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accessHealthNews.net
June 2024
Volume 10 | Issue No. 85
"I literally would have rather died than
have someone know I was seeking mental
health treatment. Mental health treatment
was for psychos and legitimately crazy
people – not 'normal' kids and young
adults like me." For 44-year-old Brian Miller
and many other white men in the rural
Midwest, mental health stigmas and strict
gender roles discourage attempts to seek
help and contribute to high suicide rates.
Nationally, males have a suicide rate 3.7
times higher than females and in Missouri,
white suicide rates doubled that of other
races.
According to Missouri Department of
Mental Health (DMH), adult men are
most at risk for suicide, with 380 adult
men between the ages of 35-60 years old
dying of suicide each year. While small-
town stigmas and machismo stereotypes
contribute to shame driving men away
from asking for help, the armed forces also
play a unique role. Veteran suicide rates
are 1.5 times greater than non-veteran
suicides and many former members point
to the lack of support when returning to
civilian life. Men feeling ashamed, isolated,
and unsupported are more likely to turn
to substances to cope and are at-risk for
suicidal thoughts, ideations, and attempts.
While the number of mental health
providers in Missouri increased throughout
2020, resources are irrelevant if men don't
feel comfortable utilizing them.
Each June, Men's Health Month highlights
the unique health challenges men face
and the changes necessary to improving
men's physical and mental health. Men's
Health Month underscores the need to
not only help men now, but to better
support boys raised in the future, which
must include normalizing conversations
around mental health. While rural
attitudes surrounding mental health and
treatment may vary, many men agree
on one resource they wish they had
sooner: another man to talk to who could
understand.
READ MORE
You deserve to understand where your thoughts and emotions
come from, as well as how to handle them when they feel
uncontrollable.
