Do men find it hard to talk about their illness

[Colin76]

Do men find it easy to talk about their mentall illness to people or do we really hide it all away.

I found that before i had a nervous breakdown and was diagnosed i would often hide what was going on and try to carry on as normal. I have found this site that explains some of the myth.

http://www.mind.org.uk/News+policy+and+campaigns/Press/MW2009.htm

 

[Apotheosis]

It isn't my ability to talk about my illness that is hard. I imagine that the difficulties I have are common, & multi faceted. Most people don't understand or want to listen about someone talking in depth about psychotic content. With depression, & many forms of mental illness; there is very much the public attitude of 'just get on with it & stop moaning'.

Where exactly do I go, or are people meant to go, expect for MH forums, & others who have been through the same things; to find people that will listen impartially & non-judgementally? Exactly, it's no wonder people don't discus this stuff.

 

[cloudberry]

Yes.

Yes they do.
Why show you are vulnerable when you are supposed to be invulnerable?

I was a therapist before all this. And I know a few things about men privately and ex professionally.

Its very hard for men to admit they need help or need to talk.

I'm sending you a big hug. And so glad I am not a man. As I know, even from my own dad, how hard it can be when you are down.

cloudberry

 

[Apotheosis]

Its very hard for men to admit they need help or need to talk.

I don't think it is that simple. Things are part of a spectrum of many factors - A lot of this is environmental, & social. It is far more socially acceptable for women to burst into tears & have displays of emotions. If a man behaved that way then how would he be treated? You see my point. I don't find it difficult to discus my MH stuff - what I do find hard is the reactions & the lack of help; from most people. That aspect of the problem is what needs changing - rather than the difficulty men have in speaking about stuff - if the environment & society was such that men were allowed to openly discus things then they would - from day one they are raised & treated entirely differently in the regard of 'showing emotion' than women. What also needs addressing is the lack of services & support (for men as well as women), & the environment of stigma & MH being classed by most as a taboo subject - that is the core of the problem.

 

[intelgal]

As a woman .. I found it very hard to admit and still do some of the things that happen for me.

I dont think questions like this can be black and white answers

 

[Colin76]

As a man i often find it hard to open up and ask for help when things are bad. These past few days i seem to have developed a pick your self up and carry on kind of attitude which may not be a good thing as i now tend to lie to my key worker when ever i see her telling her things are alright when deep down they are not, i even do the same with my own mother. What i need to do is to learn to open up more and be honest and say look things are bad at the moment and i need help, but i don't, instead i clam up and tell people what they want to hear, not the truth.