The unnecessary silence

In society we have made many steps towards gender equality; however, a strong male stereotype still prevents many boys and men from coming forward about mental health issues.

There was a study done in which five females and five males were put in separate rooms, five chairs were setup in a row side by side. When tested with multiple groups females were more likely to re-arrange the chairs into a circle in order to better converse with each other. Males were more likely to sit without facing each other when talking. Men and women are different in many ways especially when it comes to dealing with our feelings.

When I present to students I often state that mental health is gender neutral. Males have body image issues just as females and atrocities like rape occur to both genders every day. However, in serious issues like rape and abuse females are far more likely to come forward and speak out.

By removing the macho stereotype boys will be more likely to come forward sooner, possibly preventing a long term abusive situation. As someone who had to find their voice in order to gain help with my past I know the struggles and concerns males have.

The first instances of abusive situations within trusted organizations like Scouts and the Catholic Church were from adult males revealing the abuse that occurred in childhood. This has now encouraged boys to break the silence and reveal many cases of abuse. It is important that we continue to encourage boys to share their emotions because no one deserves to feel down or fear a negative response because of their gender.