Grieving Father Founds ‘Dads To Doulas’ Program To Coach Dads On The Fatherhood Journey From Pregnancy To Postpartum
The program is a safe space for fathers to learn about the important aspects of pregnancy and everything that comes after.
Cristian Maciel06 | Shutterstock After experiencing a devastating loss, a father named Brad Edwards decided to take his pain and transform it into something that would be able to help other expecting dads understand the pregnancy journey.
His program gently reminded dads that just because they don't carry a baby for nine months doesn't exempt them from learning valuable information and taking an active role in this life-changing part of parenting.
He founded the 'Dads to Doulas' program to coach dads on the fatherhood journey from pregnancy to postpartum.
In December 2017, Brad was preparing to welcome twin boys with his partner, and he had no reason to worry that the delivery wouldn't go as planned. Brad assumed that he would be bringing home his healthy babies from the hospital and starting this new chapter of life with his significant other. Unfortunately, that wasn't the case.
Brad's twins were born stillborn, and all of that joy immediately turned to grief as he attempted to navigate this devastating loss. It wasn't until long after he buried his babies that all of the feelings started to hit, and during an interview with STL Mag, Brad admitted that he broke down in tears with his friends during a get-together to watch a football game.
It took years for the grieving father to process his emotions, which spawned the idea of Dads to Doulas.
"I held any of the emotions I had from my experience for years, and it took one day, sitting in my basement with my friends watching football, to start having a conversation about it," Edwards told the publication.
"I started sobbing, and I couldn't control my emotions. I just held everything in. I wanted to be there for my family, her family, her. I just never had the opportunity to talk and share what I was feeling and the guilt I felt from the not knowing — how I felt like I failed her and those two boys because I should have known better."
Edwards managed to turn his grief and tragic loss into this desire to help other expecting fathers through mental health resources and education on topics relating to pregnancy and even postpartum.
In 2020, Edwards partnered with the St. Louis-based platform called Dear Fathers, which was founded to share stories of Black fatherhood, to create the concept for a mental health resource to aid the Black community during the pandemic.
It was through his work with Dear Fathers and the success of the platform that, in the summer of 2024, Edwards launched his new initiative, Dads to Doulas, a free, six-week program that gives participants hands-on doula training so they can be informed partners.
Dads play an important role during pregnancy, but many of them are unaware of how they can be supportive.
While there isn't a definitive statistic, many men are physically present alongside their partners during pregnancy yet lack knowledge about the ins and outs of those nine months and the months following their baby's birth.
It's important that men are not only there for the appointments and classes but also that they're asking questions in those appointments and learning about things to watch out for and advocate for when it comes to pregnancy.
Especially Black fathers, because the Black maternal mortality rate is devastating and terrifying. The U.S. maternal mortality rate fell from 32.9 maternal deaths per 100,000 live births in 2021 to 22.3 per 100,000 in 2022, according to the report published by the CDC’s National Center for Health Statistics. However, Black women still have the highest rates of maternal death compared to other women.
In 2022, the maternal mortality rate for Black women was 49.5 deaths per 100,000 live births and was significantly higher than rates for White (19.0), Hispanic (16.9), and Asian (13.2) women. That's why Black women need to find doctors and OBGYNs who are Black because, more often than not, their concerns are ignored, and their eventual deaths could have been prevented.
When Black fathers are educated about pregnancy, they can advocate for their wives and girlfriends. They can be the voice in the room when their partner's concerns aren't being taken seriously, and not only ensure that the proper care is being given but play an active role in their child's life, even before they've breathed their first breath.
The father has become a strong advocate for teaching men everything related to labor, delivery, and postpartum.
"It's very important for men to understand what it looks like for the mom, and how she just went through this whole traumatic situation, and that she really can't understand why she feels the way she does because her hormones are all over the place," Edwards told STL Mag. "And that men also face postpartum depression. I think not only do we save lives in the delivery room, but we also save relationships in that postpartum phase of life."
Edwards admitted that he and his team hope to take what they learn from these courses and expand the program to different cities across the country, allowing other fathers to step up and become better partners and parents.
"I want people to understand that our shared experience should be shared," Edwards said. "Every time I share my story with some brothers, that's therapeutic for me. I don't want us to be so tight-knit with our experiences that we're not able to use that to empower not only ourselves but also someone else who needed to hear them."
Nia Tipton is a staff writer with a bachelor’s degree in creative writing and journalism who covers news and lifestyle topics that focus on psychology, relationships, and the human experience.