Coping with Covid-19: Psychotherapist Encourages Men to Embrace Covid Life Changes
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n the UK apart from front line workers, the two distinct groups of society that have been impacted most developmentally and psychologically from the pandemic are children and men. Men have been hugely affected by the removal of an absolutely developmental and psychological need for complex social contact and the pressures of upcoming economic challenges around loss of jobs. It’s a tough time to be a human at the moment and it’s a very tough time to be a human male. Some men have really rallied during this time and have taken hold of the opportunities of home working and being with their families more, others though have not. Men have the tendency to retrench and retreat in the face of this, to regress into versions of manhood that are more toxic and psychologically fragile.
MEN’S MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS STILL RISING We know when men are struggling through some very simple metrics: a rise in alcohol consumption and alcohol related deaths, rise in suicide rates, rise in domestic violence, rise in violence in general, rise in admission to psychiatric hospital for severe and enduring mental health conditions. All are on the rise at the moment.
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PSYCHOTHERAPIST NOEL MCDERMOTT www.noelmcdermott.net COMMENTS: The essential lesson all guys need to learn right now is that there is strength is in vulnerability and loving connection to others, a simple truth that needs to be driven home hard right now. Research shows that for every 1% increase in unemployment in Europe there is a 0.8% increase in suicides and 75% of those suicides will be men. SUGGESTIONS FOR MEN ON NAVIGATING IN THE SHORT TERM: •
Stop drinking or reduce it to infrequent use at small amounts
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Make at least one phone call every single day that is about catching up with a male friend
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Identify those of your mates (male) who live alone and are possibly struggling at the moment and contact them at least once a week to chew the fat
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If you have kids, then role model talking about feelings with them (if you’ve got boys you might just be saving their life)
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Sleep properly, exercise regularly, eat a balanced diet
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Broaden your support network, keep new people coming into it
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Challenge yourself to develop new interests and hobbies www.lancmag.com
