Sep 23 2008
Why won’t men seek help about depression?
In an article I just posted in the news section of www.IamBackFromTheBrink.com called the The Great Male Meltdown it laments the poor record men have in seeing a doctor when something is not going right . It highlights the much higher death rate each year for men versus women from cancer and heart disease. The article argues that men have evolved from a time when the emphasis in life was to secure food for the table and anything that took them away from that was not good.
Why won’t men discuss depression?
When you bring depression and anxiety disorders into the picture the story only gets worse. I can speak from first hand experience when I say that in 1989 I was so ashamed to be not coping with life. This kept me from seeing a doctor and discussing the insomnia, anxiety, lethargy, and black thoughts. Due to the ever increasing spiral downwards I became convinced that there was no hope of me getting better and I thought I would be doing everyone a favour to end my life. Thankfully I was unsuccessful but I know even today that many men are making this same mistake.
It’s happening in rural area’s as well
I spoke at a small Queensland town called Murgon last week. The town had organised the event because they had been rocked by a recent spate of male suicides. I spoke afterwards with a surviving family of one of these tragedies and they were still so distraught that there son hadn’t reached out to them. When you are that depressed, the depression tells you that you will never get better again, and that is why you need to confide in others to give you perspective.
Please seek help
Depression is eminently treatable. I really believe that I was spared my suicide attempts to spread the message that you can recover from depression and go on to lead a very fulfilling life - for details of my path out of 5 years of hell see http://www.iambackfromthebrink.com/eBook.html
Don’t believe you are doing anyone a favour by not seeking help
Depression is potentially a life threatening illness. If you think your family is better off without you - you are 1000% wrong. I have spoken to many families who have been devasted by a loved one’s suicide. They punish themselves by always questioning what they missed. It makes me shudder when I think of how close I came to putting my own family through that.
If you are not coping, please, please see your GP.
If you are feeling suicidal call the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467 where you can have 5x 50 minute sessions with a trained counsellor for free.
Kind Regards
Graeme
