The 2024 men’s mental health report

Despite efforts over the past decade to destigmatise mental health and encourage men to seek help, statistics show that a large number of men are still struggling.

Research from Mind found that two in five men regularly feel worried or low, and are more likely than women to drink alone or take drugs to relax, when they feel that way.¹

There’s still a stigma surrounding mental health, and many men feeling they can’t reach out if they need support; we wanted to find out just how many are suffering in silence.

As health insurance experts we ran a survey of men across the USA and Australia, and asked them various questions, from the symptoms of poor mental health they’d experienced, to the causes of it, and more.

Half of American men have suffered with their mental health

According to our survey results, one in two men in the US have suffered from symptoms of poor mental health, but just 31% of them received a medical diagnosis. And, while 68% find it easy to confide in others about depressive thoughts and low moods, worryingly, two in 10 say they can’t talk about it, which means they’re bottling up their feelings, and making the situation worse.

When it comes to the stigma attached to poor mental health, it’s clear there’s more work that needs to be done, with 40% of American men saying they wouldn’t talk about it, due to feeling embarrassed, and 38% because of the stigma involved.

However, for many men, the reasons for not talking about it are:

Sadly, 20% said they’d had negative past experiences when opening up, and 30% believe they can deal with their problems by themselves.

When we asked our survey respondents the main symptoms they’d experienced, anxiety was the most common, at 63%. However, almost 50% had low moods and sleep issues; with social withdrawal, feelings of worthlessness, and emotional instability all common, too.

One in four American men have experienced suicidal thoughts

Tragically, one in four men in the USA have had suicidal thoughts; with 24% experiencing bizarre or strange thoughts, and 12% having hallucinations. However, somewhat reassuring is that 86% of men felt they could reach out to someone if they were experiencing suicidal thoughts, with 46% seeking professional advice, 40% a family member, and 35% a friend. However, that still means 14% of men wouldn’t talk about it, which could have fatal consequences.

When asked about the factors that played into poor mental health, financial issues was the overwhelming leading cause, with 46% of US men citing it as the reason they felt low. Health was the second most common answer (36%), followed by work pressures (31%), and abuse, trauma, or neglect, and social isolation or loneliness (23%) – something which isn’t helped if you feel you can’t speak about it – or don’t have anyone to talk to.

When breaking our survey results down by age, we found that those between 54-64 find it the hardest to talk about mental health (33%), whereas those aged 18-24 found it the easiest (80%); highlighting that we still have a way to go to break down the stigma of mental health, especially amongst the older population.

25-34-year-old men are the most likely to suffer from mental health symptoms, at 63% – although 15% hadn’t reached out for help – while three quarters of those aged 65+ said they’d never had symptoms of poor mental health.

Sadly, for those aged 65+ who have experienced poor mental health, the top triggers were loneliness and social isolation, and relationship breakdowns, both at 29%.

A third of Australian men find it difficult to talk about mental health

Similarly to the USA, 51% of Australian men we surveyed admitted that they’d suffered – or were suffering from – poor mental health symptoms, yet a third found it difficult to talk to someone about it.

The main reasons for not speaking about it are:

Low mood is the most common symptom of poor mental health experienced by Australian men, at 68%, although anxiety (64%) and sleep issues (56%) are extremely common too. One in two men have withdrawn socially, and alarmingly, one in three Australian men have experienced suicidal thoughts.

Even fewer Australians felt they could reach out to someone if they were feeling this way, with 31% saying they couldn’t. Of those that felt they could speak to someone, most would seek professional advice at 44%, followed by a family member (28%), or friend (18%),

The biggest factors triggering poor mental health in men across Australia is financial reasons, with 45% feeling that way, followed by health, and work pressure, at 37% and 31% respectively. However, more than one in four men have felt down due to loneliness or social isolation, and one in five because of abuse, trauma, or neglect.

Breaking it down from an age perspective, like their US counterparts, 65+-year-olds are least likely to suffer from mental health, with seven in 10 saying they’ve never experienced symptoms; whereas it’s most common with 35-44-year-olds, with a quarter not seeking medical advice.

Millennial men find it the easiest to talk about their mental health, with 63% doing so, compared to just 33% of 55-64-year-old men. For those aged 18-25, anxiety is the most common symptom (75%), whereas it’s low mood for everyone else.

Methodology

We commissioned 3Gem to run two surveys: one with 250 Australian males, and one with 750 American males.

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