Every November, many people grow mustaches in support of Movember: an annual campaign that raises awareness for men’s health issues, particularly mental health and suicide prevention. The Movember Foundation started in 2003, combining the words “mustache” and “November” to encourage men to grow mustaches throughout the month and raise awareness for physical and mental health issues.
Movember
Men’s mental health
Suicide prevention
Stigma & masculinity
But the reality is that growing facial hair is the easy part: having honest conversations about mental health is where many men struggle.
If you’re reading this and wondering whether something you’re experiencing might be a mental health issue, or if you think a man in your life might be suffering, you’re not alone. Understanding what’s happening and knowing where to turn for help can feel overwhelming. This guide helps you recognize the signs, understand why these conversations are so difficult, and take meaningful steps toward getting support.
The Silent Crisis: Understanding Men’s Mental Health by the Numbers
The statistics around men’s mental health paint an important story about the male experience and room for growth. Over 6 million men suffer from depression annually, but depression in men often goes under diagnosed. Even more alarming, on average, one man dies from suicide every minute globally.
Suicide is more prevalent than some people realize. In fact, it’s one of the leading causes of death. In fact, U.S. data in 2022 found that an estimated 23.1% of adults had a mental illness. Perhaps most troubling for men, though, is the treatment gap: One in 10 men will experience anxiety and depression, yet less than half of them will receive treatment for it.
The gap between suffering and getting help isn’t only about access: it’s about the deeply ingrained barriers that make it difficult for men to even acknowledge they’re struggling, let alone ask for support. The good news? Movember is the perfect opportunity to change that in yourself or someone you love.
Why the Conversation Is So Hard: Breaking Down the Barriers
If you’ve ever thought, “I should probably talk to someone about this,” but couldn’t bring yourself to do it, you’re experiencing something millions of men face. The barriers to seeking help are real, deeply rooted, and multifaceted.
The Weight of Traditional Masculinity
Men are subjected to a culture where the standards of masculinity are hurting them. From a young age, many boys are taught to suppress emotions through messages like “boys don’t cry” or “be a man about it.”
This is not new to society, as ideas of masculinity have long been tied to ideals like stoicism, dominance, and self-reliance. These traits are celebrated as strengths but often act as barriers to emotional well-being, discouraging men from expressing vulnerability, recognizing they need support, or seeking help.
Stigma: The Double Burden
Connected to masculinity is the social stigma around men’s mental health. This framework prevents them from seeking help and services they might actually benefit from. It operates on multiple levels, both externally from society and internally as men judge themselves for struggling.
On the public level, stigma amplifies this silence and portrays men who seek help as ‘weak’ or ‘unmanly’. Social pressure to conform reinforces emotional suppression, trapping men in a cycle of avoidance. While negative perceptions of mental health can affect all individuals, men have unique considerations when navigating this complicated landscape.
Read More: Ready to Overcome Mental Health Stigma? Start Here
Symptoms Look Different in Men
One reason men’s mental health issues often go undiagnosed is that symptoms can manifest differently than the “textbook” descriptions many people recognize.
While men experience many of the same mental health conditions as women, their symptoms often present differently. Rather than openly expressing sadness or fear, men may be more likely to:
Experience emotional withdrawal
This means that rather than feeling sad, men might experience depression but not realize it because they’re irritable and angry: emotions that feel more acceptable for men to express.
The Isolation Factor
Rates of male suicide completion have risen, and so has male loneliness. Consider these facts about isolation and men’s mental health:
- Only 27% of men report having six or more close friends, compared to 41% of women
- Social isolation itself can be both a symptom and a contributing factor to mental health challenges
If you’ve noticed that you’re increasingly alone, turning down invitations, or feeling disconnected from people who used to matter to you, this could be a sign you don’t want to overlook.
Starting the Conversation Around Men’s Mental Health
One of Movember’s most valuable contributions is the ALEC model: a simple framework to help guide conversations about mental health. Whether you’re reaching out for help yourself or checking in on someone else, having a roadmap can make the conversation less daunting.
A
Ask
Start by asking how someone is feeling. It’s worth mentioning any changes you’ve noticed. For yourself, this might mean reaching out to a trusted friend or family member and saying, “I need to talk about something I’ve been dealing with.”
L
Listen
Give the person space to talk without judgment. If you’re the one opening up, choose someone who has shown empathy and understanding in the past.
E
Encourage Action
Gently encourage seeking professional support. This isn’t about pushing: it’s about offering options and resources.
C
Check In
Follow up. Mental health struggles don’t resolve in a single conversation. Regular check-ins show ongoing support and care.
Tips for Men Seeking Help
If you’re struggling to open up about how you’re feeling, try talking while doing an activity alongside someone you trust. This could be while:
- on a walk
- playing or watching sports
- fixing a car
- playing pool
It can feel less intimidating to talk ‘alongside’ someone, rather than face-to-face. One way to start this conversation is by seeking a trusted friend or family member and sharing your experiences. You don’t have to have everything figured out or know exactly what’s wrong. Starting with “I haven’t been feeling like myself lately” or “I’ve been dealing with some things I can’t seem to shake” is a good place to start.
Self-Assessment: Taking the First Step Toward Clarity
For many men experiencing mental health challenges, one of the biggest obstacles is simply not knowing what they’re dealing with. You might feel “off” but can’t put your finger on why. This uncertainty can itself become a barrier to seeking help. After all, how do you ask for help when you don’t know what’s wrong?
If this sounds like you, rest assured: this is where self-assessment tools are incredibly valuable. Online screening is one of the quickest and easiest ways to see what mental health symptoms you might be experiencing. It’s free, quick, confidential, and backed up by science.
Finding the Right Support: Your Options for Treatment
Once you’ve recognized that something isn’t right and you’re ready to seek help, the next question might be: Where do I start? There are multiple pathways to support, and you can choose the approach that feels right for you.
Therapy: More Than Just Talk
Men are typically less inclined to engage in traditional therapy approaches, but therapy has evolved significantly over the years. Evidence-based treatments like Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and solution-focused approaches align well with how many men prefer to work through problems: they’re action-oriented, practical, and focused on developing specific strategies and skills.
Therapy allows you to understand your condition, dig into what your triggers are, and learn coping mechanisms so you can manage your symptoms. For many men, therapy provides a safe space to share struggles and begin to heal.
But just starting therapy is not the whole picture: finding the right therapist matters, too. At GoodTherapy, our comprehensive search filters allow you to find providers based on specific issues, treatment approaches, and even practical considerations like insurance, location, and availability. You can filter for therapists who specialize in men’s issues, depression, anxiety, relationship problems, or more.
Read More: Ready to Find Your Therapist? Take Our Quiz
In some cases, medication can be used to treat mental health issues. This may include antidepressants, anti-anxiety medication, or mood stabilizers. Medication can help manage symptoms and improve overall mental health, but healthcare professionals should always be the ones prescribing and monitoring your medications.
Support groups provide a safe space for men to share their experiences, connect with others going through similar challenges, and receive emotional support. Many men find that hearing from others who understand what they’re going through reduces feelings of isolation.
Lifestyle habits can also impact mental health in unexpected ways. Don’t overlook the importance of eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly, and practicing stress-management techniques, as these can help reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety, improve mood, and promote overall well-being.
The most effective mental health treatment often combines multiple approaches. For example, you might work with a therapist while also taking medication, joining a support group, and making lifestyle changes. There’s no single “right” way to approach mental health treatment: the best approach is the one that works for you.
Beyond November: Making Mental Health a Year-Round Priority
Movember brings critical attention to men’s mental health for one month each year, but mental health doesn’t follow a monthly schedule. The conversations, awareness, and action that Movember inspires need to extend into every month, week, and day.
If you’re experiencing thoughts of suicide or are in immediate crisis, know that help is available right now, 24/7.
Immediate Crisis Support
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988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: Call or text 988 for free, confidential support 24/7
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If you think you or someone else might be in immediate danger, call 911 or go to your nearest emergency room.
When it comes to men’s mental health, there’s no need to suffer alone. Reaching out during a crisis isn’t weakness: it’s the strongest thing you can do.
Resources:
Despite growing awareness and resources for men’s mental health, something still isn’t working. Men make up nearly 80% of all U.S. suicides, with the male suicide rate about 4 times higher than the female rate, yet only about one third of all people in therapy are men.
Therapy is more accessible, self-help content is everywhere, and conversations about masculinity and well-being are more open than ever. Mental health apps are booming, and it’s clear that talking about mental health is no longer taboo. Yet, many men continue to feel lost, disconnected, and unfulfilled.
The issue isn’t just about mental health awareness, it’s about engagement. Historically, many men have struggled to connect with traditional approaches to healing and growth because those methods don’t always resonate with them. Often, they miss key elements that drive men toward real improvement and transformation.
The Crisis Behind the Numbers
In 2023, just 17 percent of American men saw a mental health professional, while 28.5% of women did. Even more concerning, 77% of men experience symptoms of common mental health problems such as anxiety, stress or depression, but 40% of men have never spoken to anyone about their mental health.
Men may struggle with mental health issues including depression, suicidal thinking, and addictions, but they are far less likely to seek help than are women. This may be partially because men can often brush off or bottle up difficult emotions rather than process them. Research from the Anxiety and Depression Association of America shows that over 6 million men suffer from depression per year, but male depression often goes underdiagnosed.
 If you’re a man struggling with mental health, know that you’re not alone. Start by exploring our therapist directory to find professionals who specialize in working with men. Learn more about breaking down barriers to mental health care.
The 4 Key Missing Pieces in Men’s Mental Health
1. Real-World Challenges Foster Mind-Body Integration
Men often process emotions differently from women. While open dialogue is important, many men engage more deeply when they are doing rather than just talking. Integrating mind and body is crucial for real and lasting change, and for many men, physical exertion, high-stakes problem-solving, and pushing limits create mental clarity in ways that sitting in an office or reading a book just doesn’t.
Challenge-based growth isn’t about avoiding emotions but confronting them in real-time. Activities such as:
- Endurance training – marathons, triathlons, or Spartan races
- Martial arts or boxing – developing discipline and confidence under pressure
- Cold exposure and breathwork – building mental resilience through controlled stress
- Tactical training – problem-solving under pressure with real consequences
- Wilderness survival challenges – testing adaptability and resourcefulness
These activities activate the nervous system in ways that rewire the brain for enhanced resilience. Resilience is fundamental to confidence, and together, they form a self-reinforcing cycle that strengthens the neural pathways driving values-driven action. The more a man pushes his limits, the more he builds trust in himself, transforming challenges into catalysts for growth rather than barriers to progress.
2. Brotherhood and Shared Struggle
Studies show that loneliness is peaking among young men. A May 2025 Gallup analysis found that 1 in 4 U.S. males aged 15-34 (25%) said they felt lonely “a lot of the day”. Many men experience deep loneliness but often don’t recognize it. Society’s definition of masculinity emphasizes strength, self-reliance, and emotional restraint, leaving men with limited avenues for emotional support.
However, brotherhood through shared struggle can provide a vital space for men to break through those walls. In military units, sports teams, and other high-pressure environments, men face challenges that require them to rely on one another. These shared experiences forge bonds that go beyond surface-level connections, ones rooted in trust, mutual respect, and vulnerability.
Men’s therapy groups can be particularly effective. As a psychotherapist who has worked with men in various settings for over 30 years, these groups demonstrate men’s ability to be vulnerable and to openly share deep emotional struggles, their compassion and empathy with each other.
This is why cohort-based groups can be so impactful for healing. At a recent healing retreat for veterans, law enforcement officers, and undercover operators, I witnessed this firsthand. What began as a simple outdoor excursion turned into a bouldering challenge, with physical obstacles that required teamwork. As the men navigated the difficult terrain together, some with visible injuries, they quickly learned they couldn’t go it alone. Offering hands, shoulders, and encouragement to one another, the physical challenge became an opportunity to break through emotional barriers.
That night, the group shared openly in a way they hadn’t all week, experiences, emotions, and struggles that had been kept locked away. The discomfort of the physical challenge had dissolved the guards built around their vulnerability. This was more than just a display of physical strength, it was an exercise in emotional openness and connection.
Ready to experience brotherhood? Learn about men’s therapy groups and find group therapy options in your area. Read more about the benefits of men supporting men in therapeutic settings.
3. Reclaiming the Past to Forge a New Masculinity
For generations, men transitioned into adulthood through structured rites of passage, trials that tested their strength, resilience, and character. These experiences didn’t just mark a transition; they instilled identity, purpose, and belonging. From warrior initiations to the Japanese Misogi tradition of purification through extreme challenge, these rituals provided men with real, tangible experiences that shaped their understanding of themselves and their role in the world.
Today, these rites have vanished, leaving many men to navigate an evolving world without a clear roadmap. Modern masculinity is caught between conflicting expectations, be strong, but be vulnerable; provide, but don’t chase status; lead, but don’t dominate. The pressure to succeed in work, relationships, and personal growth can feel overwhelming, yet traditional outlets for guidance and transformation are scarce.
I speak with men daily who are struggling to “find themselves.” Despite outward success, career, family, stability, many feel disconnected, lost, or unfulfilled. We live in a time where masculinity itself is under constant scrutiny. With so much contention over what it means to “be a man,” young boys and men struggle to develop an identity that helps them overcome life’s challenges and lead a meaningful life. Yet masculinity isn’t something to reject, it’s something to reclaim and redefine.
By learning from the past and applying it to today’s realities, men can create a version of masculinity that honors tradition while evolving to meet modern challenges. This means dismantling harmful expectations, embracing personal strengths, and forging a path that integrates emotional depth, purpose-driven action, and brotherhood.
4. Actionable Resilience, Not Just Reflection
Men often anchor their self-esteem in their work and may be uncomfortable with traditional therapy approaches that focus primarily on talking about feelings. Men aren’t struggling because they don’t feel emotions, they’re struggling because they don’t know how to channel them effectively. Traditional mental health approaches often focus on introspection, but many men need an action-based framework to apply resilience in real life.
Reflection alone isn’t enough; it must be paired with committed action to create meaningful change. Real resilience is built under stress, in motion, and in real-time. Whether through breathwork, endurance challenges, or skill-based problem-solving, men must train under pressure to regulate emotions while taking action.
Learning to control breathing under physical and mental strain, push through discomfort, and reframe challenges in the moment builds resilience that talk alone can’t replicate. This process also teaches men how to communicate their feelings, verbally, physically, and emotionally, in ways that don’t harm themselves or others.
Without structured challenges that simulate real-life pressure, emotional regulation remains theoretical. However, when men practice expressing emotions while engaged in movement and challenge, they develop the ability to respond rather than react, assert themselves without aggression, and express themselves without withdrawal.
A Better Approach to Men’s Mental Health
For real transformation, men need structured challenges, strong connections, and actionable resilience training, not just conversation. This doesn’t mean therapy or introspection aren’t valuable; they are, and working with a therapist who uses a goal-oriented approach and who places therapeutic goals in the context of creating a better quality of life may help some men see the value in doing just that.
But for many men, these tools become far more effective when paired with real-world experiences that push limits and tangibly build resilience, engaging both body and mind.
The key to change is taking deliberate, proactive steps. This means taking committed steps toward the larger goal. Instead of waiting for change to happen, men can actively seek out hard things, intentional physical or mental challenges that force them to adapt and grow. This might look like:
- Train for an endurance event — marathon, triathlon, or Spartan race to push both body and mind
- Join a martial arts or boxing gym — develop discipline, confidence, and focus under pressure
- Cold exposure & breathwork challenge — cold plunges or focused breathing programs to build mental resilience
- Attend an immersive retreat — step away from daily life to challenge yourself mentally, physically, and emotionally with a cohort of others with similar backgrounds
- Take on a team-based challenge — obstacle course race, tactical training, or wilderness survival that demands problem-solving under pressure
- Unplug & reset — commit to a 24-hour technology detox paired with outdoor activity or reflection
The bottom line? Growth happens outside of our comfort zone. If you’ve been feeling stuck, disconnected, or lost, the solution may not be another conversation, it may be stepping into something that forces you to rise.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Why don’t traditional therapy approaches work as well for men?
Men may tend to be more concerned about privacy and sometimes require greater reassurance that therapy will not adversely affect their image, position, or standing. Additionally, because men are often conditioned by social norms to refrain from showing certain emotions, they may fear that expressing these emotions will lead them to be perceived as less masculine.
What are the warning signs that a man needs mental health support?
Key warning signs include escapist behavior such as spending excessive time at work or on sports, physical symptoms like headaches and digestive problems, anger outbursts, substance use, and social withdrawal. Men may express depression differently than women, often showing anger and irritability rather than sadness. For 40% of men, it would take thoughts of suicide or self-harm to compel them to get professional help.
How can challenge-based approaches help with men’s mental health?
Challenge-based approaches work because they align with how many men naturally process stress and emotions. Physical challenges activate the nervous system in ways that build real resilience while providing a framework for emotional expression that feels authentic to many men.
What should I look for in a therapist who specializes in men’s mental health?
Search for therapists who specialize in men and ask if the therapist has a gender preference and what percentage of his or her clients are men. Also find out if the therapist has a private entrance and night or weekend hours, as many men anchor their self-esteem in their work and find it difficult to explain weekly appointments.
How can men build stronger social connections?
Join communities and organizations that foster intimacy such as churches, volunteer organizations, and support groups. Seek friendships with men who value alternative forms of masculinity and who are willing to talk about the need for human connection.
Taking Action: Your Next Steps
Remember, asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness, it’s a powerful step toward growth and healing. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness. Actually, it can be comforting to know that you can’t do everything alone, and humans thrive on supporting one another.
Ready to start your journey? Browse our comprehensive therapist directory to find mental health professionals who understand men’s unique needs and challenges. Your transformation starts with a single step.