How mindfulness helped me be a better dad
1 May 2025
Article by: Ed Kus, dad of Fred (7) and Tom (4), Chair of Dadfit.au
Doing the MBSR course is hands-down the best thing I ever did for my (and my family’s) health and wellbeing.
As any parent knows, juggling life with young kids can be full-on—joyful, chaotic, and often overwhelming. For me, balancing my physical, mental, and social health has become essential to showing up fully and as my best self—not just for my family, but at work and with friends too.
A few years ago, I did the Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) course. It was my first step into mindfulness meditation. And it made a real difference. But it wasn’t until a recent 6-day mindfulness retreat that something really clicked: I’m simply a better, more patient, more engaged father when I can carve out time for a regular mindfulness practice. It doesn’t mean sitting on a cushion for hours. Even five or ten minutes each day to pause and come back to myself is helpful.
If you’re a dad feeling stretched thin, or know or live with one, I can’t recommend
mindfulness enough. Consider doing MBSR or any mindfulness course. It’s not just an investment in yourself—it’s a gift to your whole family. Doing the MBSR course is hands-down the best thing I ever did for my (and my family’s) health and wellbeing.
Alongside mindfulness, physical wellbeing and social connection is important too. Dadfit is a Melbourne-based charity providing free five-week programs all about bringing dads together in a supportive and respectful environment to connect with other local dads, do some physical exercise, and cut through the small talk in our “Dad-chats”. Dadfit has free programs running in Melbourne and you can sign up here.
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Photo by Ante Hamersmit on Unsplash