I'm really concerned about men's mental health

I'm a mental health nurse. I work in a psych clinic and see a wide variety of patients. <br><br>I click with a lot of my male patients because I'm a 30 something year old man myself. I can relate to a lot of the issues they have. And the issues they have are growing by the day, to an alarming extent. <br><br>I've never seen so many men with serious issues as I have in the past year or so. Most of my male patients have either a strong substance use disorder coupled with a mood disorder, a psychotic disorder, or severe trauma histories. <br><br>Very little of this is due to anything they personally did wrong. Immense amounts of them are the results of being victims of sexual abuse, rape, or neglect. A lot of them are due to the loss of a loved one, overwhelming stress at work, or gross lack of parenting when they were young. <br><br>Most of my patients are on several medications, and do very well on them, and function just fine in society outside of work. The medication helps them manage the weight of their illnesses without having to use substances or developing further disorders. <br><br>I give my perspective to a lot of them, and let them know that I've lived through similar shit and have managed to come out okay on the other end. I see a therapist twice a week, and take two different medications. I sample my medications often, and take them regularly. I like to lead by example, I think it helps. <br><br>But above all else, the biggest hurdle between these men and getting help is that they are terrified to ask for it. And I get it. Nobody wants to feel vulnerable. I was terrified as well. <br><br>I wish more than anything that I didn't have to do this job, because I wish more than anything that there weren't so many people suffering from mental illnesses. And many times, the only way to get better is to accept professional help. And I know how hard it is. I know it's hard to accept that you need help, especially as a man. <br><br>But if you are one of those guys, please just do it. Or you might not be around one day. And I honestly don't want that to happen to anyone. And if you're one of the people who says men are "weak" for asking for mental health help, or that it's not a big deal, or it only happens to women, you can go fuck yourself.