It’s estimated that 1 in 8 men in England will experience a mental health condition at some point in their lives, including anxiety, depression, panic disorder, and PTSD. June marks International Men’s Health Awareness Week, but male mental health is a topic we need to talk about all year round — particularly given the often reluctance of men to speak up about their concerns.
Living with a long-term mental health condition can be difficult, particularly if you have tried multiple strategies for managing your symptoms without relief. For these patients, medical cannabis may be an appropriate option. MyAccess Clinics provides supportive care for patients diagnosed with a broad range of psychological conditions, including medical cannabis PTSD treatment, medical cannabis for anxiety and medical cannabis for depression.
Male mental health in the United Kingdom
Mental health is a complex topic. There is rarely one reason why someone develops symptoms associated with anxiety, depression, or PTSD. Rather, several conflating factors may be the cause.
Statistics can help us better understand the mental health of males in the United Kingdom and the types of psychological conditions that typically affect men of all ages.
When studying these statistics, one important factor to note is that men are generally less likely to talk about their mental health than women. Mind UK explains that a number of factors contribute to this phenomenon, including society’s expectations and traditional gender roles. These statistics may not paint the full story. They also touch upon broader factors that tend to have a significant impact on mental health, including alcohol dependence, drug misuse, and homelessness.
- Approximately 3 in 4 suicides recorded in the United Kingdom are male.
- Men tend to report lower satisfaction, worth, and happiness ratings than women.
- Men are less likely to seek psychological help: only 36 percent of referrals to IPAT (Increasing Access to Psychological Therapies) are from men.
- 1 in 12 men in the UK show signs of alcohol dependence (compared to 1 in 30 women).
- Close to half of men would be embarrassed to take time off work due to a mental health condition.
Diagnosing and managing mental health
The NHS offers a broad range of services for people displaying symptoms of mental health conditions, as well as patients who have already been diagnosed and are seeking strategies to help manage their condition.
There are many ways to manage a mental health condition, including making lifestyle changes. Your doctor may recommend talk therapy, which may involve guided self-help, cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT), or counselling. Talk therapies may be relevant for those diagnosed with anxiety, depression, panic, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Alternatively, your GP may suggest medication as a tool to manage symptoms. Some patients may even find a combination of various strategies to be the most effective option.
Mental health and medical cannabis
Since 2018, medical cannabis has been prescribed as an unlicensed medicine in the UK to help patients manage symptoms associated with a broad range of physical and psychological conditions. Given the frequency of mental health conditions within the male population of the United Kingdom, many individuals may wonder whether medical cannabis is an appropriate strategy for them.
Under current guidelines, medical cannabis may be prescribed in the United Kingdom as a ‘Special’ under Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) guidance. The medication can only be prescribed by doctors on the General Medical Council Specialist Register.
Not all patients will be eligible for a medical cannabis prescription. Before making an appointment with MyAccess Clinics, you will need to answer a few simple questions to determine your eligibility. Having booked your appointment, your specialist will delve deeper into your symptoms and medical history to confirm whether medical cannabis is an appropriate product for your condition.
Events such as International Men’s Health Awareness Week remind us of the importance of speaking openly about mental health issues and being aware of the strategies that are available to help all individuals achieve optimal health and wellbeing.
