Why We Should Teach Young Men To Express Their Emotions

“Men don’t cry”

“Oi mate, don’t be a pussy”

“Rub some dirt in it”

“Crying is for girls”

In Australia the leading cause of death for men between the ages of 15-44 is suicide. On average there are eight people who take their life every day in our country. Of those eight people, six of them are men. Yes, six men a day choose to take their own life. But how is this? In a country that celebrates larrikinism and the Aussie Bloke how do we have such a high percentage of our men suffering, yet only a small percentage speaking out?   

Maybe it’s comments like the ones mentioned above that are just seen as the Aussie Way? We raise our men to be tough, resilient and ‘manly’. But what does manly even mean? Does being a man mean you can’t cry? Does being a man mean that you are not granted permission to naturally express your emotions? Does being a man mean that you have to suffer in silence as you suppress EVERYTHING? What does being a man truly mean? And more importantly, WHAT do we want it to mean?

There is one man who read the above statistics and realised that change HAD to occur. That man is Dr Sam Parker who started the Grab Life By The Balls movement. A movement that encourages men to get together, hang out, talk about life and CONNECT. Usually the connecting is done over sausos on the BBQ or beers around a campfire (snags and beer, amirite?). It’s not about sitting in a circle with a talking stick, crying about your feelings. No, it’s about men getting together for a bloody yarn and a beer BUT without fear of judgment.

So how can we as women help these men of ours? How can we encourage them to express their emotions? How do we raise young men and women who aren’t afraid of their feelings? Well I had a chinwag with Dr Sammy Parker himself and asked ALL of these questions (and more! Amazing!). If we can learn how to hold space and encourage our men to share their emotions with us honestly- imagine how different our world could be!

This isn’t just about them, this is about all of us. If they (da boiz) can learn to express their emotions, perhaps they won’t be so afraid of ours (da gurls). So whether your balls live inside of your body OR outside of your body this podcast is for you! (You don’t even have to have ANY balls). And be sure to check out the Grab Life By The Balls Movement! And grab life by the balls, I guess?