vulnerable

Encouraging Men to Open Up

Encouraging Men to Open Up

Men seek help from mental health professionals less often than women although they are more likely to die by suicide (Addis & Mahalik, 2003). Men are less likely to recognize when they need help, practice healthy coping strategies, and cooperate in therapy (Addis & Mahalik, 2003; Lynch et al., 2018). Many researchers found that men may not seek help because it violates traditional male gender norms (Addis & Mahalik, 2003; Wasylkiw & Clairo, 2018; Yousaf et al., 2015). Society expects men to avoid emotions, which may prevent them from healthily working through difficult emotions; this could contribute to higher suicide rates among men. Men are socialized to be stoic and independent, so they may feel embarrassed or anxious to address their emotions (Yousaf et al., 2015). Additionally, society often describes emotionally vulnerable males as attention-seeking, unstable, or weak (Vogel et al., 2007). So, how can our society encourage men to open up if they want to?