Thought provoking men’s mental health film released

A new online film to engage the public in more positive discussions around men’s mental health has been released during Mental Health Awareness Week.

The 15-minute film, featured above, has been curated by Ilyas Sagar-Ouriaghli, a NIHR Maudsley Biomedical Research PhD Student.

The film includes interviews with five different men of all ages discussing their mental health. The interviews cover a range of topics including: race, family, stereotypes, tips to manage their health, and the benefits of speaking to others.

Ilyas Sagar-Ouriaghli, says,

“My research focuses on how to better engage male students and men with mental health support. Often men are more reluctant to seek help for mental health difficulties helping to part explain why men are at greater risk of substance misuse and suicide.  

Our film provides insight into how men manage their daily stressors and highlights their views of seeking support. I’m so grateful for our contributors for their openness and honesty. We would love viewers to engage in discussion around their own mental health using the #BRCintheCommunity on social media.”

Dr June Brown, Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, was a co-applicant on the project. She said “So often we hear about how men are very reluctant to seek help because they may appear weak if they seek help. I think the film is superb in capturing the honest experiences of men who have experienced mental health problems directly or indirectly, and are comfortable dealing with it.”

The film was due to part of our BRC in the Community week to celebrate the amazing collaborations between the NIHR Maudsley BRC and our community and engage more people with the importance of mental health research. This was postponed due to the Coronavirus pandemic.

Dr Sally Marlow, Public Engagement Fellow at King's College London, Curator of BRC in the Community, says, “We were delighted to support this film as part of our BRC in the Community initiative, and to launch it online today.  We look forward to the discussions it provokes, both online, and hopefully later in the year in real life, through a series of screenings.”


Tags: Patient and Carer Involvement and Engagement -

By NIHR Maudsley BRC at 18 May 2020, 09:34 AM


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