Changing the Way Men Think about Mental Health

In July, 2012, the Colorado Office of Suicide Prevention, Cactus Marketing Communications, and the Carson J Spencer Foundation partnered to launchwww.mantherapy.org, designed to reshape the way men talk about and tackle issues like depression, anxiety, anger and suicidal thoughts. Man Therapy uses humor to cut through stigma and social norms that suggest men never show weakness, pick themselves up by their bootstraps, and never ask for help, all of which contribute to keeping many men from accessing available services. Unfortunately, men account for the highest number of suicide deaths in the United States each year, and little has previously been developed to address this public health issue directly.

The purpose of mantherapy.org is to provide men, and their loved ones, a place to learn more about men’s mental health, examine their own wellness and consider a wide array of actions to put them on the path to treatment and recovery when issues arise. A 30-second public service announcement, posters, drink coasters, business cards, a YouTube page, and electronic banner ads are available in support of the project. A white paper is included that discusses the rationale for the project, and an evaluation plan is being implemented to measure the impact that mantherapy.org has on the behavior of men who visit the site.

By January of this year, 162,871 people have visited mantherapy.org. 22,422 individuals have completed the 18-point Head Inspection, and 11,783 have clicked on the “red” phone. When a visitor clicks on the red phone they are prompted to call the Lifeline. While we are not currently able to track whether visitors actually call the Lifeline, we strongly encourage you to explore mantherapy.org and to inform your staff and volunteers that they may receive calls from individuals that found the Lifeline via the website.

Please share this innovative new resource with your community, encourage men and families to visit the site, and contact Jarrod Hindman (jarrod.hindman@state.co.us) at the Office of Suicide Prevention or Sally Spencer-Thomas at the Carson J Spencer Foundation (sally@carsonjspencer.org) to learn more or to bring the campaign to your state or community.

original source: http://www.crisiscentersblog.com/?p=2589