New dad says postpartum depression left him crying on the floor: ‘Embarrassed and ashamed’

A new dad has revealed he suffered pospartum depression after the birth of his first child, claiming he “cried uncontrollably” when he was unable to bond with his baby boy.

Jack Post, 34, made the admission on “The Christian O’Connell Radio Show” on Thursday, five months after his wife, Bianca, gave birth to their first child, Gordon.

“It started when my son was born in March. I was so excited for him,” Post, a radio presenter, declared. “It felt like I did 10/10 job of being a husband right up to the birth and then something changed after he was born, and it was really strange.”

The new dad admitted that he didn’t immediately fall in “love” with baby Gordon, prompting him to experience feelings of “shame.”

“I felt guilt and shame for bringing this little guy into the world who I am meant to love so much, and I couldn’t feel that for him,” he confessed.

Post revealed he spent nights “crying uncontrollably” in Gordon’s nursery, unable to understand his own emotions.

“Bianca was the one who did all the work, she brought him into the world, she went through the pregnancy, and I am the one who has depression and is crying on the floor. I felt so much guilt and shame and embarrassment about that,” he candidly confessed.

Three months after Gordon’s birth, Post decided to seek help from a therapist — who told him that he was suffering from postpartum depression.

“I didn’t even know new fathers could get [that],” the radio presenter revealed. “I thought it was something we had to be worried for Bianca as I know there is a high rate of post-natal depression in new moms, and I was the one feeling it.”

However, a report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, found that about 10% of fathers become depressed before or just after their baby is born.

Psychologist Scott Bea told the Cleveland Clinic that new fathers, just like new mothers, “experience real changes in their hormone levels after a baby is born.”

He claimed that these biological factors contribute to men experiencing postpartum depression, as well as lifestyle changes, including changes to sleep patterns.

Post told his radio show that he was initially “embarrassed” to be speaking to a therapist about his struggles, saying: “You convince yourself, I’m going to go in there and say this is me and they say ‘Get out, I only deal with real trauma, this is nothing, you’re just being weak, go suck it up.’”

However, the new dad found therapy “changed everything” and he soon began bonding with baby Gordon.

Now, the tot is 6-months-old, with the father and son enjoying a close connection.

“Now I love him so much but that didn’t come for three months,” he stated, saying if he could go back in time he would tell himself that “it does get better and you won’t feel like this forever.”