Dank Dads
It has come to a day and age where men have become stay at home dads at a much higher rate than ever before. In 2016, only about 7% of dads were stay-at-home parents. By 2019 an estimated 22% of dads were staying home taking care of the kids.
You think, well that’s awesome, it is. Kind of, until you think about how many of those stay at home dads are turning to alcoholism. On average in the United States, 15% of stay at home parents are alcoholics. Of that 15%, a shocking amount are claimed to be the dads. 10% of the alcoholic stay at home parents are the fathers. Those are sad and scary numbers. Those numbers tell me that we need to educate and regulate. Those dads need to take the Dank Dad Pledge.
Some may argue and say that cannabis is horrible and if parents use it they should lose their kids. Well I’ve got news for those uneducated cave livers. There are some good stats coming from stay at home parents. Statistics say 54% of parents use cannabis regularly. 30% of those parents are stay at home parents with kids under the age of 18. Now those are numbers I can get behind. Numbers I can agree with. More and more parents are turning away from alcohol and even nicotine and turning towards cannabis.
Have you ever seen a drunk parent? Have you ever seen a stoned parent? I have seen both and I am one of those 2. (Takes a second to fire up the joint) When out in public I’m very observant. You can definitely see and sense people’s state of mind, behaviors and treatment towards their kids. Sober parents seem to ignore more and or get frustrated easier all while trying to maintain that good parent look, while drunk parents will yell, fight, and walk off on their kids. I have seen that and worse first hand. Now let’s talk about stoned parents or even just parents who use cannabis regularly. I have noticed and can agree for myself when I say, we are more attentive, playful, patient, and understanding. This is just a public observation and opinion, but when we look at facts and more numbers, well it shows that there is far more violence and home issues in houses where alcoholism is a factor. I searched child abuse cases and about 50% plus mentioned use of alcohol. That’s an estimated 480,000 kids abused due to alcohol. I searched hard and searched some more and couldn’t find any reports or articles on child abuse or neglect cases caused by or leading from cannabis use that actually had grounds to stand on. So with that being said, I think this is another win for Dank Dad’s, but don’t get too excited yet. We are not done. There is more good knowledge coming…
There are a lot of parents who battle chronic illness or chronic pain. They can take pharmaceuticals, but those come with heavy side effects. Those can include drowsiness, deep sleeping, lack of understanding, more frequent bathroom visits, and more. Those all sound like great things to be happening while taking care of your kid right? It is not and we both know this, but what other options does society give us? Deal with the medical condition and be in too much pain to play with your kids? Not take the pills and have mental breakdowns? NO NOT AT ALL. This is where cannabis is and can be a huge help for you and your parenting skills. While some may say, “Oh, it makes you lazy and worthless,” well they don’t know a thing. Taking cannabis for a medical condition is truly medication, not a get Cheech and Chong high type goal. When dealing with medical conditions cannabis can be a huge help for you and the household. Being a Dank Dad means lowering the pain enough to run, catch, and play. Being a Dank Dad means having the patience and understanding to deal with life’s stress and the million “whys” you will get even before lunch time.
You can argue or disagree with me, but I do have one thing to say, “Set down the drink, do some research, enjoy a joint, and go read your kid a book or play a board game. Just try it once…”
I am a proud father of 4 kids from ages 2 to 9 and I am a Dank Dad!
Shane Stanford is a dank dad living in New Mexico. Read more of his articles and follow him on Instagram @NMBeardedMan