Masculinity and mental health

Since I began working clinically i have noticed that men are becoming more aware of being able to access therapy. So why is it so hard for some men to access therapy. For anyone to start seeking help they first need to acknowledge that something isn’t going right for them.

For some men the thought of acknowledging that there is something wrong is an incredibly shameful experience. To admit that you cannot handle every aspect of your emotions and life. This can be considered to some people as a sign of weakness and frailty.

For the majority of men it is not only their feelings of needing to be ok and ‘honestly i’m fine!’ attitude but it is also the attitude that their family has towards masculinity that over time gets engrained with the individual. Ie; a twenty something is noticing that they have been feeling down after a breakup, he is having trouble processing what happened in the relationship but his father has told him not be weak and to get back out there. For someone like this young man there is a need for reassurance that seeking help does not make you weak but that there is a great strength is knowing that you are not ok and then getting help.