Young Men's Talking Groups - Mental Health
Donation protected
I started a project in Nov 2020 called YoungMenSpeak which offers talking groups (all online currently) for young men aged 18-35, as well as information and resources aimed at early prevention of mental health issues.
-There were 4,303 men in England and Wales who took their own life in 2019, the highest for two decades
-3/4 of suicides are male
-only 36% of referrals to NHS talking therapies are for men
It is my experience that having somewhere to share and be heard, or just be in good company, stops big issues happening down the line.
Whilst mental health services such as CALM and Samaritans do great work, what happens if these men aren't feeling suicidal, or have temporarily stopped feeling suicidal, but are still in need of connection, friendship, purpose?
That's where men's groups come in.
You don't need to be in crisis to come to a men's group. You can come along just to talk, listen, share and hang out.
Not only that, at the groups men learn to live beyond just 'coping' with life, towards getting the most out of it, towards feeling a sense of connection and unconditional community.
A happier man makes for a happier society.
We've had seven sessions so far, reaching about 10 men, with brilliant feedback:
"I enjoyed the group last week, was a new experience. All the guys seemed genuine, and gave me an opportunity to reflect a bit on myself." J, 27
I can't afford to fund any more of this myself, so I'm fundraising for:
-£180 consultation for guidance on organisation structure and assessing impact
-£50 for Google and Facebook ads to spread awareness
-£150 to pay to train another facilitator so we can hold more groups
-£120 for admin and hosting costs such as Zoom , Meetup, web hosting
Thank you so much for anyone donating. This is something I wish I'd had in my early twenties and I think it will save lives.
Check out the website for more info.
Any excess donations will go towards running costs and scaling the project.
-There were 4,303 men in England and Wales who took their own life in 2019, the highest for two decades
-3/4 of suicides are male
-only 36% of referrals to NHS talking therapies are for men
It is my experience that having somewhere to share and be heard, or just be in good company, stops big issues happening down the line.
Whilst mental health services such as CALM and Samaritans do great work, what happens if these men aren't feeling suicidal, or have temporarily stopped feeling suicidal, but are still in need of connection, friendship, purpose?
That's where men's groups come in.
You don't need to be in crisis to come to a men's group. You can come along just to talk, listen, share and hang out.
Not only that, at the groups men learn to live beyond just 'coping' with life, towards getting the most out of it, towards feeling a sense of connection and unconditional community.
A happier man makes for a happier society.
We've had seven sessions so far, reaching about 10 men, with brilliant feedback:
"I enjoyed the group last week, was a new experience. All the guys seemed genuine, and gave me an opportunity to reflect a bit on myself." J, 27
I can't afford to fund any more of this myself, so I'm fundraising for:
-£180 consultation for guidance on organisation structure and assessing impact
-£50 for Google and Facebook ads to spread awareness
-£150 to pay to train another facilitator so we can hold more groups
-£120 for admin and hosting costs such as Zoom , Meetup, web hosting
Thank you so much for anyone donating. This is something I wish I'd had in my early twenties and I think it will save lives.
Check out the website for more info.
Any excess donations will go towards running costs and scaling the project.
Organizer
Bertie H-Smith
Organizer
