A serious mental-health context
The consequences of the Covid period did not disappear when restrictions ended. Many people continue to describe persistent anxiety, social withdrawal, exhaustion, difficulty imagining the future and a loss of meaning, while economic, ecological and professional pressures add further strain.
French public-health figures show why silence cannot be treated as harmless. The Ministry responsible for health states that one person in four will face a mental disorder during their lifetime. France recorded about 9,200 deaths by suicide in 2022. The suicide rate was 20.8 per 100,000 men compared with 6.3 per 100,000 women.
Why asking can feel so difficult
As long as we say “I can handle it” or “it is not serious enough”, we preserve a sense of control. The cost can be isolation. People often wait until sleep collapses, the body refuses to continue, a relationship breaks down, work becomes impossible or an addiction takes more and more space.
The turning point is often the recognition that life cannot continue in exactly the same way. This can be frightening because it implies change. Yet asking earlier can prevent suffering from becoming the normal background of everyday life.
Why the obstacle may be greater for men
Many men have learnt that their role is to endure, solve, protect and remain useful without showing fear or vulnerability. Those capacities can be strengths, but they become destructive when they prevent emotional awareness and help-seeking.
Male suffering may appear as irritability, withdrawal, overwork, alcohol or drug use, compulsive sexuality, rigid control, cynicism or silence rather than openly expressed sadness. The suicide figures do not mean that men always suffer more. They show that unspoken and unsupported suffering can have severe consequences.
What prolonged isolation can damage
Unrecognised suffering affects decisions, sleep, the body, intimacy, parenting, work and the ability to desire anything. It may move sideways into anger, avoidance, addiction, coldness or despair. A person can remain outwardly functional while becoming increasingly absent from their own life.
Asking for help does not guarantee an instant solution. It creates a relationship in which what has remained hidden can be named and approached before it causes further damage.
The courage to go deeper
Help does not have to mean endless talking or being given generic advice. It can become a serious exploration of what has been avoided, repressed or carried alone. In my work, relief matters, but we also listen for the deeper source of the symptom through emotions, body sensations, dreams, images and recurring patterns.
If you have suicidal thoughts, are in immediate danger or are experiencing severe symptoms, seek urgent help now. In France, call 15 or 112, or call 3114 for the national suicide-prevention service. Elsewhere, contact the emergency or crisis service in your country.
One session can be a first step
You do not need to know how to explain everything. You can begin by saying what has become difficult to carry.
Sources: French Ministry, mental health facts; French National Suicide Observatory, sixth report; 3114 national suicide-prevention service.