Post #6: Gender and Identity

Couvade syndrome, also known as sympathetic pregnancy or "pregnant dad syndrome" is the condition where "a father-to-be experiences some of the physical symptoms of pregnancy prior to the baby's birth" (link). Some of the symptoms experienced by the male partner are often very similar to the symptoms and behaviors of the pregnant mother, and may include minor weight gain, morning nausea, changes in appetite, indigestion, constipation, stomach pain, cravings, headache, insomnia and breast augmentation. In more extreme cases the father might experience sympathy labour pain and postpartum depression (link). In a recent CBC News article it is noted that 10 per cent of fathers experience depression around the time of birth of their child (link). The article also mentions that the new fathers affected by pre-natal or post-natal depression are often affected by anxiety and resulting stress associated with the prospect of their fatherhood. This seems to mirror some of the anthropological explanations for the purpose of the couvade rituals documented through history.

The term "couvade" was first employed by anthropologists in 1865 describing "certain father-hood rituals performed by husbands while their wives were giving birth" (link). For example in Papua New Guinea the father, whose wife was in labour, would isolate himself in a specially-built hut where he would stay in bed and "imitate the pains of childbirth". Such and similar rituals in European and Asian societies were thought to have a number of culturally specific purposes, including relieving father's anxiety and strengthening his bond with his child. I think that the psychological phenomenon of couvade or sympathetic pregnancy may in the future become more common in Western societies such as Canada, because here men are starting to take a more active role in their partner's pregnancy and labour than men of their father's generation. By accompanying their wives/girlfriends to breathing classes and offering comfort during the birthing process itself these "modern" men might unconsciously be taking on some of the gender roles and related behaviors that are associated with pregnancy and childbirth, perhaps as a way to compensate for "antiquate" father roles.