper, more richer sense of what fatherhood could look like.

I think even also how we form friendships are different, which I think Kevin sort of mentioned. Women, of course, their friendships are often face-to-face men. We're more so shoulder-to-shoulder. We have to be doing something. There has to be some activity, you know, a basketball run or a project or a group or something like that. or even as Kevin said, you know, saying I'm going to meet in this bar and what is the purpose of meeting in the bar? Not to talk about this particular topic, but we're going to have some beers and whatever comes up comes up. And that's perfectly fine.

We find connection not by happenstance anymore, especially when you get older. It has to be some intentionality. You know, it has to be something that's scheduled. And it has to be something that we can then defend and put some structure around to say, you know what? this is what I do every Thursday with this group of people. And people are looking for that excuse to have these connections. When I talk to younger dads, there is a real drive to connect together in more meaningful ways, even if that means confronting feelings.

You know, I think all of these men's circles that are starting to become more and more popular now, you know, I've been, I've run a few of them myself, both online and in person. And they are very much. much not shoulder to shoulder, by definition, you know, I think this idea of men becoming more emotionally intelligent, emotionally resilience, and finding the space to do it with other men who are trying to do that work too, I think is one of the biggest shifts that I've seen in fatherhood for this generation. So what are you waiting for? Take a quick break with us and text that dad friend from daycare to schedule a meetup for a beer or event session. Meetup to talk about

this podcast. When we come back, we'll talk about working through anger, dealing with parenting stress in your relationship, and managing the mental load. The next topic I have for you is anger. I'm thinking about how a lot of the dads in my circle are determined to be better emotional role models for their kids, but were raised by fathers who either didn't talk about their feelings or had that I'll give you something to cry about attitude. Can we talk a little about why it can be so much more difficult for men to express their feelings generally and towards their kids specifically? I don't think that we were taught how. We don't have a good example. Society tells us, you know, men don't cry, men ought to be strong, suck it up, whatever it is that people say.

The thing is, when we don't have the emotional vocabulary to express how we're feeling, instead it comes out in negative behavior. You know, I don't know who said it, but someone once said you act out what you won't talk out or cry out. And so it comes out instead in negative behavior and pent up emotions. And so I think it's important for men to go through the process of developing the emotional vocabulary so they can speak to how they feel so that they can talk honestly to their children so that there's not like things like displacement happening. So because I can't tell the boss how I really feel, I'm going to come home and I'm going to take that out on you or I'm short with you because I'm upset over here.

I'm not processing how I'm feeling over here. And we can do that professionally. And we also can do that on our own. You know, for me, I'm one of those, I don't get angry kind of guys. It's like, I don't get angry. And I was almost boasting to my therapist and saying, hey, I only think I lost my temper like five times in the last 10 years. And she said, well, what if your kid came in and intentionally just smashed something of yours that you cared about? And I said, well, I think.

think I would just stand up and walk away. And she said, well, you know, why don't you tell them that you're feeling angry? So for me, it's been a real process of learning to allow myself to be angry in a weird way when a situation arises in the house. And I think, is anger a proportional response right now? It's a really interesting inverse, I think, of what David was saying earlier. David, I wonder if you could tell us, what does what does good anger? What does healthy anger look like? I say to my clients all the time, listen, if you can make an emotion, even if it's anxiety, if you can make it useful, you can keep it. Anger is a natural human response when lines have been crossed.

The only question is, well, what do I then do with it? So if I can get it targeted and if I can aim my anger at the right place so that it actually solves my problem in a beneficial way, as opposed to deteriorating my relationships, as opposed to it coming out with cynicism, with disrespect, or even aggression, then I can keep it. Then it's beneficial. So I grow from it as opposed to blowing up from it. Yeah. Or David, or as we all too often do, is turn that anger in on ourselves.

Yes. We can't find a good place for it. That's where guilt and shame then comes in, you know, where we start to get angry at ourselves. So anger doesn't have to be a bad thing if you can understand it and use it right. Yeah. You're pointed in the right direction. Okay. The last question I'm bringing you is from right here at home in San Diego. I asked my husband, a modern dad, what he might need some help with. His name is Andres Alva Cardenas. He gave it a think and he came back with a question about dealing with stressful parenting situations with your partner. Here he is. Our son has been waking

up all hours of the night screaming for his mom, even though just a few months back, he was able to self-soothe and put himself back down. We have a general game plan, but he keeps waking up with different wants and needs, and because we sometimes add to the chaos by disagreeing. So do you all have any strategies on how to quickly get on the same page with your partner when it's necessary to improvise? Well, first, Andy, like, to your husband, props for the question, first up. On the second one, when I was listening to it, my mind immediately, went back to my wedding day, actually. Huh.

And just as we were leaving, there was this old couple that came up to us, just as we were getting in the car. And I remember it so vividly. And they walked up to us and they smiled. And the husband said, hey, you're going to have some good times. You're going to have some bad times. But no matter what happens, remember this. You're on the same team.

And I think this so often with parenting, which is like, how do you, both put yourselves on one side of the table and put the problem on the other, whether the problem is the mental load, whether the problem is a child that can't sleep. You know, children not sleeping is a particular flavor of problem because everything is exacerbated when we haven't had our seven hours. Oh my God. It's a hundred times worth, yeah. It's so much worse. And we're snappy with each other and that kind of resentment builds. You're like, I did this last night and you, I was up three night and all. I was up three night and all. these things. And I think just to get to the place where you go, hey, you know, we're on the same side here is the best way that we can support each other to be able to get there. But, you know,

I feel for you. Very courageous question, especially for your husband to ask it in your own workplace. It takes courage, right? As, as Kevin said, it will get better. Okay. But while you're in the process of getting better, I want you to understand that. your child, even taking you all through this level of conflict, is a gift that he's giving you. Because oftentimes, the real argument that we have when we're raising children is not about the child. It's really about two childhoods colliding. Your childhood and his childhood. You know, we all walk into marriage carrying our own script from our own family of origin and how things should be done.

And we either walk in enacting it or we walk in rebelling against. And so we're not really fighting or navigating, you know, bedtime strategies. We're really fighting against two histories. And to say it plainly, you know, we're parenting our own wounds. I want you all to see this as a gift because it's going to allow you to talk through some of your histories and some of your stuff that you're bringing into the marriage that is now showing up differently because now this human is involved. Ooh, that was a good answer.

Yeah. I felt that one too. I really felt that one. Can I offer one thing that I've, one thing that I heard from a dad a few years ago, and I really liked this, is they said, you know, rather than kind of like decide who does what, they gave themselves titles. So one parent was secretary for education. So they looked after everything to do with school. And one, one parent was secretary of finance. The secretary of commerce is the person who does all the shopping. So they gave themselves these titles. So if there is kind of like secretary of bedtimes and you just decide like, hey, you know what, I'm secretary. of bedtimes, I'm the kind of key decision maker as it comes to this. And I think like even even that language, it just makes it a little bit playful and it kind of takes this thing out of it a little bit, but it does provide like this distinct kind of roles and responsibilities across different aspects of the household. Oh, co-opting immediately. That's what we're doing. That's what we're doing tonight. Absolutely. That was good. All right, let's recap what we talked about. Being a dad today can be a bit of a mixed bag. An increasing number of husbands and

fathers enjoy being more involved in the home and in child care than ever before. That's great, but those roles can also be particularly isolating and hard to manage when you have fewer role models to look to and less built-in community around the burden of those responsibilities. The more we continue to talk about these dynamics and our desire for them to change, the better off will all be. So if you're feeling starved for authentic connection or seeking to expand your emotional vocabulary, know that you are not the only dad by far. Your people are out there and they want to talk to you too. One place to start, Kevin created IRL meetup groups in a bunch of different cities

through his online community, Modern Fatherhood. Finally, remember to take each day at a time. We all bring our own scripts from our past, our families, our parents, our dads, into our own parenting styles. And then we either enact them or push against them. So good on you for taking the time to have a thing today about which path you're taking. That was Life Kit reporter Andy Tagle, talking with David Defoe and Kevin McGuire. Happy Father's Day.

And special thanks to Dad's Rob Terran, Andres Alva Cardenas, and Josh Babin for contributing their thoughts and questions to this story. And to all the husbands and dads who wrote to us about the mental load. We'd love to hear your thoughts on the episode, too. This episode of Life Kit was produced by Sylvie Douglas. It was edited by Brent Bachman. Our digital editor is Malika Garib, and our visuals editor is C.J. Riegelon. Megan Kane is our senior supervising editor, and Lauren Gonzalez is our executive producer. Our production team also includes Claire Marie Schneider and Margaret Serino.

Engineering support comes from Peter Elena. I'm Mariel Segarra. Thanks for listening.