Teenage boys more than twice as likely to die young (UK)

Teenage boys and young men age 15-24 in England & Wales are two and a half times as likely to die young than women and girls of the same age according to the Joseph Rowntree Foundations Poverty Site. More than fifty 15-24 year olds die young in England & Wales every week and the majority (71.5%) are boys and men – according to the statistics on premature male death. The biggest cause of death is cancer and disease which claims 3 young lives in England & Wales every day . But while teenage boys and young men are one and a half times more likely to die of disease and cancer than women and girls of the same age, it still isn’t the biggest male killer. Accidents are the biggest young male killer in England & Wales with two young men dying an accidental death every single day – four times higher than the rate of accidental deaths for young women. Men and boys also account for 81% of suicides with one young man age 16-24 committing suicide every single day in England & Wales.

The Men Next Door

Down the road from where I work a man committed suicide recently. This is not a particularly unusual event, given the unfortunately high rates of suicide in this country, except in the same location a couple of months earlier another man gave up on his life in a most gruesome manner. Both of these men, an Iraqi and a Fijian, decided that their bleak chances of a decent, let alone a prosperous, life in Australia with the basic tenets of safety and security were completely diminished. Villawood Detention Centre, where these losses of life took place, is an ominous political site where death and life have co-existed in a fragile bind for many years under the watchful eye of private security companies running the prison-industrial complex.

Men are Dying… and 'dying' for mental health research! (Canada)

The recent news that two parents and a child had been murdered sent shock waves throughout Toronto. A tragedy at any time, this seemed particularly horrific. Only weeks before Christmas, and two young children left without either parent. Within hours, media reports advised that one parent had likely killed the other, and then killed their child, then committed suicide. Stories swirled about a possible family dispute, laying rapid foundation to speculation the father had become enraged and had 'lost it'. Forensics, however, soon made it clear that the mother did the killing. Shocked police reported that we may never know why. But others had already jumped in to fill in the missing pieces. Within 48 hours of the event, countless experts were lining up, saying the mom was a victim, even though she was a murderer. Mental health and social service professionals covered the airwaves. They described types of postpartum depression, saying that up to 70% of mothers experience depression following birth, and outlining support available to assist mothers experiencing this horrible depression. What if the genders in the tragedy had been reversed? What if the dad had killed his wife, murdered their child, and then committed suicide? What response then? What if Dad had been a victim of circumstances such as family separation, which can induce a severe state of depression in fathers — one that could cause a dad to not only contemplate suicide, but to want to harm close family members? To avoid future tragedies, would health professionals call for more mental health research and social services for fathers experiencing extreme stress?

Male victims of domestic violence need campaigns and services: report

A groundbreaking report from Edith Cowan University (ECU) has found that male victims of domestic violence can suffer from a unique form of legal/administrative abuse previously unidentified in research, as well as experiencing most of the same impacts as female victims.

The Intimate Partner Abuse of Men report, to be launched this morning in Perth, found that “Male victims of intimate partner abuse and their children suffer a range of consequences, such as psychological distress (including disorders such as depression and anxiety disorders), suicidal ideation, impaired self-concept and loss of work.”

It found that male victims are often reluctant to disclose their experience of abuse or seek help because of their sometimes justified fears that they will not be believed, that they will not be assisted or will instead be blamed for the abuse.

The study recommends that government-funded public campaigns be conducted to raise awareness of domestic violence against men; that consideration should be given to providing publicly-funded services specifically for male victims; and that workers in health and welfare fields should be provided with training to assist them to recognise and respond effectively to male victims of domestic violence.

Living Is For Everyone (LIFE)

The Commonwealth government’s Living Is For Everyone (LIFE) website is a world-class suicide and self-harm prevention resource. Dedicated to providing the best available evidence and resources to guide activities aimed at reducing the rate at which people take their lives in Australia, the LIFE website is designed for people across the community who are involved in suicide and self-harm prevention activities.