Local man opens up about his personal struggles with mental health

To protect and respect their right of wanting to remain anonymous the name of the interviewee has been changed for the purposes of this article. 

‘‘I might struggle with feeling like a burden on people when I open up’’ says a young man after opening up about his personal struggles with mental health as November marks the beginning of Men’s Health Awareness Month. 

The man has reflected on the series of hurdles he dealt while at Ulster University’s Coleraine Campus and the impact his mental health has had in his life.

‘‘My lack of self esteem and my lack of self confidence and self worth brought on by, I would say, the pressures of studying a master’s degree at university.’’ explains Liam, who is a young professional and navigating graduate life as an individual in their 20s. 

‘‘General lack of self esteem and a lack of self confidences where it would start off, I wouldn’t be eating. I rather just sit on my own. I find it tricky to be honest with people about how I was feeling and just very drained and burnt out, which then led into feeling - negative things about myself and feeling like I didn’t have any value. I would say that was my biggest mental health challenge.’’ 

‘‘I was studying my Master’s at University and through that, with all the pressure of exams. And I just think maybe three or four years of university, and having a lot of academic pressure and letting it get to me, it kind of just had been all built up.’’ he continued

Men’s Health Awareness Month is an opportunity to speak up and bring awareness to a wide range of men’s health issues, including both physical and mental wellbeing.

According to NIRC who has carried out research on male students at UK universities shows that ‘Young men aged 18 to 25 are most at risk of developing disorders such as schizophrenia, anxiety, and depression.’

The research also stated that men at university are ‘69%’ more likely to die by suicide than women. The figures of students ‘reporting a mental health condition is rising’. 

Liam expresses how this is the ‘first year’ in his life that he has been ‘properly aware’ of his mental health struggles.

‘‘I think through navigating certain situations in life, I realised that there is quite a stigma with talking about it. I would say it is definitely true that men struggle more with it than not to say that women don't struggle either, but I feel like there is more of a stigma around men.’’

Reflecting on his journey since graduation and having the strength to enjoy life again.

‘‘I really enjoy my job and it keeps me focused. I love that about routine, I find it helps me. My routine would be maybe the small thing that I enjoy in everyday life just knowing what I am doing,’’ Liam says.

‘‘I enjoy everyday life having people that I talk to, even though a lot of what I would struggle with is that the people that I know care, even though I tell myself sometimes negatively. Oh people don't care about me’’

Acknowledging how anxious thoughts can greatly impact a situation or how personal thoughts can become negative, as Liam reminds himself people do care about his well-being.

‘‘You know the fact that I have people that I can text about how I am feeling, you know they do care because they care enough that they will listen to me when I text them’’

‘‘Friends can be a big help’’ Liam concludes

If you would like to know more about or get involved with Men’s Health Awareness Month or also known as ‘Movember’ you can find out more information at uk.movember.com