| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country 17:47 - Jun 5 with 4667 views | unbelievablue |
Geezers, fellas, blokes, chaps, boys, lads. Why is it that some of us feel it's so hard to talk about mental health?
I'm confident that there is a causality at play, between some of these tragic cases of suicide and not feeling able to discuss the issues at hand. Simplistic, perhaps, but guys tend not to want to admit they might have a problem, and don't seek professional help. Just like many physical illnesses, catching things early could be life-saving. If, as a society, we were more informed and felt more at ease discussing mental health, the likelihood of early diagnosis and the subsequent appropriate treatment would rise significantly.
So sod the (unwarranted) fear of bullsh!t societal emasculation, and get talking about it more. I guarantee that your mates, family, co-workers and acquaintances will respect you as profoundly brave if you do.
I've suffered from depression, and anxiety, and addiction, but I'm lucky. Millions of others haven't been able to get access to treatment nor have they felt able to openly discuss their struggles.
As many of you know through my blog, which I've shared on here ad nauseum, I want to do something to help, however little it might be. So, in November, I'm running a really bloody tough marathon in Athens (21km are uphill) to raise money for Mind, the mental health charity.
If you're feeling really generous, please donate, however little the amount. If not, no worries, but I implore you to do everything you can to help break the stigmas attached with mental illness - chiefly: keep talking.
Cheers,
Josh
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Josh-Edwards-AthensMarathon2017 [Post edited 7 Jun 2017 19:05]
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:00 - Jun 5 with 4622 views | sparks |
Also the vast majority of homelessness. |  |
| The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to the presence of those who think they've found it.
(Sir Terry Pratchett) | | Poll: | Is Fred drunk this morning? |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:07 - Jun 5 with 4593 views | sparks |
I have no clue what point you think you are making. | |
| The presence of those seeking the truth is infinitely to be preferred to the presence of those who think they've found it.
(Sir Terry Pratchett) | | Poll: | Is Fred drunk this morning? |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 19:16 - Jun 5 with 4514 views | WD19 |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:07 - Jun 5 by sparks |
I have no clue what point you think you are making. |
Sorry petal, was a misplaced reply to the OP. |  | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 20:24 - Jun 5 with 4440 views | blue_oyster |
We do. Everyone bangs on about it every day. |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 23:17 - Jun 5 with 4377 views | BlueBadger |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 20:24 - Jun 5 by blue_oyster |
We do. Everyone bangs on about it every day. |
Dickheads whining about people 'banging on a about it' are part of the problem. |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 23:20 - Jun 5 with 4372 views | vapour_trail |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 20:24 - Jun 5 by blue_oyster |
We do. Everyone bangs on about it every day. |
Do link your last post on the subject. |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 23:59 - Jun 5 with 4348 views | Warhurst |
Unfortunately the NHS is woefully under equipped to deal with the growing problem. Unless you actively try to hurt or kill yourself all your GP can do is give you some antidepressants and move you on. The wait for any talking therapy is ridiculous and often wont get to the root cause anyway. Suicide is the biggest killer of young men and it's only going to get worse. |  | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:19 - Jun 6 with 4247 views | unbelievablue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 23:59 - Jun 5 by Warhurst |
Unfortunately the NHS is woefully under equipped to deal with the growing problem. Unless you actively try to hurt or kill yourself all your GP can do is give you some antidepressants and move you on. The wait for any talking therapy is ridiculous and often wont get to the root cause anyway. Suicide is the biggest killer of young men and it's only going to get worse. |
It is, yes.
I try not to share your pessimism, but we really do require a societal shift in attitude here. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:20 - Jun 6 with 4242 views | unbelievablue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 20:24 - Jun 5 by blue_oyster |
We do. Everyone bangs on about it every day. |
No, they don't. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:22 - Jun 6 with 4238 views | Swansea_Blue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:19 - Jun 6 by unbelievablue |
It is, yes.
I try not to share your pessimism, but we really do require a societal shift in attitude here. |
Absolutely. Stigma needs to be broken down before any progress can be made (not that I know anything about it). |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:39 - Jun 6 with 4217 views | JohnWarksTash |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 23:59 - Jun 5 by Warhurst |
Unfortunately the NHS is woefully under equipped to deal with the growing problem. Unless you actively try to hurt or kill yourself all your GP can do is give you some antidepressants and move you on. The wait for any talking therapy is ridiculous and often wont get to the root cause anyway. Suicide is the biggest killer of young men and it's only going to get worse. |
On the subject of talking therapy I have recently been informed that one to one counselling is no longer available routinely on the NHS and was advised by my GP to go private. This is costing £35 a week and to be honest the stress of being able to pay for it doesn't help the underlying issues.
The NHs is woefully underfunded across the board I am afraid and it won't be getting any better under the current tory government :( |  | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:45 - Jun 6 with 4207 views | TLA |
Couldn't agree more!
One project I'm working on has a new website, which went live this week. It's here if anyone is interested:
12th-man.org.uk
I have to make the point that it has nothing to do with the poster of the same name on here!
Our 12th Man project may well have a presence at the open day at PR on July 27 - we'll be looking for volunteers to get men talking more then.
I'm also doing some work (in Norwich!) to develop a new men's facility, which we're hoping will be a dry bar for social connections and a website to connect fellas with things that can help improve mental health from an early stage.
I love what you're doing unbelievablue - both with the fundraising and by encouraging people to talk. |  | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:48 - Jun 6 with 4196 views | unbelievablue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:39 - Jun 6 by JohnWarksTash |
On the subject of talking therapy I have recently been informed that one to one counselling is no longer available routinely on the NHS and was advised by my GP to go private. This is costing £35 a week and to be honest the stress of being able to pay for it doesn't help the underlying issues.
The NHs is woefully underfunded across the board I am afraid and it won't be getting any better under the current tory government :( |
Seriously?
Where are you based? That's awful. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:48 - Jun 6 with 4190 views | unbelievablue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:45 - Jun 6 by TLA |
Couldn't agree more!
One project I'm working on has a new website, which went live this week. It's here if anyone is interested:
12th-man.org.uk
I have to make the point that it has nothing to do with the poster of the same name on here!
Our 12th Man project may well have a presence at the open day at PR on July 27 - we'll be looking for volunteers to get men talking more then.
I'm also doing some work (in Norwich!) to develop a new men's facility, which we're hoping will be a dry bar for social connections and a website to connect fellas with things that can help improve mental health from an early stage.
I love what you're doing unbelievablue - both with the fundraising and by encouraging people to talk. |
That looks a brilliant initiative and a really nicely put together website too. Nice one. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 10:17 - Jun 6 with 4159 views | TLA |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:48 - Jun 6 by unbelievablue |
That looks a brilliant initiative and a really nicely put together website too. Nice one. |
Cheers.
We're looking to get some funding to work with ITFC and NCFC (my business partner is one of them). There's something important about putting differences aside for the greater good, which in this case is men's mental health. It could apply to TWTD too though…
I hope the training is going well. | | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 11:20 - Jun 6 with 4123 views | JohnWarksTash |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:48 - Jun 6 by unbelievablue |
Seriously?
Where are you based? That's awful. |
Suffolk. The only thing you are offered is group sessions which I would personally struggle in. The girl I am seeing is very good, and reasonably priced compared to many, but its a big strain on my budget. | | | |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:08 - Jun 6 with 4031 views | Throbbe |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 11:20 - Jun 6 by JohnWarksTash |
Suffolk. The only thing you are offered is group sessions which I would personally struggle in. The girl I am seeing is very good, and reasonably priced compared to many, but its a big strain on my budget. |
Cambridgeshire is a bit better, but unfortunately is so oversubscribed that getting referred when you need it is diffcult, and the same is true of charitable organisations that provide support.
I'm currently signed off work, and as recently as a week or two ago have been considering suicide. I've taken the same decision as you, that paid counselling is the way forward. Prices around here are typically £50-60 an hour. I'm fortunate enough that I can currently afford it, although it may be that I need to find a less stressful, and less well paid job in future.
I really appreciate the work that some of you are doing to help people with mental health problems, and best wishes to those that are affected. |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:12 - Jun 6 with 4024 views | ThisIsMyUsername |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:39 - Jun 6 by JohnWarksTash |
On the subject of talking therapy I have recently been informed that one to one counselling is no longer available routinely on the NHS and was advised by my GP to go private. This is costing £35 a week and to be honest the stress of being able to pay for it doesn't help the underlying issues.
The NHs is woefully underfunded across the board I am afraid and it won't be getting any better under the current tory government :( |
I have an initial (free) appointment with a counsellor at 19:15 this evening.
Would be £38 an hour there on in....
I signed up to Suffolk Wellbeing ages ago but haven't heard anything back yet and can't be arsed to wait any longer. |  |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 17:24 - Jun 7 with 3887 views | blue_oyster |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 09:20 - Jun 6 by unbelievablue |
No, they don't. |
Theresa May on Mental Health by Yaffle 7 Jun 2017 9:47On a subject that is important to myself and many on here, I believe May is simply lying with her manifesto pledge on Mental Health services, there is no way what she is promising can be achieved. Since 2010 the number of Mental Health staff has reduced by 6,700 and most services are woefully understaffed http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39836506
She has been claiming since the turn of the year to recruit 10,000 more mental health professionals (whatever that means) by 2020, a net increase of 3,300 over the 10 year period, assuming of course that she manages to stem the mass exodus from the service. In this article http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/40169336/i-dont-like-liar-liar---five-things-theresa-may-told-newsbeat, this is quoted as 10k RMN's (nurses), not simply professionals. So aside from the fact that she has pledged to stop nursing bursaries which is already impacting on numbers applying to study (applications actually down by 23%), it takes a minimum of 3 years to train and qualify plus a preceptorship period to become able to operate safely at full capacity.
Also, bear in mind that for each student nurse you need trained and qualified nursing mentors for each student placement (which accounts for 50% of study). Nursing mentors typically do this for no additional remuneration and/or protected time, meaning that much of the admin is done in their own free time. Understandably, it's not as popular as it once was to be a mentor.
Finally, consider this. 2015 saw the lowest ever number of nurses qualifying, fewer nurses are coming to the UK to work from the EU and only 60% of newly trained nurses actually enter the NHS. Crisis, what crisis?
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jan/25/number-of-mental-health-nurses-falls-10
https://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/views-from-the-nhs-frontline/2016/oct/10/changed-career-mental-health-nursing-now-drowning
https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2016/jul/16/mental-health-nurse-soldier-medication-nhs-hospital
This is the terrifying reality, it may never touch your life but I cannot vote with a clear conscience for any party who is promising to oversee the continued decimation of a service that is meant to be in place to protect some of the most vulnerable in our society.
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:21 - Jun 7 with 3862 views | unbelievablue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 17:24 - Jun 7 by blue_oyster |
Theresa May on Mental Health by Yaffle 7 Jun 2017 9:47On a subject that is important to myself and many on here, I believe May is simply lying with her manifesto pledge on Mental Health services, there is no way what she is promising can be achieved. Since 2010 the number of Mental Health staff has reduced by 6,700 and most services are woefully understaffed http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-39836506
She has been claiming since the turn of the year to recruit 10,000 more mental health professionals (whatever that means) by 2020, a net increase of 3,300 over the 10 year period, assuming of course that she manages to stem the mass exodus from the service. In this article http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/40169336/i-dont-like-liar-liar---five-things-theresa-may-told-newsbeat, this is quoted as 10k RMN's (nurses), not simply professionals. So aside from the fact that she has pledged to stop nursing bursaries which is already impacting on numbers applying to study (applications actually down by 23%), it takes a minimum of 3 years to train and qualify plus a preceptorship period to become able to operate safely at full capacity.
Also, bear in mind that for each student nurse you need trained and qualified nursing mentors for each student placement (which accounts for 50% of study). Nursing mentors typically do this for no additional remuneration and/or protected time, meaning that much of the admin is done in their own free time. Understandably, it's not as popular as it once was to be a mentor.
Finally, consider this. 2015 saw the lowest ever number of nurses qualifying, fewer nurses are coming to the UK to work from the EU and only 60% of newly trained nurses actually enter the NHS. Crisis, what crisis?
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2016/jan/25/number-of-mental-health-nurses-falls-10
https://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/views-from-the-nhs-frontline/2016/oct/10/changed-career-mental-health-nursing-now-drowning
https://www.theguardian.com/public-leaders-network/2016/jul/16/mental-health-nurse-soldier-medication-nhs-hospital
This is the terrifying reality, it may never touch your life but I cannot vote with a clear conscience for any party who is promising to oversee the continued decimation of a service that is meant to be in place to protect some of the most vulnerable in our society.
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There's a bit of a difference mate, I'm primarily talking about people feeling confident enough to discuss their own mental health issues without fear of stigmatisation. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:27 - Jun 7 with 3853 views | Swansea_Blue |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 11:20 - Jun 6 by JohnWarksTash |
Suffolk. The only thing you are offered is group sessions which I would personally struggle in. The girl I am seeing is very good, and reasonably priced compared to many, but its a big strain on my budget. |
That's the first time I've seen these words on TWTD: "The girl I am seeing is very good, and reasonably priced compared to many, but its a big strain on my...". 
That's poor. I think we can get one-to-one counselling on the NHS here in Wales (not suggesting you move!). But it's swings and roundabouts, as some of the other NHS metrics are worse here (waiting lists and ambulance response times, etc.). Presumably it's all about priorities as to where the limited resources are spent - seems England needs to up its game on mental health for sure. | |
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| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:43 - Jun 7 with 3834 views | blue_oyster |
| Blokes account for 75% of suicides in this country on 18:21 - Jun 7 by unbelievablue |
There's a bit of a difference mate, I'm primarily talking about people feeling confident enough to discuss their own mental health issues without fear of stigmatisation. |
Righto, mate. | |
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