How to cope with change
Get useful tools and strategies to help you cope with change and care for your mental health.
Read moreOur emotional state often dictates how we behave. Men often feel they need to be self-reliant and provide for their loved ones, so it is not appropriate to express their emotions. Here MensLine Australia challenges that notion offering advice on how you can talk about your emotions openly and freely.
Our emotional state often dictates how we behave, with men and women handling emotions in quite different ways. When upset, women are more likely to express their feelings directly and to seek the support of friends and family, whereas men might hide their emotions or withdraw.
Men often feel that they need to be self-reliant and provide for their loved ones, so it is not appropriate to express their emotions. This behaviour can be reinforced in the stereotype of the heroic male, so often represented in popular culture. Fearless, resourceful, stoic and usually facing adversity alone, these characters tell us a lot about what is considered to be ideal male behaviour within our society.
More powerful than film characters are the roles we see our parents playing. Many men have experienced fathers who were emotionally distant, who rarely, if ever, cried or expressed affection outwardly. The way we see our parents behave may become the unconscious template for our behaviour.
It is helpful to think in terms of four basic human emotions:
Of these four emotions, happiness is considered the most acceptable in society. Yet anger, fear and sadness are universally felt by everyone. These emotions serve valuable purposes and are normal responses to threat and loss.
As emotions such as fear and sadness are generally not as accepted, men might try to hide these from themselves and those around them. They feel that they should be able to cope on their own.
Individuals might try to cope with ‘negative’ emotions in one or more of the following ways:
We might not always be able to identify what we’re feeling or have the words to describe our emotions. Men may feel uncomfortable talking to someone about them, leading to frustration in relationships when they cannot express their needs, fears and grief.
The restriction of emotional expression in many men’s lives can lead to:
Men are often told they have to ‘get in touch with their feelings,’ but what does this mean and how do you do it?
Here are some strategies for getting to know your feelings better:
This page is available for download: MensLine Australia Tip Sheet – Men and emotions PDF: 34KB
If you need someone to talk to, MensLine Australia professional counsellors are here to provide information and support 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Call us on 1300 78 99 78 or access online counselling.
Get useful tools and strategies to help you cope with change and care for your mental health.
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