International Fathers’ Mental Health Day, June 18^th – ‘It’s time we looked out for dad’

June 18th is International Fathers’ Mental Health Day, raising awareness globally about the need to get better support for dads.  Around 10% of fathers can experience mental health problems in the first year following the birth of their child – often, the perception can be that postnatal depression is hormonal, so could not possibly affect fathers. But environmental and social factors, such as social support networks, poverty or relationship changes are a much better predictor of mental health problems, and these apply just as much to dads.

According to Dr Andrew Mayers (a mental health campaigner and educator at Bournemouth University  “Not only that, but men also find it much harder to seek support for emotional problems, often because of how they worry they will be received – it’s not thought ‘manly’ to express emotion.  This can have catastrophic results – the biggest killer of men under 45 is suicide, and the main factor in suicide is poor mental health.  It’s vital that men are encouraged to seek help with their mental health.”

Throughout International Fathers’ Mental Health Day, there will be a series of blogs, stories, press releases and resources shared by charities, support groups, health professionals, and families who have experienced the impact of poor mental health in fathers.

Join in and have your say at a Facebook Live session at 3pm, hosted by Dr Mayers from Bournemouth University via the International Fathers’ Mental Health Day Facebook page, and a live Twitter chat at 19.00 (via #DadsMHDay).