Men’s mental health: What you need to know

Published

2 years ago

August 14, 2023

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Mens mental health is an important yet often overlooked health concern. Mental health can affect males differently than females.

Both men and women experience mental health difficulties. However, there are some notable differences between the issues affecting them and the factors that influence those issues.

Keep reading to learn more about the most common issues and conditions affecting mens mental health, including potential treatments and ways to help others experiencing mental health problems. How mental health issues affect men differently Share on Pinterest Seeking help is a crucial first step in recovering from any mental health condition.

Mental health issues affect men and women differently in the following ways:Differences in condition prevalence and suicide rates

Women are more likely to experience mental health conditions than men. They are also more likely to attempt suicide.

However, men are more than 3.5 times more likely to die from suicide than women. This may be because they tend to choose more lethal weapons, such as firearms.Different influencing factors

Mens issues can develop from different causes and triggers than those that affect women.

For example, mens issues often stem from societal expectations and traditional gender roles, which may lead men to think that they must:be the breadwinners in the familydisplay traditional masculine traits, such as strength and controlrely on oneself and not seek help from othersnot speak openly about their emotions

Holding on to these traditional beliefs can negatively impact mens mental health and keep them from accessing support and treatment.Differences in seeking help

Men are far less likely than women to seek treatment for issues such as depression, substance abuse, and stressful life events. According to Mental Health America, this is due to:social normsa reluctance to talkdownplaying their symptoms

A National Health Interview Survey reports that just 1 in 3 men took medication for daily feelings of depression or anxiety, while just 1 in 4 spoke to a mental health professional.

For more research-backed information and resources for mens health, please visit our dedicated hub.Was this helpful? Warning signs

The signs and symptoms of a mental health condition will depend on the type, but there are some symptoms that people can look out for. These include:aggressiveness, anger, and irritabilitychanges in mood or energy levelschanges in appetite or sleeping habitsdifficulty focusingfeeling restless or on edgea high consumption of alcoholinappropriate use of drugsparticipating in risky activitiesfeeling sad, hopeless, numb, or emotionally flathaving aches, pains, or other physical symptoms without a clear causeobsessive or compulsive thoughts or behaviorsthinking or acting in a way that causes concern to others or has a negative impact on work, social, or family lifethinking about or attempting suicide

If a person notices these symptoms in themselves or if a loved one spots them, it is a good idea to seek medical help.

Treating mental health issues in the early stages can often prevent the symptoms from becoming more severe and lower the risk of complications. Who is at risk?

Several factors increase the risk of mental health conditions and suicide among men. The following groups may be more at risk than others:Older, white men: White men aged 85 years and older are most at risk of suicide. More men in this demographic die by suicide every year than in any other group by age, sex, or race.Men who have experienced trauma: Traumatic events, such as engaging in combat or being the victim of an assault, increase the risk of experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).Men experiencing employment issues: Working in poor conditions or having a high workload can increase the risk of mental health issues. Unemployment and retirement also increase the risk of depression and suicide.Men who have had a marital breakdown: Depression is more common, and more severe, among men who are divorced. One study suggests that being single is a significant suicide trigger among men.Men with legal or financial concerns: Having legal or financial worries can trigger the development of mental health problems and increase the risk of suicide.Men who misuse alcohol or drugs: Men are more likely to engage in illicit drug use and alcohol use, which can trigger or exacerbate mental health conditions.Men with a family history of mental health issues: Many psychiatric conditions including bipolar disorder, depression, and schizophrenia run in families, suggesting a genetic component.Men dealing with other life challenges: Other risk factors for mental health problems and suicide include physical illness or discomfort, conflict with family or friends, and the illness or death of a family member.Common mental health conditions in men

Some of the most prevalent mental health conditions among men are:Depression

Depression is characterized by a persistent low mood that interferes with everyday functioning. Worldwide, it is one of the most common mental health conditions.

Depression is almost twice as common in women as men. However, men are far less likely than women to seek treatment for it.

Learn about some of the hidden symptoms of depression here.

Learn about the typical symptoms of depression in men here.Anxiety disorders

Anxiety disorders are characterized by intense and uncontrollable feelings of fear and worry.

The most common type, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD), often co-occurs with depression. Although women are twice as likely to experience GAD, men are less likely to seek treatment for it.

Other types of anxiety disorders, such as social anxiety disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), are equally common among men and women.

Social anxiety disorder causes intense anxiety and fear in social situations, while OCD causes the continuous repetition of specific thoughts (obsessions) or a compulsive need to perform specific routines repeatedly (compulsions).Schizophrenia

Schizophrenia is a severe mental health condition wherein people do not interpret reality as it is. They experience hallucinations, delusions, and other forms of disordered thinking.

Schizophrenia can have a significant impact on quality of life and relationships. Of those who receive a schizophrenia diagnosis by the age of 30 years, 90% are men.PTSD

PTSD is a condition characterized by symptoms of reliving a traumatic experience, avoidance, and hyperarousal.

Research indicates that around 60% of men experience at least one traumatic event in their lifetime, while 50% of women do. Types of trauma differ, with men being more likely to experience:accidentsassaultscombatnatural disasterswitnessing a death or injury

Women are more likely to experience sexual assault or child sexual abuse.

Although men have a higher risk of traumatic events, women are more likely to develop PTSD.Substance abuse

Across most age groups, men have higher rates of use or dependence on illegal drugs and alcohol than women. They are also more likely to require an emergency department visit and die from overdose.

According to the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, 68,000 men die annually from alcohol-related causes, compared with 27,000 women.

Learn more about addiction here. Treatment

Although many men are reluctant to seek and continue treatment for mental health issues, it is a vital step in recovery. With effective treatment, people can learn to manage their symptoms and begin to feel better.

Some treatment options include:Psychotherapy

Therapy can help people work through issues that have triggered mental health conditions. It can also help individuals manage their symptoms, change their negative thoughts and unhelpful behaviors, and learn new coping skills.

There are many different styles of therapy. In order for it to be effective, it is essential that people find the right therapist and type of therapy for them.Medication

A doctor may prescribe medication to treat various mental health conditions or symptoms associated with those illnesses

For example, they may prescribe:antidepressantsantianxiety medicationsantipsychotic drugssleep aids

Typically, doctors will recommend that people use medications in combination with psychotherapy.Lifestyle changes

Making positive lifestyle changes can make a significant contribution to mental well-being.

For example, it is important to:Eat a balanced diet.Get enough sleep.Exercise on most days.Manage stress through meditation or yoga, or in other ways.Limit or avoid the use of alcohol and drugs.

Learn more about some natural ways to ease conditions such as anxiety here.Peer support

Attending a support group or group counseling can be very helpful for those with a mental health condition.Prevention

There is no sure way to prevent mental health conditions. However, the following steps may reduce the risk of developing one:Communicate with family and friends, especially during stressful periods.Seek treatment promptly if any symptoms of poor mental health develop.Continue with maintenance treatment to prevent relapses of depression or other mental health conditions.Learn to manage stress through meditation, mindfulness, creative outlets, or other methods.Practice positive lifestyle choices, such as eating well, sleeping enough, and exercising.See a therapist for issues such as low self-esteem or childhood trauma, which could trigger mental health problems later in life.How to help

There are several things a person can do to help a loved one with mental health issues. For example:Look for changes in the persons behavior and mood. These may indicate the development of a mental health issue.Talk to the person and ask them how they are feeling. This is especially important if they have just experienced an upsetting event, such as divorce, bereavement, or retirement.Encourage them to talk to their doctor or a mental health professional.Offer to look up treatment providers, make an appointment for them, or attend the treatment with them.Check in with them regularly to see how they are.If someone is at risk of suicide, do not leave them alone. Call 911 and wait with them until help arrives.

Having the support of loved ones can have a significant impact on a persons recovery. Some research even suggests that some people who have suicidal thoughts but do not act on them choose not to do so because of the support of their friends and family.Helpful organizations

Organizations that may be helpful for men with mental health conditions include:the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which is available at 800-950-NAMI (800-950-6264) or by free text for those in crisis (text NAMI to 741-741)the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, which is available 24/7 at 800-273-TALK (800-273-8255)the Face It Foundation, which provides support groups, peer support, and other resources for men with depressionHeadsUpGuys, which is an organization that provides strategies to manage or prevent depression in menthe Movember Foundation, which is a charity that focuses on issues that affect mens physical and mental health Suicide preventionIf you know someone at immediate risk of self-harm, suicide, or hurting another person:Ask the tough question: Are you considering suicide?Listen to the person without judgment.Call 911 or the local emergency number, or text TALK to 741741 to communicate with a trained crisis counselor.Stay with the person until professional help arrives.Try to remove any weapons, medications, or other potentially harmful objects.

If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, a prevention hotline can help. The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is available 24 hours a day at 988. During a crisis, people who are hard of hearing can use their preferred relay service or dial 711 then 988.

Click here for more links and local resources.Was this helpful? Summary

Mens mental health issues differ from womens in many ways, yet they are just as important. One concerning aspect is that men are more reluctant to seek treatment for issues they face. The risk of suicide is also much higher among men.

However, seeking and continuing treatment can have a significant positive impact on the lives of men who experience mental health difficulties. Seeking support from health professionals and loved ones can ease the symptoms, improve quality of life, and reduce the risk of suicide.

Many organizations offer support to those experiencing mental health challenges, and many focus solely on providing information and help to men.

Technology

Tech founders call on Sequoia Capital to denounce VC Shaun Maguire’s Mamdani comments

Published

2 hours ago

July 7, 2025

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Tech founders call on Sequoia Capital to denounce VC Shaun Maguire's Mamdani comments

Almost 600 people have signed an open letter to leaders at venture firm Sequoia Capital after one of its partners, Shaun Maguire, posted what the group described as a “deliberate, inflammatory attack” against the Muslim Democratic mayoral candidate in New York City.

Maguire, a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump, posted on X over the weekend that Zohran Mamdani, who won the Democratic primary last month, “comes from a culture that lies about everything” and is out to advance “his Islamist agenda.”

The post had 5.3 million views as of Monday afternoon. Maguire, whose investments include Elon Musk’s SpaceX and X as well as artificial intelligence startup Safe Superintelligence, also published a video on X explaining the remark.

Those signing the letter are asking Sequoia to condemn Maguire’s comments and apologize to Mamdani and Muslim founders. They also want the firm to authorize an independent investigation of Maguire’s behavior in the past two years and post “a zero-tolerance policy on hate speech and religious bigotry.”

They are asking the firm for a public response by July 14, or “we will proceed with broader public disclosure, media outreach and mobilizing our networks to ensure accountability,” the letter says.

Sequoia declined to comment. Maguire didn’t respond to a request for comment, but wrote in a post about the letter on Wednesday that, “You can try everything you want to silence me, but it will just embolden me.”

Among the signees are Mudassir Sheikha, CEO of ride-hailing service Careem, and Amr Awadallah, CEO of AI startup Vectara. Also on the list is Abubakar Abid, who works in machine learning Hugging Face, which is backed by Sequoia, and Ahmed Sabbah, CEO of Telda, a financial technology startup that Sequoia first invested in four years ago.

At least three founders of startups that have gone through startup accelerator program Y Combinator added their names to the letter.

Sequoia as a firm is no stranger to politics. Doug Leone, who led the firm until 2022 and remains a partner, is a longtime Republican donor, who supported Trump in the 2024 election. Following Trump’s victory in November, Leone posted on X, “To all Trump voters: you no longer have to hide in the shadows…..you’re the majority!!”

By contrast, Leone’s predecessor, Mike Moritz, is a Democratic megadonor, who criticized Trump and, in August, slammed his colleagues in the tech industry for lining up behind the Republican nominee. In a Financial Times opinion piece, Moritz wrote Trump’s tech supporters were “making a big mistake.”

“I doubt whether any of them would want him as part of an investment syndicate that they organised,” wrote Moritz, who stepped down from Sequoia in 2023, over a decade after giving up a management role at the firm. “Why then do they dismiss his recent criminal conviction as nothing more than a politically inspired witch-hunt over a simple book-keeping error?”

Neither Leone nor Moritz returned messages seeking comment.

Roelof Botha, Sequoia’s current lead partner, has taken a more neutral stance. Botha said at an event last July that Sequoia as a partnership doesn’t “take a political point of view,” adding that he’s “not a registered member of either party.” Boelof said he’s “proud of the fact that we’ve enabled many of our partners to express their respected individual views along the way, and given them that freedom.”

Maguire has long been open with his political views. He said on X last year that he had “just donated $300k to President Trump.”

Mamdani, a self-described democratic socialist, has gained the ire of many people in tech and in the business community more broadly since defeating former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo in the June primary.

— CNBC’s Ari Levy contributed to this report.

WATCH: SpaceX valuation is maybe even conservative, says Sequoia’s Shaun Maguire

Technology

Samsung expects second-quarter profits to more than halve as it struggles to capture AI demand

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2 hours ago

July 7, 2025

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Samsung expects second-quarter profits to more than halve as it struggles to capture AI demand

Samsung signage during the Nvidia GPU Technology Conference (GTC) in San Jose, California, US, on Thursday, March 20, 2025.

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

South Korea’s Samsung Electronics on Tuesday forecast a 56% fall in profits for the second as the company struggles to capture demand from artificial intelligence chip leader Nvidia.

The memory chip and smartphone maker said in its guidance that operating profit for the quarter ending June was projected to be around 4.6 trillion won, down from 10.44 trillion Korean won year over year.

The figure is a deeper plunge compared to smart estimates from LSEG, which are weighted toward forecasts from analysts who are more consistently accurate.

According to the smart estimates, Samsung was expected to post an operating profit of 6.26 trillion won ($4.57 billion) for the quarter. Meanwhile, Samsung projected its revenue to hit 74 trillion won, falling short of LSEG smart estimates of 75.55 trillion won.

Samsung is a leading player in the global smartphone market and is also one of the world’s largest makers of memory chips, which are utilized in devices such as laptops and servers.

However, the company has been falling behind competitors like SK Hynix and Micron in high-bandwidth memory chips — an advanced type of memory that is being deployed in AI chips.

“The disappointing earnings are due to ongoing operating losses in the foundry business, while the upside in high-margin HBM business remains muted this quarter,” MS Hwang, Research Director at Counterpoint Research, said about the earnings guidance.

SK Hynix, the leader in HBM, has secured a position as Nvidia’s key supplier. While Samsung has reportedly been working to get the latest version of its HBM chips certified by Nvidia, a report from a local outlet suggests these plans have been pushed back to at least September.

The company did not respond to a request for comment on the status of its deals with Nvidia.

Ray Wang, Research Director of Semiconductors, Supply Chain and Emerging Technology at Futurum Group told CNBC that it is clear that Samsung has yet to pass Nvidia’s qualification for its most advanced HBM.

“Given that Nvidia accounts for roughly 70% of global HBM demand, the delay meaningfully caps near-term upside,” Wang said. He noted that while Samsung has secured some HBM supply for AI processors from AMD, this win is unlikely to contribute to second-quarter results due to the timing of production ramps.

Meanwhile, Samsung’s chip foundry business continues to face weak orders and serious competition from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Wang added.

Reuters reported in September that Samsung had instructed its subsidiaries worldwide to cut 30% of staff in some divisions, citing sources familiar with the matter.

UK

Drones are sending ‘overwhelming amounts’ of drugs into prisons – and could help inmates escape, report warns

Published

3 hours ago

July 7, 2025

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Drones are sending 'overwhelming amounts' of drugs into prisons - and could help inmates escape, report warns

Sophisticated drones sending “overwhelming amounts” of drugs and weapons into prisons represent a threat to national security, according to an annual inspection report by the prisons watchdog.

HMP chief inspector of prisons Charlie Taylor has warned criminal gangs are targeting jails and making huge profits selling contraband to a “vulnerable and bored” prison population.

The watchdog boss reiterated his concerns about drones making regular deliveries to two Category A jails, HMP Long Lartin and HMP Manchester, which hold “the most dangerous men in the country”, including terrorists.

Mr Taylor said “the police and prison service have in effect ceded the airspace” above these two high-security prisons, which he said was compromising the “safety of staff, prisoners, and ultimately that of the public”.

“The possibility now whereby we’re seeing packages of up to 10kg brought in by serious organised crime means that in some prisons there is now a menu of drugs available,” he said. “Anything from steroids to cannabis, to things like spice and cocaine.”

“Drone technology is moving fast… there is a level of risk that’s posed by drones that I think is different from what we’ve seen in the past,” warned the chief inspector – who also said there’s a “theoretical risk” that a prisoner could escape by being carried out of a jail by a drone.

He urged the prison service to “get a grip” of the issue, stating: “We’d like to see the government, security services, coming together, using technology, using intelligence, so that this risk doesn’t materialise.”

The report makes clear that physical security – such as netting, windows and CCTV – is “inadequate” in some jails, including Manchester, with “inexperienced staff” being “manipulated”.

Mr Taylor said there are “basic” measures which could help prevent the use of drones, such as mowing the lawn, “so we don’t get packages disguised as things like astro turf”.

Responding to the report, the Prison Advice and Care Trust (PACT) said: “The ready access to drugs is deeply worrying and is undermining efforts to create places of rehabilitation.”

Mr Taylor’s report found that overcrowding continues to be what he described as a “major issue”, with increasing levels of violence against staff and between prisoners, combined with a lack of purposeful activity.

Some 20% of adult men responding to prisoner surveys said they felt unsafe at the time of the inspection, increasing to 30% in the high security estate.

Andrea Coomber, chief executive of the Howard League for Penal Reform, said: “This report is a checklist for all the reasons the government must prioritise reducing prison numbers, urgently.

“Sentencing reform is essential, and sensible steps to reduce the prison population would save lives.”

The report comes after the government pledged to accept most of the recommendations proposed in the independent review of sentencing policy, with the aim of freeing up around 9,500 spaces.

Those measures won’t come into effect until spring 2026.

Prisons Minister Lord Timpson said Mr Taylor’s findings show “the scale of the crisis” the government “inherited”, with “prisons dangerously full, rife with drugs and violence”.

He said: “After just 500 prison places added in 14 years, we’re building 14,000 extra – with 2,400 already delivered – and reforming sentencing to ensure we never run out of space again.

“We’re also investing £40m to bolster security, alongside stepping up cooperation with police to combat drones and stop the contraband which fuels violence behind bars.”