THE rising trend of men taking their lives has shocked many South African communities.
This is a country where men have represented strength and women vulnerability but mental health experts call this a trend of forced patriarchy.
The reports of boys and men taking committing suicide has steadily increased and sent shock waves through a country where for decades, women have been viewed as the fragile sex and prone to buckle under extreme hardship.
Not only had men started tipping the scales, psychiatrists said, but they were challenging the stereotype that they were too strong to give in to the problems and challenges life threw their way.
South Africa was said to rank 10th on the list of countries with the most suicides, with international figures reporting in 2022 that 13 774 suicides were reported, 10 861 of them men.
“This requires that we stand back and quickly access what the problem is, and accept that trauma and mental health affects everyone and anyone – equally and at any time,” Pretoria psychologist Steve Langa said.
The South African Society of Psychiatrists said men were the leading victims of suicide.
“Essentially, men are five times more likely to die from suicide than women,” it said, adding that among the main factors contributing to suicide among men was unemployment, unpleasant childhood traumas and relationships.
“South Africa has a web of suicide prevention tools, but too few address men’s mental health and other challenges,” Langa said.
The stigma prevented men from seeking and receiving help at almost every turn.
He said: “If a woman is faced with financial difficulties, has relationship problems or is generally mentally unwell, they have so many doors open to them, although they too face being ostracised within certain circles. This often manifests as failure and, too often, suicide. It is much harder for men.”
Society, the Integrated Emergency Response group said, had placed many stereotypes about how men must deal with their emotions.
“They are made to present themselves as confident and fearless. As a result, it becomes difficult for them to show any signs of weakness.”
But, it added, men dying from suicide had been an ongoing issue that society had not addressed correctly.
“As much as women are most likely to show signs of depression and related disorders, statistics show that global suicide rates are still higher among men. The nature of suicide tells you that it remains a complicated issue to find solutions for.”
The group, responding to the reportedly high rates of men taking their own lives, said that in 2022, about 190 suicide cases were reported in the country.
“And these are just reported cases,” said Langa, who works with men and women and children in distress in townships north of Pretoria.
He counted among patients he encountered on the verge of suicide last year as running into the hundreds “and no less than 70% are male”.
Of those, the percentage of grown men was large, many of them presenting with difficulties they found insurmountable, like the loss of loved ones, including partners and children.
“And by loss we also talk about termination of relationships including women and children,” Langa said.
Financial difficulties, where a man could not take care of his family, also stood out among one of the reasons for men taking their on lives. Sexual orientation issues, illness (mental and otherwise) and drugs were among the other reasons.
“Many come to us with previous attempted instances of suicide, and while we do manage to pull others back from the brink, others, no matter how well they seem to respond, go away and commit suicide.”
Last year, depression and alcohol use disorders were a global issue that led to suicide, said the World Health Organisation (WHO).
“Many suicides happen impulsively in moments of crisis, with a breakdown in the ability to deal with life stresses, such as financial problems, relationship break-up or chronic pain and illness, in addition to experiencing conflict, disaster, violence, abuse, or loss and a sense of isolation,” WHO added.
It said suicide rates remained high among vulnerable groups who experienced discrimination, such as refugees and migrants; indigenous peoples; lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex persons; and prisoners.
The South African Society of Psychiatrists said it was time the country and world worked together to break the stigma that it was unmanly and a sign of weakness for men to reach out for help.
“Men … often use more aggressive methods (to kill themselves). Although surveys reveal that women are diagnosed more than men with mental health conditions such as depression and anxiety, men don’t speak about their feelings until it is too late.
“Instead, they underplay the distress caused by these symptoms, drowning their depression and anxiety with poor coping behaviours, increasing their risk of the anxiety or depression to go unrecognised and untreated,” the society said.
ntando.makhubu@inl.co.za