MEN’S MENTAL HEALTH MATTERS. Statistics show that 75% of suicides are committed by men yet there is such a stigma around men’s mental health. I felt it was important to make a post like this because although you may notice that the majority of my artwork features girls and issues that females encounter (purely down to the fact I have no idea what it must be like from a male perspective and I mostly create from experiences I’ve had personally) but awareness needs to be brought to this.
We are all humans and we all suffer from the same emotions yet it is often shameful for men to feel them. It is OKAY for men to feel emotions such as sadness and pain. It is OKAY for men to cry. We encourage women to let it out and not let emotions be bottled up so it should be the same for men. There is a word that really infuriates me when it comes to mens emotions and that is 'soft' and 'being soft'. Feeling emotions does not in any shape or form make you weak, it does not make you a soft/vulnerable person... it makes you completely normal actually. It would actually be more abnormal to follow the 'manly' expectations and feel nothing, imagine a life where you couldn't feel any emotion... not for me. Life is all about emotions. We have to experience pain and sorrow to be able to make the most of the better times, it is part of life and should be a part of society no matter what gender.
Guys, it is so important to talk and check up on your friends. Notice which friends have stopped communicating with you, have stopped coming out to socialise. You never know what they could be going through and it could save or support someone in a time of need. When I feel particularly down or anxious I try and cancel plans, I try to shut people out and sit and let myself be consumed by that dark feeling. However, I would find it so much easier if people recognise this and instead of getting offended, reason with me and try to message me instead to try and let me explain what is going on in my head. Sometimes it is so much better to just write it all out, let it all out, let your words just flow onto the keyboard. It doesn't matter if they even make sense but it matters that you're letting it out. I would highly recommend doing this. Rant to your friends or even if you don't want to send it then type it... then delete it! Or type it up in your notes, write it down on a book somewhere then shred it up. Writing down your problems is so therapeutic and actually helps you understand and communicate with your own head.
Men find it hard to express their emotions because the way that society has made them feel, so lets start together to change this because together we can.
If you are a male (or any gender) reading this right now and you feel alone, you feel lower than usual, you're feeling that pain. I get you. You aren't alone, you never will be. Reach out to your friends or family or just reach out to yourself.
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