OP-ED | Men are dying by suicide – Why are so many still suffering in silence?

Health-e News OP-ED | Men are dying by suicide – Why are so many still suffering in silence? When I started working on an article about men and suicide, I wanted to include the voices of men themselves.

The SA Federation for Mental Health put out a call on our social media platforms, website and fortnightly newsletter asking men to share their thoughts and experiences.

I even posted the request on my personal Facebook page.

The call went out far and wide across South Africa.

Not a single man got in touch with me.

Nothing.

Zero.

Just silence.

For me, that silence says more than many of the facts and figures about men and mental health.

South Africa is facing a serious suicide crisis.

Around 80% of recorded suicides in the country are among men.

Of 13,774 suicides recorded in one dataset, 10,861 – or almost 79% – were men.

The problem extends far beyond South Africa.

Suicide rates among men are higher than among women in almost every country, even though women have higher rates of suicidal thoughts and behaviour.