How we approach the stigma of male mental health at indy100

Throughout my time on the desk, I’ve been lucky enough to interview some fascinating and knowledgeable experts in the field

On Monday, it was International Men’s Day, which is an annual rallying cry aimed at drawing attention to the most important issues facing men in the 21st century.

One of the biggest crises affecting men is a widespread mental health epidemic, and the statistics speak for themselves: according to the Samaritans’ annual suicide statistics report, 5,812 people died of suicide in the UK in 2017, and a staggering 4,382 of them were men – three-quarters of the total and an average of 12 every single day.

And that’s not all – in the LGBT+ community, three per cent of gay men and five per cent of bisexual men have attempted to take their own lives, compared to 0.4 per cent of heterosexual men. Likewise, black men are 17 per cent more likely to be diagnosed with a serious mental health issue.