While single parenting can be difficult for any father, the idea may be especially hard for a college student who may not have had being a dad as part of his plan.
Taylor Bracken, who is scheduled to graduate from Brandeis University next year, told the college newspaper he was initially shocked at the news of impending fatherhood.
However, the young father’s attitude changed on November 3, 2008, when his daughter Adelaide was born.
"I think it hit me, like really hit me, when I held her for the first time," Bracken told the news provider. "I never wanted to put her down. I just loved her."
For many young fathers in college, this first meeting with their child can be a memorable one and filled with smiles and love. And, soon after, the real world sets in.
Using your parenting skills to balancing a baby’s needs and one’s educational career at the same time can be a bit stressful and hectic. Young people who have gone through a pregnancy during college have said that at times either their studies or their parental duties got ignored in the process.
But for college students who are also parents, one of the more difficult aspects they may need to get used to are their relationships with their friends and how they can change.
For instance, being less spontaneous as a young father in college may be a big adjustment, especially for someone who was previously a social butterfly, and some of your friends may feel neglected. One way for new dads to remedy this situation is to introduce their baby to their friends, which may help them feel more involved.
Also, new dads can use a calendar to schedule some time, even if it’s an hour, to see their friends, which can also help to recharge their parenting skills batteries.
