Young Men’s Health

“It will never happen to me.”

On this page we cover the following:

1. Stuff happens
2. Toxic masculinity
3. Get support

“Stuff happens, it’s a fact of life“

You think that nothing bad will ever happen to you, but unfortunately life’s not like that, and when something does go wrong, it can be hard to talk about it!

As men and boys, we aren’t encouraged to talk about our feelings, or we shy away from it.

But choosing to keep things in and not get it off our chest can affect our mental health.

“We all worry about who we are and what our place is in the world” –

Gage Nicholas

The Source talked to Gage, a young person who lives in Suffolk, who feels that men and boys need to talk more about their mental health.

Gage shares this piece of advice about his journey into accepting and understanding himself, and how he deals with difficult feelings and finding support – ‘Sorry, I’m in two minds right now…’

This video from Jamal Edwards, founder of film-making company SBTV, looks at breaking taboos around men’s mental health.

Toxic Masculinity

There are lots of expectations about the way boys and men should behave to live up to societal expectations of masculinity.

For example, there are unwritten rules about what clothes we should wear and how we should present ourselves, so that our “man status” isn’t questioned.

We should question and challenge society’s prehistoric definitions of what makes us a man, these standards can also hold us back from going to the GP if something doesn’t seem right or sharing our feelings when we need some help.

Read about toxic masculinity on YoungMinds – Toxic masculinity and mental health

Watch this, A guide to being a man – BBC Three

“Who can I speak to?”

Need to talk about it? Can’t speak to your mates or family? Don’t struggle alone, get free, anonymous advice:

• CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) – a charity for men and boys to talk anonymously with men who understand what your going through. Call their helpline on 0800 585858 (open everyday 5pm-midnight) Or ask a question through their webchat.
• NHS Mental Health Crisis Support Line, call 111 and press option 2 – urgent crisis mental health support.
• Kooth – provide a one2one messenger service and their website has live forums you can explore.
• ChatHealth – Text a school nurse for confidential advice about a health issues.
• Childline support page Call 0800 1111