Men’s Health Week 2021

The 14 June 2021 marks the start of this years Men’s Health Week and the theme this year is Better Mental Health in a Covid World.  It has been such a challenging year for many people, the focus is on looking into how we move forward into a brighter future.

Men’s Health Week is an International event created by the Men’s Health Network in 1994.  The aim is to increase awareness of male health issues and develop policies and services that meet the needs of boys, men and their families.  It is not just for men – it is important that we all learn about what we can do to support our friends, family and colleagues.  The UK government have already committed to a Women’s Health Strategy and Men’s Health Forum have created a petition to ensure that a Men’s Health Strategy will quickly follow.

Find the petition 

To support this campaign and get involved there are several things we can do!

 

The Can Do Challenge:

Each week day starting on Monday 14 June pick a branch of wellbeing to try.  These may be things you are already familiar with or it could be something new!  Share your ideas, photographs and reflections with your friends and family and maybe on social media, to inspire others to follow in your footsteps.  Use the hashtags below to link your ideas to the campaign.

 

Monday – Connect
#connectmonday

Connection with others is super important for our mental health and positive interactions with our colleagues, friends, family and communities can help us to feel valued and improve our wellbeing.

Try this: smile at someone as you pass them, make an effort to have a brief chat with a shop assistant, call a colleague to see how they are.

 

Tuesday – (Be) Active
#activetuesday

Exercise and physical activity benefit our physical and mental health in so many ways – decreasing levels of depression, improving mood, lowering levels of anxiety, lowering blood pressure…the list goes on!

Try this: spend half an hour in the garden pulling up weeds or planting some seeds, play chase with your children/grandchildren, put on your favourite tunes and dance around your kitchen.

 

Wednesday – Notice
#noticewednesday

You will no doubt have heard of Mindfulness, the branch of wellbeing that involves taking time to notice our feelings, thoughts, surroundings in order for us to be present in the moment.  Watch this fantastic video for a more in depth explanation of the benefits of mindfulness The Power of Mindfulness: What You Practice Grows Stronger | Shauna Shapiro | TEDxWashingtonSquare - YouTube 

Try this: take a minute to really smell, feel and taste the first few mouthfuls of a meal, go for a familiar walk and try to notice things that you haven’t noticed before, sit quietly and concentrate on your body – how it feels, pay full attention to your breathing, focus on any areas where you may feel sensations.

 

Thursday – Discover
#discoverthursday

Discovering and doing new things is good for us because it creates a level of challenge – it could be a new activity or a new focus at work.  It gives us a sense of purpose and can also link closely with other branches of wellbeing such as connection and mindfulness.  Learning new things can increase our sense of achievement and confidence, while reducing levels of stress and depression.

Try this: take part in an activity you haven’t done before – cook tea for your family, download the Couch to 5K app (exercise too – 2 birds with one stone!), discover a new route to walk.

 

Friday – Offer
#offerfriday

Helping others enhances our wellbeing and also the wellbeing of those around us by helping us connect and think positively about ourselves.  Being kind has been found to improve mood, confidence, happiness, life satisfaction, optimism and reduce stress (Kindness Matters guide, Mental Health Foundation, accessed June 2021 Kindness Matters guide | Mental Health Foundation).

Try this: offer to help someone without expecting or wanting anything in return, volunteer in your local community, pay for someone’s coffee.

Why not challenge yourself to find something that incorporates all these different branches of wellbeing?  Or at the end of the week, pick your favourite and make it a regular thing!

 

Wear Blue Day

Why not show support for the men in your life on Friday 18 June by wearing something blue?  Help to raise awareness about Men’s Health Week using hashtag #ShowUsYourBlue and let the men in your lives know you care about their health and wellbeing.

To learn more about Men’s Health Week and why it is so important take a look at the following websites:
Men, mental health and Covid-19 | Men's Health Forum (menshealthforum.org.uk) 
Key data: mental health | Men's Health Forum (menshealthforum.org.uk)