In recent statistics conducted by the World Health Organization (WHO), almost one million people die because of suicide every year. Despite the efforts of different health organizations to combat the increasing death rates, the numbers are still dramatically increasing even up to now.
Though depression and other mental illnesses can both attack males and females, a recent study conducted by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention shows how males are more at risk of committing suicide than their opposite counterpart. Just in 2017 alone, the number of men who chose to end their lives is about 3.54 percent more than women.
The higher suicide rate of males is linked to the increasing number of depressed men around the world. In America alone, approximately about 6 million men are suffering from depression. Unfortunately, most of them choose to deal with their situation with the use of alcohol or drugs instead of seeking medical help, which makes their situation worse in the end.
But why would these depressed hearts choose to deal with their emotional health alone? "I think part of it may be this macho thing," explains Dr. Raymond Hobbs, a physician consultant at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, to Health Line.
Men often look at depression as "a sign of weakness," the expert added. With this mindset, most males choose not to seek help for their emotional health and sometimes even denies they need one.
"Mental illness is just like diabetes, or any other physical condition," Hobbs explains. Unfortunately, some people are still looking at the situation as "a personal issue and a lack of personal fortitude." Men have always been expected to be strong amid everything, with that huge expectation, those who are suffering got no choice but to hide their condition and struggles even though they know deep down they need help.
So how can we support these depressed people? To help these people conquer their depression, it is crucial to change the society's stigma towards males, suggests Zach Levin of the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation. By broadening the minds of the community towards this mental illness, we are already giving these people opportunities to ask help if ever they need one.
To people who are suffering from depression, don't forget it is always ok to feel down. Never let other people or the world's stigma define you. You are valuable, and you don't have to prove it to anyone else. If you know you are struggling, seek help. Besides, every superhero needs to rest once in a while.
