Ten to Men: reflecting on men’s health

Looking at some of the statistics on men’s health I felt more vulnerable than I expected..Not as a counsellor, but as a man. There’s something unsettling about reading about men’s health and recognising the gap between what we know matters and how we’re actually living. Myself included.

This year like last year, I was invited to take part in Ten to Men, a national study of men’s health run for the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS). At the bottom of the material was a message saying to call the help desk if you needed support.

It left me wondering: what if the support someone needs is emotional?

What if a question brings up something they weren’t expecting?

What if the statistics feel less like information and more like a glimpse of their own life?

I don’t know what support sits behind that help-desk number. But the message made me pause. When we ask men to reflect honestly on their health, are we also making it clear where they can take whatever comes up?

That question matters to me as a counsellor. This time, it mattered to me personally too.

I don’t want to talk about men’s wellbeing as though I’m standing outside the conversation. I’m in it.

So I’m sitting with three questions:

How have I been feeling?

Who would I talk to if I wasn’t coping?

What have I been putting off checking?

You don’t need to wait for a crisis to have a conversation.

#MensHealth #Movember #NairativeConversations

Australians for Intersectionality & Diversity in Mental Health (aidMH) Australians for Mental Health Australian Intercultural Society