In recent decades, awareness and understanding of mental health issues have steadily grown both within the professional and public spheres. Positive developments like increased uptake of evidence-based treatments such as EMDR training, CBT programs, and mindfulness courses suggest that the taboos surrounding these conditions may be diminishing. However, for some demographics, the lingering effects of stigma remain strong.
Mental health stigma refers to the negative perceptions and stereotypes associated with those experiencing mental health conditions. Often rooted in misconceptions that such issues reflect personal failings rather than genuine medical conditions, stigma can have serious consequences.
Why Is There a Stigma Around Men’s Mental Health?
One population significantly impacted is men. For many men, the stigma of mental health issues discourages help-seeking behaviors due to fears of being seen as weak or defective. As a result, the effects of conditions like depression, anxiety, substance abuse issues, and more go untreated. In the following section, we will discuss some of the specific ways in which mental health stigma affects men.
Help-Seeking
The patriarchal representation of masculinity has been associated with strength, stoicism, and independence. Getting help is seen to conflict with that image. Mental health stigma contributes to reluctance in men to seek help, whether professional services or social support voluntarily.
They don’t want to feel or be viewed by others as weak, needy, or lacking in coping skills. They may also avoid reaching out to close friends and family for support due to similar fears that could portray them as weak or incapable.
Emotions
Mental health stigma can cause some men to internally repress their emotions rather than openly share or discuss them. This leads them to bottle up their feelings. Constantly holding in emotions and not processing them can increase stress levels over time. It may also result in men socially withdrawing as they avoid intimate discussions. Or it can result in anger issues, as violence and anger are mistaken, unfortunately, for traits of stronger personalities.
Secondary Effects
If people struggling with mental health issues like depression or anxiety are not using healthy coping resources to deal with their problems, they may turn to alcohol or drugs as a way to avoid feeling pain. Turning to these substances may seem like a way to ease complicated feelings of depression, anxiety, or stress. However, using alcohol as a coping mechanism for mental health issues often backfires and ends up seriously compromising mental stability and long-term recovery.
Diagnosis
Some men downplay or minimize their symptoms when speaking to healthcare providers. They under-report the severity or frequency of problems out of reluctance to fully admit their feelings. By downplaying their symptoms, men provide an incomplete picture of their mental state to doctors. This can cause diagnostic errors, such as overlooking an existing condition or misdiagnosing it as something else entirely.
Self-Stigma
Social stigma leads to self-stigma when men start internalizing these broader social attitudes and beliefs about mental health and gender. Rather than just recognizing stigma as an external force, they direct it internally toward themselves and their identity.
It influences how they perceive themselves from within. Men may feel inadequate, weak, broken, or view themselves negatively for experiencing a condition, significantly undermining confidence and self-esteem.
Overcoming Mental Health Stigma
Following are some of the ways that can be used to overcome the stigma surrounding men’s mental health
Use of Gender-Responsive Language
When promoting mental health support to men, it’s helpful to use strategic vocabulary that is not negative, with connotations of weakness or deficiency. Men may view words like “therapy” or “mental health treatment” more negatively. In contrast, terms like “coaching” and “personal development” have a more positive, proactive, and solution-focused tone.
Eliminating Toxic Expressions
Phrases like “man up” and “real men don’t cry” are highly problematic and contribute significantly to mental health stigma for men. Telling boys “real men don’t cry” teaches them to bottle up feelings, increasing stress and isolation. Changing the language is crucial to shifting attitudes over time.
Promoting Education and Intelligence
Education is essential – people must understand these are medical problems with effective treatments, not signs of weakness. Educating young boys and girls in school about mental health and emotional intelligence and challenging harmful gender stereotypes is crucial to establishing a healthy society.
Teaching children about mental health as part of the standard health curriculum normalizes these issues from the start. In addition, educating boys and girls together helps to get rid of harmful myths that mental health struggles are gendered.
Supportive Communities
Establishing caring, non-judgmental communities can be an effective way of countering the stigma. Knowing they are not alone in what they face can help men feel stronger rather than stigmatized. Connecting through shared stories counters the isolation. Supportive communities can foster compassion and understanding.
Can We Solve the Stigma?
By not admitting or addressing mental health concerns due to stigma, people are often left to struggle privately. Seeking help should not negatively define someone. We need to spread the word that treatment and support resources are there for anyone who needs them.
If someone is dealing with depression, anxiety, or other issues, letting them know you’re available non-judgmentally if they want someone to talk to could make all the difference. Reducing stigma around mental health problems and encouraging people to reach out when they’re suffering is crucial for adequately addressing this critical issue.
