Denis Manuel
The sad truth is that mental health is one of the least spoken about topics in our society because of the stereotypes we assign to men. Mental health is one of the dangerous diseases that is on the rise and claiming many innocent lives.
It is disheartening that men are expected to be strong at all times, despite what they have to endure on a daily basis. Let me break down this by defining the word masculinity itself.
Masculinity is generally understood as a set of attributes, behaviours and roles associated with men and boys. Masculinity can be understood as socially constructed, and there is also evidence that some behaviours considered masculine are influenced by both cultural and biological factors.
Therefore, traits traditionally viewed as masculine in our societies include strength, courage, independence, leadership and assertiveness, to mention a few. The expected characteristics that men should possess are also too much for a man to handle at times.
While there isn’t a different sort of ‘male depression’, some symptoms are more common in men than women. These include irritability, sudden anger, increased loss of control, risk-taking and aggression. Men may also be more likely to use alcohol and drugs to cope with their depression, rather than talking about it.
Imagine that 50% of mental illness in boys/men begins by the age of 14, and three-quarters begin by the age of 24.
Not so long ago, President Hage Geingob made remarks mocking men as mostly found at bars, consuming alcohol, while women are thriving in whatever they embark on. Mind you, negligence also contributes to depression as we don’t know what our friends, boyfriends, husbands, brothers, cousins or fathers go through on a daily basis.
Depression being one of the common factors that we men face may be precariousness as it leads to a mood disorder that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and loss of interest. This automatically affects how you feel, think and behave, and can lead to a variety of emotional and physical problems. I have done my research and observations that we have a tendency of reacting fast and sympathising whenever news breaks regarding suicide that involves depression.
This disease is claiming many lives, and should be taken seriously.
Let us take a moment of silence, and say rest in peace to all innocent souls lost due to this precarious disease. It is very important that we create platforms that give a chance to people in order to talk more on this topic.
Denis Manuel is a producer in the NBC TV Current Affairs’ department. The views expressed on this topic are his.