June: Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month

Internationally, the month of June has been designated as Men’s Mental Health Awareness Month. This commemoration is celebrated mainly in countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, with the aim of breaking the stigma, making visible the emotional difficulties faced by men, and encouraging them to seek help.

In these contexts, campaigns, talks, and activities are carried out that invite men to speak openly about their emotions without feeling less masculine for doing so.

However, in Cuba, although there is no official proclamation of this month by health institutions, the reality experienced by Cuban men makes this conversation equally urgent and necessary. On the Island, many men are taught from childhood that being strong means not complaining, not showing vulnerability, and solving any problem alone.

This cultural pressure, inherited from a deeply rooted traditional masculinity, pushes them into emotional isolation that over time becomes a deep well of silence.

Official figures from the Ministry of Public Health (Minsap) are alarming: around 70 percent of suicides in Cuba occur in men. In 2023, for example, 1,671 suicides were reported in the country, of which 1,390 were men. These are not cold statistics; they represent fathers, sons, brothers, and friends who carried their suffering in silence because seeking help seemed like a sign of weakness.

The Cuban health system has a care network that includes 17 psychiatric hospitals, 101 community mental health centers, and a National Program for the Prevention of Suicidal Behavior in place since 1989. However, the effectiveness of these resources often clashes with social stigma and with the limitations inherent in the current economic context. It is useless to have a health center if the suffering man refuses to cross its doors for fear of what others will say.

That is why, this June, even if there are no official posters or massive campaigns, every person can make a difference. If you notice that a friend, neighbor, or family member is more irritable, is isolating themselves, has neglected their appearance, or has increased their alcohol consumption, do not ignore them. Ask them directly how they feel, listen without judging, and accompany them.

A simple message, a phone call, or spending time together can be the first step to breaking the wall of silence. In Cuba, talking about men’s mental health is not an imported luxury: it is a public health necessity. Strength does not lie in suffering alone, but in having the courage to ask for help.

If that man does not know who to turn to, remind him that he can always go to his family doctor’s office, a Community Mental Health Center, or the nearest hospital’s psychiatry department. This June, even if it is not written on any official calendar, let us make this message our own. Ask a man in your life: «How are you really doing?