When we were kids, if one of us fell from a rope swing and broke our arm, we'd go straight to the doctor and come back to school, proudly showing off our cast.
Now that we're older, we're less likely to fall from a rope swing, but far more susceptible to issues surrounding mental health. Even so, we're reluctant to talk about them. Just like that cast, being treated for a mental health illness is a sign that you've been through shit, but you're still here. That should be celebrated. You shouldn't be ashamed to talk about it.
The reason so many of us suffer in silence is because discussing anxiety, depression, eating disorders or mental distress is still seen as a sign of weakness among young men. Your mates will probably tell you to 'man up' - that is the problem.
Sometimes it's important to just be blunt. This reconstructed machismo is killing thousands of young lads every year. Masculine pride is taking the lives of more young people than cancer. Let that sink in.
The statistics are seriously alarming. Men under the age of 45 accounted for 76% of all suicides in the UK in 2014.
Statistics from the CALM report show that roughly half of all the 1,000 men and women surveyed said they had experienced some form of depression, yet women were much more likely to seek professional help or confide in a friend. 74% of women who had suffered from depression said they had spoken to someone about it, while only 53% of men had done the same. 69% of men who had suffered depression said they preferred to deal with it themselves.
It doesn't take a mathematician to work out that significantly less women are taking their own lives, because they're opening up and getting help. Let's learn from them.
You'll read a lot in the papers about how the mental health system is in crisis. And regardless of whether it's failing us or not, there's help out there and it's important we don't fail ourselves.
It's time to talk, lads.
The guys over at The CALMzone offer amazing support to anyone when things get tough.
The helpline and web chat service are open 5pm to midnight, every day of the year.
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