Men's Mental Health Awareness

From June 13 to June 19, we are encouraged to celebrate Men’s Mental Health Week.  However, if we’re being completely honest – there’s not much to celebrate, but rather, a lot of individual & societal work to do. 

Far too often, men’s mental health challenges are minimized.  As the Huffington Post reported, “Some may find the proposition that middle-aged men are a vulnerable group laughable. A common perception is that these are the very people with careers, savings, cars, vacations and copious amounts of social capital. What could they possibly have to complain about?”

However, research clearly indicates that the men, a group we often generalize as being completely privileged, are in fact deeply struggling.  For example, approximately 80% of all suicides are completed by men, with men aged 40-60 having the highest rates.  Men also struggle with substance abuse at three times the rate of women. 

Young men are twice as likely to not graduate from high school.  In addition, the unemployment rate for 25-29 year-old men is twice that of similarly aged women.  And men are 10% more likely to experience loneliness and isolation in comparison to women.  Moreover, these men who are clearly struggling, are also significantly less likely to reach out for the mental health support they need.

As a collective, we need to be better familiar with these facts.  Our sons, nephews, uncles, fathers, cousins and friends need us to be aware.  We need to be cognizant of both how we got here, as well as what we can do moving forward.  Remember – cultivating awareness is one of the first key steps to creating meaningful change.  As such, I cannot encourage enough that you read Of Boys & Men by Richard Reeves.

In my opinion, we’re not yet at a place where we can celebrate men’s mental health.  We clearly have work to do.  However, committing ourselves to becoming better informed is the first step.  And I hope you take it – the men and boys in our life desperately need our attention.