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SOMETIMES FATHERS JUST NEED to BE HEARD.

SUPPORT AND ADVICE FOR FATHERS STRUGGLING WITH ALL THE RESPONSIBILITIES THAT LIFE PRESENTS: PARENTING, MARRIAGE, DIVORCE, CO-PARENTING, FINANCE AND MORE.

IN person & virtual sessions

EXPERIENCED PROFESSIONAL

DAytime, evenings & weekends

welcome to for fathers

we're here for:

The father who feels defeated.
The father who feels ignored.
The father who questions himself.
The father who thinks no one cares.
The father who feels no one understands what they are going through.
The father who feels there is no help for them.
The father who feels there is no one to talk to.
The father who thinks things will never get better.
The father who has lost hope.

Whether single, married, a new dad or an old dad, whatever type of father you are, we're here for you!

“A good father is one of the most unsung, unpraised, unnoticed, and yet one of the most valuable assets in our society.”

Billy Graham

WHY WE DO THIS

Why was For Fathers created? Because every child deserves to have a healthy and happy father in their life!

We know the immense pressure that men feel every day to be strong, present and unshakeable in a world that seems to have gone off the deep end. We are being bombarded with negativity from all sides on a daily basis. Men are reporting increased rates of depression, anxiety, financial stress, social isolation, substance abuse and an overall feeling of being unseen and unwanted. Marriage rates are declining. The rate of childbirth continues to fall to an almost unsustainable number. Suicide rates amongst men are on the rise. We are in an age when there seems to be more focus on mental health than ever, yet there continues to be an imbalance of resources for men in comparison to women, and there still remains the stigma that you are weak if you ask for help.

It can be difficult for men to feel safe to open up about the issues they are facing with a stranger. Typically we prefer to “go it alone” and just bury our fears and stressors. But every once in a while we find an ally that we feel comfortable opening up to. Another father who has gone through the same circumstances we have. One who wants to be there for other fathers to prevent them from losing hope when times seem bleak. A father who has navigated the same pitfalls, learned from experience, and came out the other side looking to help other fathers deal with the struggles they face without judgement, criticism or psychoanalysis.

Fathers are natural problem solvers. Fathers need the opportunity to express what is troubling them, and an experienced ear to help guide them along their healing journey. Fathers just need to be seen and heard. From my own personal experience as a father dealing with divorce, co-parenting and the family court system in Nova Scotia, I was alarmed at how difficult it was to find local resources available to to help navigate this challenging journey. That is why For Fathers was created! To lend an ear to those who feel no one cares about them. To tell them "I know what you are going through". To give hope, when hope is lost.

We are here to help.

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SOME ALARMING STATISTICS

Suicide is one of the major causes of death in the world as more than 800 000 people die every year due to suicide. (Source: Global Health Observatory )
Approximately, 1 person dies every 40 seconds by committing suicide, which represents 1.8% of death cases in the world. (Source: World Health Organization)
Suicide rates are approximately three times higher among men compared to women. Men account for 3 out of every 4 suicides. Roughly 8 men take their life every day, amounting to 3,000 deaths per year. (Source: Public Health Agency of Canada)
Suicide is the second leading cause of death for men under the age of 50 years. (Source: Statistics Canada)
According to a 2005 survey of 132,221 Canadians, men were found to be 2.7 times less likely to utilize mental health services than women (Source: McDonald, B., Kulkarni, M., Andkhoie, M., Kendall, J., Gall, S., Chelladurai, S., Yaghoubi, M., McClean, S., Szafron, M., & Farag, M. 2017)

Figure 1. Death rates by suicide per 100,000 population in 2019 (by age and sex)

Prior to 2006 close to 70 percent of children under the age of 12 were placed in their mothers' custody in cases where a court order existed. Under 10 percent were placed in their fathers' custody, and for 15.6% percent of children, a shared or split custody arrangement was established. Between 2012-2015 the percentage of mothers custody went down to 52% but for fathers it also went down to 8.9%. An encouraging number is that shared/split custody increased to 33% (Source: Statistics Canada)
Although the divorce rate in Canada has been dropping (5.6 per 1,000 married people in 2020, the lowest number since 1973), this can be attributed to the fact fewer people are getting married in the first place (just 44 per cent of people over age 15 in 2021 compared to 54 per cent in 1991). Also, in 2021 more than one in five (22.7 per cent) couples who live together in Canada were common-law, and when those relationships end, they're not recorded in divorce data. (Source: Statistics Canada)

Source: Survey of Family Courts; internal analysis.

BENEFITS OF TALKING to SOMEONE

Conversations are essential to our well-being. When you are going through a tough time, one of the best and most effective things you can do to feel better is to talk to someone. Some of positive outcomes of conversation include:

Stress Management / Emotional Health: it provides tools to cope with stress, anxiety, and depression, helping to prevent burnout and build emotional strength.
Improved Communication: it enhances communication skills with partners, children and family members, leading to stronger relationships.
Improved Confidence: it can boost self-esteem and build confidence in your role as a father and a partner.
Explores Past Influences: it helps fathers understand how their own upbringing might be influencing their parenting style.
Provides Balance for Multiple Roles: it offers insight into juggling the various demands of being a provider, partner, and parent.
Addresses Life Challenges: it helps fathers cope with major life changes like the arrival of a new child, supporting a partner with postpartum depression, job loss, health concerns, relationship breakdown, co-parenting issues, grief and more.

“No man can possibly know what life means, what the world means, what anything means, until he has a child and loves it.”

Lafcadio Hearn