This week is International Men's Health Week. Men are less inclined than women to actively maintain their health and receive far less information than women do about the importance of their  health and wellbeing. They are also less likely to seek professional help for problems, particularly those of an emotional nature.

To celebrate and raise awareness of men’s health and mental wellness, some of The George Institute’s men share what wellness means to them and how they have been coping during COVID-19:

What does “men’s health” and “mental-health wellness” mean to you?

Gian Luca

Mental health wellness is a vital part of the individual’s overall health but is often overlooked by men who sometimes prefer to suffer in silence because they find it difficult to seek support. Making the decision to talk about it takes courage as men are often raised in a way that encourages them to hide weaknesses. Unfortunately, young boys too often still hear phrases like ‘boys don’t cry’. This can often lead boys and men to be ashamed of their anxiety, depression or stress and they might fear to show vulnerability.

John

One way to look at these terms is to see them as levers to open the conversation with men who are notoriously reluctant to talk about their own health at any length or in any depth. Using my personal experience as an example, in 1975 when I was 38, I had coronary heart disease with angina, but I told no one about it, not even my wife, and instead made many excuses for not walking up hills, or running more than five or ten yards. I finally told her after four years.

Martyn

Mental health wellness is a state of well-being; being able to cope with the regular stresses that every-day life throws at you; and something that you really need to become more conscious and take control of as you grow older. Men’s health is everything else that keeps you going and able to enjoy life.

While conventional wisdom is that men aren’t good at talking about their mental health or showing vulnerability, there is perhaps a good reason for it; the stigma and judgement on men showing too much weakness is quite real.

Tim

I believe that mental health means being comfortable about who you are, where you are in your life, and how you deal with those around you. In life, to find ‘your pattern’ can take men, young and old, just a few years, many years, or a lifetime. I don’t think until you find ‘your pattern’ can you truly accept who you are and be content.

Dulesh

From my perspective men’s mental health means that we have the same human needs, connection, respect, and hope; however, how men present these needs may be different.  

Shane

To me mental health encompasses all aspects of your emotions. Mental health seems to stereotypically have negative connotations, when in fact there are many positive aspects to mental health. Mental health wellbeing is how you balance the aspects of your mental health.

Specifically, in my experience, there seems to be the expectation that men shouldn’t express feelings, display emotions or talk about the way they feel. When in fact it’s a strength for anyone to acknowledge, appreciate and travel the journey that accompanies mental health and understand that in doing do, you lead the way by example, and encourage others to do the same.

What are your usual tools for looking after yourself? How has social isolation and physical distancing due to COVID-19 impacted your wellbeing and health?

Gian Luca

I tend to have quite a regular routine. I am an early bird and enjoy going to the local swimming pool as soon as I can. I must admit staying home 24/7 has opened my eyes to how much domestic work my wife does, so I’ve learned to support her wherever possible.

In these last few months of lockdown, it has been very important to look after myself. Anxiety kicked-in heavily with the bad news of the spread of COVID-19 in Italy where my parents, relatives and many friends live, and I tried to cope with that by focusing on my work.

Working from home has never been my cup of tea as I tend to wear pyjamas the whole day; but during this period, I think I did well, using apps to help facilitate my concentration. I have become a follower of YouTube fitness, I regularly practice mindfulness and I’ve indulged in buying far too many books online.

John

Family and friends are the most important, with family first. I am very fortunate to have a large extended family scattered all around the world, but we make a consistent effort to have a big family get together at least once a year.

Despite fears that COVID-19 might make things difficult from both family and work points of view, it turned out well! My wife and I have enjoyed being at home together. I have a study where I have been able to work. We have lunch together and catch up for cups of coffee and chats.

The one thing I have missed is meeting with colleagues, including the chance meetings with people whom I don’t directly work with in the corridors or at seminars at work.

Zoom meetings have come into their own and we have started a weekly family zoom meeting, linking up with family members all around the globe. We decided once things go back to normal, we will continue with a monthly family zoom!

Martyn

Spending time with the people you care about most is an obvious one. Doing the things you love and enjoy with those you are closest to is one of the best ways I take care of my own mental health. One of my favourite things to do lately is walk the dog at sunset with my partner. I also regularly play basketball - there’s nothing better than taking your mind off things than seeing your mates, making new ones, and only thinking about the game – it’s irresponsibly good.

I’ve quite enjoyed the way that COVID-19 has impacted my life. It has broken up my habits and forced us all to change to a simpler life. Things are quiet and peaceful, and we’re all in it together. The time we have now and restructuring of our patterns enable us to focus on ourselves and decide how you want to spend your time and who you spend it with.

I’ve taken on a few new hobbies that I had been meaning to for a long time – mastered smoked trout, grown my hair into a mop, sported a moustache outside of November, done a few walks, and brewed some beer.

Tim

We have a big family with five teenage kids so as soon as I come home, I can’t help but ‘switch off’ as I am often the smallest voice. Outside of home, I love the beach, cycling (I rode from Bondi to Berry last year for a fundraiser), playing tennis and am getting into golf. It's nice as much of this is spending time with my wife and kids.

I’ve enjoyed the home isolation brought about by COVID-19. We’ve camped in the backyard, had family Master Chef (which I didn’t win), watched movies I grew up on, and got fit.  My only regret is that I have been busier than ever so haven’t knocked off as many items from my COVID-19 bucket list as I would have liked to.

Dulesh

Keeping a disciplined timetable helped me during COVID-19 lockdown. Scheduled exercise and  meditation help especially during the start of the day. How you start the day has a lot to do with, the rest of the day. Journaling also helps me reflect upon my life a lot. With the awareness journaling has helped me gain, I can aim to be better every day.

Aside from the basic schedule I keep daily, I am open to spontaneity. If a friend calls for a video chat, I am all for it. The key for me is to have the right balance of discipline and fun.

With regards to COVID-19 I had a circular pathway. During the very first days of social isolation, I functioned quite well. However, after about a month, prolonged isolation did have an impact and I fell into a hole. Luckily, family and friends looked out for me and I’ve taken this as an opportunity to learn about myself. Now, through integrating my disciplined schedule and connecting with my family and friends, I am probably doing better now than pre-COVID-19.  

Shane

I have recently commenced practicing mindfulness daily. My simple mindfulness is what you will commonly hear referred to as the body scan. Body-scanning is when you bring attention to your body, noticing different sensations, as you mentally scan down from head to toe. It allows me to focus on the here and now. Otherwise, I work out, get out in the fresh air with my partner and dog, socialise with friends, and now that it’s allowed, I’m getting back to a gym routine.

COVID-19 has made me realise that mental health and wellbeing is more important than ever. It has made me reassess and revaluate the importance of having routine in your life. The social isolation has been a challenge as I am naturally a social creature. Spending 24/7 in a confined space, even with the ones you love, has its challenges. I have learned to be more aware of hints of when my own or other people’s mental wellbeing is affected, and it has thought me a lot about understanding both my own wellbeing and the wellbeing of those around me.

Why do you think raising awareness to men’s mental health wellness is so important to do this week?

Gian Luca

It is crucial to raise awareness as the lack of mental health wellness can interfere with everyday life and lead to several forms of hazards, such as suicide, binge drinking, and depression, which affect not just the person but their whole family and community. I would also like to encourage everyone to take a break every day, even for just few minutes, and do a little act of kindness: it can be to anyone, anything, just be kind.

John

I didn’t till you raised it!  And maybe that’s the problem. If we don’t deliberately put it on the agenda, it will not surface until it’s too late. Suicide in men is possibly the single most important issue to uncover in terms of ‘men’s health’ . We need to try to grapple with it, starting with addressing depression which is far more common than many of us may realise.  

Maybe it is important for friends and colleagues of men in the workplace to be aware of possible mood or behaviour changes in a colleague, and to either ask how things are or bring it to the attention to the appropriate point of contact at work.

Martyn

Raising awareness about mental health wellness is important as it lets men know it’s OK to talk about their own mental health. I know I often tend to bottle things up far too easily. It prompts us to check in with one another and start a conversation – doesn’t even matter if it’s necessarily about mental health.

If you’re open and willing to talk about your mental health, it enables those around you to talk about their mental wellbeing. I have always felt quite strongly that the willingness to express emotion, doubt and vulnerability is an expression of self-awareness and strength. Writing this has prompted me to share my responses with my mates and start a dialogue there - I think that’s healthy.

Tim

Raising awareness about mental health is important. I haven’t experienced any mental health issues within my family, but I know it is very real and impacts many people, with men often not talking about it until it’s too late, eating them up mentally and physically. I think the RUOK cause is a great movement and I’m glad my boys are so much aware of it from their schooling than I was taught in my day.

Dulesh

Men’s mental wellness is probably the same as human mental wellness. Maybe men have a different way of expressing feelings etc, but our primary needs are the same. From my perspective, men do not show their needs efficiently. If our mental health is not taken care of, it will topple over without a warning. This has been my experience.

Shane

Having a week dedicated specifically to men’s health and the focus on mental wellness is huge. I think that this week allows us to highlight to men who feel alone, afraid, embarrassed or whatever emotion they are feeling, that they are not alone. We have the chance to promote something that can be perceived by some as being stigmatised. Each time we talk about mental wellness in men we collectively and individually contribute to reducing that stigma.

On a personal note, seeing firsthand how mental health issues have affected my loved ones makes me want to use every opportunity that I can to promote mental health and wellbeing.

An Institute-led project and two collaborative projects led by UNSW have received funding as part of $29 million for life-saving research initiatives announced this week by the Minister of Health, Greg Hunt, to tackle Australia’s two biggest killers – heart attacks and stroke.

This is the first round of the government’s 10-year, $220 million investment to boost research into heart disease and stroke through the Medical Research Future Fund’s (MRFF) Cardiovascular Health Mission.

Associate Professor Jason Wu has received $1.68 million to conduct a large-scale trial to assess the effectiveness of a new online shopping tool for those at high risk of heart disease and stroke due to high blood pressure.

The innovative online shopping tool will advise on grocery products to assist patients to select lower-salt options that will help with reducing their blood pressure and improving their heart health.  If proven effective, this digital health technology tool could be delivered to large numbers of patients efficiently and at a low cost.

A/Prof Wu said: “One in four Australian adults have high blood pressure - one of the biggest contributors to premature death from stroke or heart disease - and too much salt in the diet is one of the major culprits. While reducing salt intake is strongly recommended by treatment guidelines, individualised counselling and support methods are highly resource intensive and have a limited effect.”

“Excess dietary salt is consumed largely from commercial processed and packaged foods - so innovative strategies are urgently needed to help people with high blood pressure to choose lower salt options.”

A/Professor Jason Wu will lead with a team of researchers from The George Institute for Global Health including Professor Bruce Neal, Cliona Ni Mhurchu, Mark Huffman, Fraser Taylor and Kathy Trieu.

The UNSW-led projects on which George Institute researchers will collaborate include a new app to help reduce re-admission of stroke patients to hospital and a new screening method to identify people at high risk of heart disease and stroke.

Professor Ken Butcher from UNSW Medicine and Prince of Wales Clinical School has received $1.62 million in funding for a new app-based care model that will remotely monitor vital signs using blue-tooth enabled peripherals, medication adherence and rehabilitation activities of patients who have had a stroke or mini stroke. 

The project will be run out of UNSW affiliated teaching hospitals and selected regional sites in NSW via the NSW Telestroke Program, of which Prof. Butcher is the Medical Director. The George Institute’s Thomas Lung is an investigator on this project.

Dr Clare Arnott, Professor Anthony Rodgers and Mark Woodward will collaborate with Professor Louisa Jorm from UNSW’s Centre for Big Data Research in Health on a project that has received $1.46 million in funding to use digital health data already available for millions of Australians and will help those at risk of heart disease or stroke to take preventative action.

Professor Simon Finfer, Professorial Fellow in the Critical Care and Trauma Division at The George Institute, has been appointed an Officer (AO) of the Order of Australia (General Division) in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list announced today.

Critical care physician Professor Finfer has been working with The George Institute for 20 years and during that time has led transformational studies in critically ill patients to reduce mortality and shed light on one of the world’s most serious silent killers – sepsis.

His work has been instrumental in demonstrating that really robust, high-quality randomised controlled trials could be done in the critical care population and lead to improved mortality.

Working with The George Institute Principal Directors, Robyn Norton and Stephen MacMahon, Simon and others designed and conducted the SAFE study, recognised as the world’s first intensive care unit (ICU) mega-trial, demonstrating clearly that robust, high-quality research could be done in ICUs and benefit critically ill patients.

The success of that trial led to numerous other guideline-changing ICU studies until Simon found himself coming full circle to focus on a condition about which he had led pioneering research many years earlier as a founding member of the Australian and New Zealand Intensive Care Society Clinical Trials Group (ANZICS CTG).

His 2003 study of the epidemiology of sepsis in Australia and New Zealand showed that this life-threatening condition was one of the major issues that needed to be tackled if ICU mortality rates were to be reduced. So began his special interest in not only reducing mortality from sepsis but also raising awareness of the condition both in our region and on the global stage.

In 2015 Professor Finfer established the Australian Sepsis Network (ASN), a national association working across jurisdictions, and with sepsis clinical champions and survivors. In early 2018, the ASN, which is hosted at The George Institute, released the ‘Stopping Sepsis National Action Plan’, which was developed in collaboration with policy, clinical, academic, research and survivor stakeholders and form the basis of national efforts to reduce the national burden of sepsis.

Also in 2015, Professor Finfer co-chaired an international meeting of sepsis experts to develop a path to reduce the global burden of sepsis. This meeting initiated a collaboration that led to the first truly global assessment of the burden of sepsis culminating in the publication of an authoritative report in The Lancet in January 2020.

In October 2018, Simon led efforts to establish the Asia Pacific Sepsis Alliance leading the Bangkok Declaration – a call to action for a regional alliance to reduce the burden of sepsis in the Asia Pacific. This followed the 2017 WHO resolution that made sepsis a global health priority. He is a member of the executive committee of the Global Sepsis Alliance, which initiated the push for the WHO resolution.

In 2019, Australian Government committed $1.5m to enable The George institute and The Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Healthcare to address the burden of sepsis through the development of treatment guidelines for health professionals and public awareness initiatives.