“Mental health” is such an abused term nowadays. Certain individuals may use it often as a means of seeking attention, and as a result, mental health resources are allocated and frankly wasted when there are people who genuinely need it. But ultimately, we as a society are approaching this topic all wrong. Being aware of mental health is an issue with a much greater scope than people realize. Simply put, people are not being correctly educated on the matter. They teach us to be passive, crying out for help at the slightest inconvenience, and not being proactive in having a positive impact on society. But the problem is that at its basis, there is not a quantifiable way to measure depression or anxiety. And relativity and comparison are frankly useless and disingenuous because men and women might try to out-do the other, declaring their grievances in a manner that effectively makes mental health an olympic sport and the repercussions of this dangerous pattern of behavior puts them at perceived social disadvantages. But at the end of the day, we are all equally people with the innumerable rights to human dignity and respect that we ought to acknowledge.
As you have seen in the title, June is Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month. Like all the other “months”, it is seen as a time to highlight a specific issue or minority similar to Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Asian & Pacific Islander Month, etc. And while it is certainly good to highlight these historically underrepresented groups, it is equally harmful in its limiting nature. As a whole, these ideas, especially men’s mental health, need to be incorporated on a societal and educational level. Too long has this topic been neglected and overlooked, and it does not mean only attending to the people who ask for support. Who ask for attention. It extends to every man in our society: our fathers, brothers, and friends.
While I do believe that comparison in this aspect is polarizing and poisoning, men do indeed face mental health issues like everybody else. Their suicide rates are 4 times higher than women, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, and 1 in 5 men experience and face depression and anxiety. Despite these statistics, it does not imply that we must prioritize men’s health more than women’s, but I mention it only to show that men should not be neglected. Traditionally speaking, men have done more of the “bread-winning” in modern society. Their placement in society is one that has historically been stable and reliable, and so generally, we have never felt the need to really question whether or not the working men in our society were okay.
And this brings me back to a term called the “silent battles” that each of us face every day, male or female. This refers to the internal struggles that each of us face, the ones that we do not necessarily share. These struggles can ultimately lead to anxiety when not fully confronted as there is simply an incongruence between the mental and the physical. While someone may seem and act “fine”, they may be experiencing hardships and internal turmoils that actively clash with their physical actions. We can not fully articulate the complexities of anyone’s emotional state without diminishing it to something lesser, but the least we can do in this day and age is be a good friend.
And so I challenge you to take a more active approach to mental health. Although June has just arrived, it should not be the sole reason we look out for our friends and family. While there certainly are always resources available for those who are seeking help, I believe it is more important that we instead reach out and be more mindful of how we act socially. We can never truly know and understand what someone may be going through at any given moment, but the least we can do is be mindful and kind when the opportunity presents itself. Be more supportive of your peers. Ask them how their day was. Most of all, be aware. Be mindful of how you might affect someone else’s day, because you never know what kind of silent battles they could be fighting.
