I believe it is a truth that a mother is made over a matter of months, but you always become a father in a single moment. I remember that moment well. The birth of our first child was full of complications. Hours of labor were induced by a rising blood pressure, alternating cycles of magnesium and then Pitocin, and platelet levels too low for an epidural.

After being diagnosed with preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome, the first dose of magnesium gave my wife enough time to sleep before the induc...