Men's Mental Health Service

What Are Men’s Mental Health Issues?

There are few mental health issues that only affect men, although some do exist, like perinatal mental health issues related to becoming an expectant or new father.

When we say ‘men’s mental health,’ we’re referring to a constellation of issues that seem to affect men at higher rates than other folx.

These issues that affect men disproportionately include:

  1. Being victims and perpetrators of physical violence

  2. Misusing alcohol and drugs

  3. Having fewer social supports

  4. Dying by suicide

  5. Engaging in more risky and unsafe behaviours

  6. Using healthcare services less frequently, mental healthcare in particular

  7. Having less effective long-term coping strategies for managing distress

How Do We Treat Men’s Mental Health Issues?

The treatment strategies that we use for men’s mental health issues will depend on what the presenting concerns are. For example, a man presenting for therapy with depression and social anxiety will need different strategies than one presenting for anger and alcohol use issues.

In general, though, the style with which we approach therapy with men can sometimes be different than with others. For example, we’ll be more likely to:

  1. Talk about the ways in which traditional ideas of masculinity influence our mental health, both for better and for worse

  2. Take a ‘strengths-based approach’ that capitalizes on traditionally masculine approaches to solving problems, like teaching specific skills to navigate distress and relationships

  3. Use an action-oriented, directive style in therapy by focusing more on doing rather than just talking (we’ll still be doing lots of talking too!)

Read our blog post about Engaging Men in Mental Healthcare to learn more!

We continue to advocate for men’s mental health. Check out our op-eds in The Toronto Star!

Our Men’s Mental Health Team

What Services Do We Offer?

Like in our general service, we offer individual therapy for men struggling with issues like:

  • Anxiety (e.g., panic attacks, social anxiety,
    generalized anxiety and worry, phobias, health anxiety)

  • Depression and  Bipolar disorders

  • Obsessions and compulsive behaviours (OCD)

  • Substance use and behavioural addictions (e.g., problem gambling)

  • Post-traumatic stress and complex trauma 

  • Psychosis

  • Emotion dysregulation

  • Life transition and relationship challenges

We also run a specialized CBT Group for Anxiety and Depression.