The Mental Health Issue’s Men Are Facing
Men’s mental health is not something we often discuss but it is something that should be made more of a priority, especially since men are more prone to suicide, substance abuse, and they are less likely to seek mental health resources than women. According to psychology today “men make up 75% of suicide victims in the United States.”
While the rate for substance abuse in men is rated 3 to 1 in comparison to females. So, why are men more prone to these things? Well, many men are scared to get help because they fear that they will seem weak and less manly which takes away them since of pride as a man. Another factor psychology today recognized is that “in the current economy, many men are finding it difficult to fulfill a breadwinner role, leaving them without a powerful sense of pride, purpose and meaning in life.”
While previously male’s breadwinner roles were fishing, hunting, and manufacturing, today these options aren’t as available which can hurt a man’s ego. But, another main problem with the men’s suicide rate being so high is because they use substances as a coping mechanism, which is no cure for mental health.
Psychology today refers to substance abuse as “slow motion suicide”, and research suggests that men who abuse substances like alcohol and drugs do so because of life transitions such as death, divorce, unemployment, etc. Which is why men need to seek help for these life transitions.
We need to break the stigma in men’s mental health and make it more normal for men to seek the help they deserve without feeling emasculated for doing so. Many men don’t seek mental health because they don’t want to appear weak or feminine, so they often suffer in silence. It’s time we break the stigma and stand up for men’s mental health.
Resources:
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/talking-about-men/201702/mens-mental-health-silent-crisis
By: Bella Deen- Marketing Intern
