Mums shoulder the heavy lifting in parenthood?

I used to think that both men & women should be equal partners in the parenthood journey. Aside from not being able to give birth and breastfeed there should be nothing men can’t do as well right? Wrong! From conversations with friends and now my personal experience, I realized that men have it easier being a parent. While women go through the body changes & pain of getting pregnant, giving birth, breastfeeding & trying to get back in shape & navigating challenges of being a new parent, men still want to have their own “me” time after becoming a parent and usually does only the playtimes with LO while washing their hands off other duties I.e: nappy changes, dunno what goes on in a diaper bag, dunno what LO needs at different stages, leave it to the wives to manage the maid etc. The only difference is the mothers tend to “suck it up” and find out how to navigate being a new parent while men just conveniently take it for granted that their wives will take care of such issues. In this day & age where both parents are working why do mothers get to do the lion share of parenthood? Is it me or do you feel the same as well?

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Mothers get the lion share as they are first in contact with us and thus bond better with us. Although we may need to do the bulk of things when baby is young (feed, bathe, change nappy, play, sleep together) and nearly with baby 24h, there are times when hubby feel fearful of handling little one and feels that mothers handle it better. However to get out of that cycle, encourage hubby to try out the less "risky" tasks eh to put on clothes for little one, put on diapers, prepare formula milk, or prepare dry clothes and warm water for bath. Then as you continue to dress baby, tell your baby that hubby helped to prepare all those things (make sure hubby can hear and is watching how you do it), then let him try the next time. Some guys need longer time to adjust before they help you. Do keep happy thoughts and stay strong. You are a wonderful mum and your little one will surely feels your love for her. If really need help, then do speak to your hubby.

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