The Need to Change The Cycle of Toxic Masculinity

Many young men and women of our generation suffer from mental health issues that range from anxiety and depression to struggles with social acceptance. Although mental health problems are a universal issue among our nation's youth, with young men it is somewhat more complicated.

Many men have trouble seeking professional help. Oftentimes it's so difficult for young men to talk about their mental health issues when they can't even admit to themselves they are depressed.

According to American Psychological Association, over six million young men in the United States suffer from some form of depression. Here in the United States, our culture promotes an environment of toxic masculinity. Toxic masculinity discourages the open display of emotions other than competitiveness, aggression, and anger in young men while at the same time promoting behaviors that are seen as an act of male dominance. The roots of this toxic masculinity begin when boys are young as they are unknowingly conditioned to believe in their own dominance when those who show emotion are singled out as weak.

I'm sure everyone is very familiar with some of the most well-known mantras of toxic masculinity such as: “Be a man and get over it”, “Man up”, and “Don't be such a baby”. Sayings such as these exist in almost every corner of American culture from television and movies to headlines in papers. It’s possible even you have used one of these phrases yourself at some point. Picture yourself in the position of a boy in his youth already struggling with the physical and emotional changes of growing up. Imagine you fell off your bike or experienced your first heartbreak and instead of being asked what's wrong and if you are alright, you are told to “Be a man!”.

When emotions are brushed to the side and outdated gender roles are conditioned into our young boys, they learn to negatively process their emotions and suppress them. Over time this can lead to severe depression. When these conditioned youth grow up to have children of their own, they pass on the behaviors almost unknowingly by being a role model for their acquired toxic masculinity. This continues to fuel the cycle of outdated gender roles that plague our nation's youth.

We need to change how we look at depression in men. To help our young men we need to erase the outdated gender norms that lead men to not address their emotions. As a society we must unanimously accept that expressing emotion isn't defined by gender, but a trait shared among all humanity. We can change the cycle of toxic masculinity in our country by focusing more attention on our youth and modeling behaviors that promote the sharing of feelings and emotion openly and without judgement. Once we redefine the outdated gender roles that shape our nation, we can truly effect change that will touch not only mental health, but almost every facet of American life.