The issue of mental health is vitally important in modern society – it has just as big an impact on our day-to-day lives as physical health.
I myself had issues of minor depression around five years ago, including social insecurity, fear of my own mortality and sleeping problems among other things that can affect anyone at any point.
I was fortunate to have wonderful support from my family but one of the main things that helped me was personal therapy. I have only just finished five years of it with the same therapist throughout and it has improved my life hugely.
I don’t think weekly one-to-one therapy should be something solely for people with depression, either, because that creates an unhelpful stigma. I think it’s a good way of not just counter-acting mental health problems but also stopping them from taking place.
In my opinion, free weekly one-to-one therapy for everyone should be provided by the government and, though not forced upon people, at least encouraged. A lot of the world’s problems, which are caused by irrational thought, would be significantly reduced if therapy was to become a cultural norm. More people would think clearly and be more likely to make positive decisions.
A lot of men, perhaps without realizing, gain therapeutic pleasures from smoking and drinking that allows them to unwind after a day at work. Unfortunately, my late father passed away in his 50s due to cancer and although he was a great man, it didn’t necessarily help him that he drank and smoked on a regular basis. When I tried to discuss with him this matter, he normally told me that I was right but showed little intent to change.
This piece isn’t just aimed at men but due to the cultural expectations often placed on us from a young age, we can be reluctant to face our problems, emotional or physical, with other trustworthy people. Unfortunately, this tends to lead to even bigger problems.
If I have any advice to fathers and sons, husbands and boyfriends out there, it is to remember that you are loved by those around you – and that it is okay to talk.
This article was written anonymously
Photo by Claude Piché on Unsplash
