Men's Mental Health Month

Men's Mental Health Month

​Written by Anna Perkowski, MSW, LCSW

June is Men’s Health Month and as such, I thought this would be a great opportunity to bring continued awareness to the topic. Health includes a multitude of factors in one’s life, including but not limited to: physical health, social health, mental health, spiritual health, and financial health. I have noticed both throughout my personal and professional life that men tend to neglect their health in more than one of these categories more often than women, sometimes with dire consequences, and that is why I am intentional about providing therapy to our male population in the areas of treating and working with depression, anxiety, trauma and grief. 

Here is one way I like to help my male clients visually assess their health journey to-date and work together to find ways to experience growth and encouragement along the way. 

Exercise: If these components of health (physical, social, spiritual, financial, and mental health) were represented as buckets, how full would each of these be? Are these areas of health as full as initially believed, or are they less full than originally believed to be?

The first step to any change is having the awareness that well, something needs to change. 

The next step is determining the motivation behind the change. I tell my clients often that I’m less interested in what they do, and more curious in why they do what they do. I believe that the “why” behind any behavior is important to understand in order to create lasting, positive change. 

Lastly, I believe it’s necessary to have the necessary support in place to create a positive change in life. Sometimes, family systems and friend groups have a built-in “normal” that might make it challenging to grow and change. And while that may be true, it’s also true that we’re not meant to do life alone, especially not the harder parts of life. 

So, if this resonated with the season of life you’re currently in, and you’re interested in making your health a priority this month that’s dedicated to Men’s Health, feel free to reach out! The relationship you have with yourself is the most important one you have.

If you are interested in counseling, call OakHeart at 630-570-0050 or 779-201-6440 or email us at [email protected]. We have counselors, psychologists, and social workers available to help you at one of our locations in North Aurora, IL, Sycamore, IL, and/or via Telehealth Online Therapy Services serving Kane County, DeKalb County, Dupage County, and beyond.

For more reading on Men's Mental Health, here is another Blog written by Anna Perkowski called "Men's Mental Health Week: It's OK to not be OK."