In honor of International Men’s Day, employers must create a safe space for men to talk about their mental health at work
Even though 1 in 2 men will experience a mental illness in their lifetime, research shows that considerably few of them will ever receive treatment—or even a diagnosis. And that’s not because there aren’t enough resources or services in place to help them; rather, it’s because of the stigma that’s prevalent among men that seeking help for their mental health is seen as a “weakness,” contradicting the expectations bearing down on men that they should be tough, strong, stoic, and self-reliant.
It’s this stigma that’s to blame for why 40 percent of men don’t talk about their mental health, citing that they’ve learned to “deal with it” or that they “don’t want to be a burden to others,”—adding that it will take “thoughts of suicide” for them to finally seek help.
A notion already troubling on its own, this becomes a real problem once you consider that up to 80 percent of suicides worldwide are by men—not only suggesting that most men don’t keep their word, but that even suicidal thoughts or tendencies aren’t enough to convince men to fight back against stigma. And there’s some credence to that.
Mental health stigma—particularly as it relates to men—has been around for hundreds of years.
It’s what prevented soldiers serving on the frontlines of war from seeking help for the “shell shock” they experienced, and what continues to prevent them from seeking help for their PTSD today.
It’s what led to the proliferation of machismo culture in Latin American societies and the concept of yinyang in China, which both perpetuate or underscore the demands that are placed on men to repress their feelings.
It was even present in the golden age of film, driving studios and moviegoers’ obsession with the “strong, silent type.”
It’s the internalization of this stigma that makes it harder for men to seek help, as experts contend that another reason for men’s statistically low diagnosis and treatment rates might be their inability to recognize signs and symptoms of ill mental health in themselves due to their tendencies to repress, downplay, or explain away any negative feelings.
It’s why you’ll so often hear men chalk up their exhaustion, stress, insomnia, and other adverse symptoms as mere side effects of their jobs. It’s also partially why clinicians find that men experience depression differently than women, insofar that men are more likely to experience anger, irritability, and aggressiveness due to their pent-up emotions that build and intensify over time—which only further convinces them that what they’re experiencing isn’t depression.
So how can we support men’s mental health in the workplace? It starts with stigma reduction of our own.
Managers, supervisors, and the teams they lead must be able to spot the signs of male mental health issues at work, which as noted can include anger and irritability, as well as expressed feelings of worthlessness or hopelessness, poor concentration or performance, physical and emotional exhaustion, as well as frequent absences or tardiness.
As most men already struggle to recognize signs of poor mental health in themselves, it becomes critical for those around them to be able to.
Thus, all workers need to be adequately trained and informed on the universality of mental health issues and must be made aware of the harmful stereotypes that are still perpetuated throughout today’s culture that men do not feel or do not experience mental health issues.
Once staff have gained a sound, accurate awareness of mental health issues, the next best thing to do is to talk about it at work. This includes not only sharing “triumphs,” but sharing struggles as well. It includes empowering others to take the floor, asking male coworkers how they’ve been feeling, and if there’s anything they would like to speak to someone about or get off their chest.
Crucially, such conversations will absolutely need to involve leadership and management’s participation: They’re the ones who have to reassure male staff that experiencing mental health issues and needing help is not a sign of weakness or inferiority—and the best way they can do this is by talking about their own mental health challenges, whether past or current, and how they worked through them by getting help.
In addition to managers’ input, experts also recommend that workplaces institute role models or peer mentors with the specific purpose of motivating male colleagues to be proactive about their mental health and seek support when needed. There are lots of men who do take care of their mental health and who aren’t afraid of challenging stigma—many of them leaders or highly admired colleagues, friends, fathers, and figureheads. It’s exactly these men that need to demonstrate to their peers that it’s okay to be vulnerable, to open up about struggles, and to not always be okay.
This should also be taken into consideration when it comes to the diversity of support that’s offered to men through their benefits. Investing in male mental health care providers is essential to ensuring that men feel safe and comfortable enough to really take advantage of these services. Research shows that offering virtual methods of care, including video, chat, or phone appointments as well as anonymous interventions are another way to incentivize male employees to utilize their benefits. Reframing how benefits are advertised internally is also necessary for improving utilization rates, as research shows that male employees are more receptive to phrases like “coaching,” “resilience-building,” and “self-help” than they are to “therapy,” “counseling,” or “treatment.”
While there’s still a long way to go when it comes to tackling the unfair expectations that society places on men, challenging stigma in the workplace—where people spend an estimated third of their lives—can nevertheless serve as a major lifeline for men desperately trying to find a place where they can be their true, authentic, and vulnerable selves.
