November is an important month for mental health, being celebrated as Movember.
Movember is a movement created in 2003, to support men’s mental and physical health. The movement has a strong emphasis on supporting men’s mental health, testicular cancer and prostate cancer.
Men are encouraged to grow mustaches for the month of November, to show their own support.
Joshua Keene, an addictions mental health counselor at Canadian Mental Health Association, says most of his clients grow mustaches for the month. He says they appreciate the support they’ve received, and want to be an ambassador for mental health.
Mental health affects everyone and can interfere with people’s lives. There are many ways to help cope with mental health issues, including support groups and talking to someone you trust.
One local student shared how they deal with their mental health, saying, “I found for myself that simply doing things that just make me happy, even if it’s just a little bit of happiness, keeps me going.”
CMHA on Queens Avenue (Credit: Sifton Properties)
Men’s mental health has been seen as taboo in the past. Men can often be told not to be emotional or vulnerable. Joshua Keene says that stigma is fading out of society as more people become open to help.
Keene says “supporting men and supporting anybody experiencing mental health issues, is 365 days a year. But, picking a month, having it brought forward so that it’s in the forefront, we make the issue important… so that we reduce stigma associated with it.”
There are many locations across London and Ontario that offer support for mental health.
One support group is based at Crouch Branch Library, located on Hamilton Road. They offer a men’s group that meets on Thursdays from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. year-round. It gives men a chance to be vulnerable and emotional without judgement.
If you or someone you know is experiencing mental health issues, find support or call the mental health crisis line, 519-433-2023.
