4 ms·

Is it silent? The statistics and data aggregation seem pretty robust. Most governments publish data reinforcing that suicide is a huge risk factor for men. I

by cup 10y ago

Is it silent? The statistics and data aggregation seem pretty robust. Most governments publish data reinforcing that suicide is a huge risk factor for men. I don't think It's a silent epidemic as much as It's just not an important epidemic. Society doesn't necessarily rank the problem of male suicide high enough to fix or fund.

dalke 10y ago
"Silent" here means in part "a lack of public awareness, a paucity of explanatory research, and the reluctance of men to seek help for suicide-related concerns". The assertion is that the low ranking you mention is made through general societal ignorance. Compare, for example, to the high number of deaths caused by driving. Those risks are well known, taught in schools, and discussed often. This is a much more informed ranking.
yomly 10y ago
>It's just not an important epidemic. "Aye,there's the rub..." Men are more likely to succumb to alcoholism[0] Men are more likely to succumb to gambling problems[1] An estimated 84% of homeless are male in the UK[2] Alcoholism and gambling are some choice indicators of inequality that Tony Judt liked to reference in Ill Fares the Land[3]. The gender disparity is well documented at the top (e.g. Gender diversity for C-level) but this is the 1% of the 1%. I'm not denying that the lack of diversity is alarming but these men are the men that bested many other men. However the fact that there is a lack of diversity on both sides of the spectrum seems to be an inconvenient truth that most prefer to avoid. [0]http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15533281 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15533281 [1]https://www.responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/2014/gender-gap-highlighted-in-new-gambling-study https://www.responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au/newsroom/media-re... [2]https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/may/07/men-gender-divide-feminism https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/may/07/men-ge... [3]https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0718191412/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0718191412/
- dreta 10y ago
  don’t forget the lack of help for male domestic abuse victims
sien 10y ago
It might also be because people are wary of talking about suicide because there is some evidence that making people think about it more may make it occur more. Also, it might be because society sort of accepts that old men are allowed to kill themselves. The highest suicide rate is for 75+ year old men. http://www.mindframe-media.info/for-media/reporting-suicide/facts-and-stats http://www.mindframe-media.info/for-media/reporting-suicide/... I don't agree with either of these things, I'm just putting them forward as to why people suicide is less prominent in public health discussions.
cuckcuckspruce 10y ago
It's bound up in the concept of male disposability. As a society we're arguing about whether or not to let women in the military (we should), whether they should have the same standards are men (they should), whether they should be allowed to serve in combat roles if they meet that standard (they should), and whether we should value their service equally (we should). However, any time anybody raises the banner to go to war we don't stop to think about the thousands of men, ripped apart from the life they know, ripped apart from their families, sent off as fresh meat to the grinder, sent off into a hailstorm of bullets, mortars, rockets, missiles, and bombs to kill or be killed, maim or be killed. Nobody but their immediate family cares whether or not the come home, and nobody but their family cares what they went through while they were there. Society is perfectly fine with throwing away men, shaming them into making the ultimate sacrifice for their county. Why would they care if a few thousand off themselves every year?

by cup 10y ago

dalke 10y ago

"Silent" here means in part "a lack of public awareness, a paucity of explanatory research, and the reluctance of men to seek help for suicide-related concerns". The assertion is that the low ranking you mention is made through general societal ignorance. Compare, for example, to the high number of deaths caused by driving. Those risks are well known, taught in schools, and discussed often. This is a much more informed ranking.

yomly 10y ago

>It's just not an important epidemic. "Aye,there's the rub..." Men are more likely to succumb to alcoholism[0] Men are more likely to succumb to gambling problems[1] An estimated 84% of homeless are male in the UK[2] Alcoholism and gambling are some choice indicators of inequality that Tony Judt liked to reference in Ill Fares the Land[3]. The gender disparity is well documented at the top (e.g. Gender diversity for C-level) but this is the 1% of the 1%. I'm not denying that the lack of diversity is alarming but these men are the men that bested many other men. However the fact that there is a lack of diversity on both sides of the spectrum seems to be an inconvenient truth that most prefer to avoid. [0]http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15533281 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15533281 [1]https://www.responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au/newsroom/media-releases/2014/gender-gap-highlighted-in-new-gambling-study https://www.responsiblegambling.vic.gov.au/newsroom/media-re... [2]https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/may/07/men-gender-divide-feminism https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2013/may/07/men-ge... [3]https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0718191412/ https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/0718191412/

dreta 10y ago
don’t forget the lack of help for male domestic abuse victims

sien 10y ago

It might also be because people are wary of talking about suicide because there is some evidence that making people think about it more may make it occur more. Also, it might be because society sort of accepts that old men are allowed to kill themselves. The highest suicide rate is for 75+ year old men. http://www.mindframe-media.info/for-media/reporting-suicide/facts-and-stats http://www.mindframe-media.info/for-media/reporting-suicide/... I don't agree with either of these things, I'm just putting them forward as to why people suicide is less prominent in public health discussions.

cuckcuckspruce 10y ago

It's bound up in the concept of male disposability. As a society we're arguing about whether or not to let women in the military (we should), whether they should have the same standards are men (they should), whether they should be allowed to serve in combat roles if they meet that standard (they should), and whether we should value their service equally (we should). However, any time anybody raises the banner to go to war we don't stop to think about the thousands of men, ripped apart from the life they know, ripped apart from their families, sent off as fresh meat to the grinder, sent off into a hailstorm of bullets, mortars, rockets, missiles, and bombs to kill or be killed, maim or be killed. Nobody but their immediate family cares whether or not the come home, and nobody but their family cares what they went through while they were there. Society is perfectly fine with throwing away men, shaming them into making the ultimate sacrifice for their county. Why would they care if a few thousand off themselves every year?