Colorado advocates encouraging men to seek treatment

Abstract

Colorado mental health advocates are stepping up efforts to encourage men to seek mental health treatment for issues like depression and anxiety. Men represent about 80 percent of the lives lost to suicide in Colorado in 2017, Denver7 KMGH‐TV reported Dec. 17. “Men experience mental health differently than women and they seek help differently than women,” said Dr. Glenn Most, a clinical psychologist and executive director at West Pines Behavioral Health. “One of the first barriers is finding the courage to be open about what they're experiencing.” The silent struggle for men is the subject of ABC's new fall show A Million Little Things, which began with a successful business and family man taking his own life. Jim Gosselin, a husband, father and business owner who has suffered from depression since he was a teenager, said he believes there are many successful men masking their depression. At one point, he worked 70 hours a week to distract himself. Now, as the president of human resources company Amcheck, he encourages his own employees to be open about their mental health. He even allows them to see counselors on company time.