After the success of last year’s mental health awareness week campaign, I was wondering what I could do this year that would build on it and continue to add value for the readers of this blog.
As I started listening to podcasts such as The Authentic Dating Series, the Sanctus podcast on mental health, The lonely American man, attending talks and hearing people like Kevin Groen speak, I became more aware of issues such as toxic masculinity, and other societal pressure men have to deal with. This got me thinking about the impact it has on their mental health and their ability to talk about it.
Naturally my outlook is based on my own experience and part of that is being a woman. This comes with its own set of difficulties but as for mental health I think we actually have an “advantage”. What do I mean by that? As women we tend to be more in touch with our feelings and able to express them, also because this is “allowed” of us and not repressed when we are children as it can be for boys.
The idea of this blog is always to provide authentic and relatable experiences and if I only speak about my own, there are limitations. With both of those things in mind, I decided to shine a spotlight on men’s mental health this year during Movember, a month dedicated to men’s health in general. I’m very glad to say that eight men have agreed to share their stories with you via this blog, and I am really looking forward to unveiling it in November.
I hope their stories can help you, or the men in your life. It’s really important to realize that you are not alone, you’re not crazy, and it’s ok. Mental health doesn’t discriminate or choose people because of their gender. And your gender doesn’t make you less able to cope or your problems less valid (but this is a whole other topic).
As usual my ambition is for this to provide you with insight, perspective and hope… That it allows you to open up and have a conversation you’ve been needing for ages. Below is a recap of the testimonials.
[…] blog post is part of a series on men’s mental health for Movember. In this series, different men give their perspective on male mental health. What does […]
[…] blog post is part of a series on men’s mental health for Movember. In this series, different men give their perspective on male mental health. What does […]