Over most of the human timeline, men have been expected to be tactful, stalwart and resilient in the midst of everything they may face. This has caused much of the male population to repress emotions in order to appear more composed to their peers. Because of this repression of feeling, the suicide rate amongst men is the highest with over 121 male suicides per day and a 3.5 times more likely risk of suicide than women, according to the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

The biggest misconception of men is that they are unable to cry or should not cry. Many see this as a sign of weakness that it threatens masculinity with its vulnerability.

In reality, tapping into your emotions is one of the most rewarding ways of becoming a man. Holding back your tears and keeping your anguish and frustration pent up is an easy way to destroy yourself from the inside out. When you repress your own emotions and feelings toward life, you are denying yourself from self-growth and experiences that can shape you into the man that you will be in the future.

The best part of being a human is the ability to feel the myriad of things, whether positive or negative, that take residence in our heads. Even better is to put those feelings into words and express them. The feeling of relief and happiness flows through your body like a wave.
The way the family life was structured during the 20th century is primarily at fault for putting this misconception in the minds of men. Men were seen as the sole bread winners, the glue that held the family together, the pillar of American family life.

Unfortunately, this meant that the weight of the world pretty much lay solely on the shoulders of the man with no relief from the mother figure due to society’s poor perception of women and their rights throughout the century. This generational problem stems into the 21st century with father figures continuing to teach their sons that this is still the case. This sets unrealistic expectations for young men as they mature and grow up.

The father figure is one of the most important things to a boy as he’s growing up, and around his late teens, it is who he models himself after. Fathers need to realize that times have changed and that they should teach their sons that showing emotions are perfectly fine and not exclusively feminine, as most have been led to believe.

While emotions are a difficult thing to process, in the end, it is better to feel them and go through the healing process than to hold it all in until you implode from your own anguish.