GUELPH – Movember is more than just growing a moustache.
It’s an annual event to raise awareness of men’s health issues, like prostate and testicular cancer and men’s suicide, and the Canadian Mental Health Association of Waterloo Wellington (CMHAWW) is ready to pick up that banner.
The agency is hosting a “No more dead-end conversations: men’s mental health panel discussion” on Zoom on Nov. 25 at 7pm with mental health experts from CMHAWW and special guest Garrett McFadden from McFadden’s Movement.
McFadden was the captain of the Guelph Storm and was directly affected by the loss of a close family friend, Wes Cameron, in 2011. Since then, he formed McFadden’s Movement, and does public speaking on men’s mental health.
Men don’t always pay attention to their physical or mental health and stigma often prevents men from seeking help, states a press release from CMHAWW.
In addition, signs and symptoms of mental health conditions may present themselves differently in men. Some signs of mental health distress are:
– a change in appearance – not taking care of themselves;
– a change in sleeping patterns – sleeping too much or not enough;
– withdrawing or isolating;
– lashing out; and
– an increase in substance use.
Men are more likely to describe their mental health concerns as physical symptoms such as headaches or chronic pain. This link between signs of mental illness and physical symptoms is often unrecognized and leads to undiagnosed, untreated men.
As a result, men are more likely to develop schizophrenia at a younger age and are four times more likely to die by suicide than women. The highest number of suicides in men are between the ages of 40 and 60.
“Men can feel that they aren’t supposed to express their emotions or haven’t been taught the skills to express their emotions. Normalizing conversations about how you might be feeling and asking others how they are feeling can go a long way in tackling men’s mental health issues and getting people the help they need,” says Rodney Phillips, manager of Here 24/7.
To register for the panel discussion on Nov. 25, visit chmaww.com/events and scroll to the Nov. 25 event. If you are in crisis reach out to Here 24/7 at 1-844-437-3247.
