Singapore as a nation has progressed in many ways over the years, but one cannot shy away from the fact that with a population predominantly made up of elderly, many conservative thoughts surrounding taboo topics like mental health and wellness continue to circulate. In conjunction with International Men's Day last week, advertising firm BBH surveyed 1,000 Singaporeans (men and women aged 16-54 and above) on their knowledge and thoughts surrounding mental health.
It's rather unsurprising to see that the results of the survey did raise alarming answers about the unspoken expectation on men to stay emotionally resilient. Some 53.2% of the male respondents stated that they wouldn't seek professional help for their mental health due to the fact that they've ' learnt to deal with it'. This is in stark contrast to the reason the female correspondents gave as to why they wouldn't seek professional help—59.5% of them felt that 'getting help is too costly'.
Parandaman T., Chartered Forensic Psychologist, Principal Paediatric Forensic Psychologist at Psych Connect, comments on the findings: “The findings suggest that gender plays a role in influencing mental illness stigma in Singapore. It also suggests to a certain extent lowered mental health literacy which could contribute to holding negative views towards those with mental illness."
"Traditionally masculinity evokes certain expressions and demonstrations of behaviours such as self-reliance and restrictions in certain behaviours such as crying. This may lead to difficulty in expressing challenging emotions as it assigns weakness and disempowerment.”
Following these findings from the survey, BBH has partnered with social organisation Calm Collective Asia and Freeflow Productions, a film production house—to launch a campaign that aims to dispel misconceptions around men's mental health, and reinforce the importance of seeking help. Called “Deal With It”, the campaign launched last week with a short film on social media.
Featuring a young man as he engages in conversation with his therapist behind the camera, the campaign film seeks to question the effectiveness of self-therapy. as the dialogue continues, we begin to realise the reality of his situation – that it was all just his self-talk. It ends with him still visibly distraught but forcing himself to hold it together “like a man”. This ending forces its viewer to confront the truth that self-therapy might indeed be futile.
There is no shame in seeking professional help when you need it the most, regardless of gender. Take that step today and #DealWithIt.
Watch the campaign film for "Deal With It" here.
