bare. Your Face Brother

Gotta be tough. Gotta be strong. Gotta lock those emotions away. Gotta be a MAN. Hey, it's a stereotype for sure, but there's a reason for that. From a young age there often seems to be pressure on guys to act in a certain way. Your typical Aussie bloke is meant to be stoic in the face of all troubles and to show vulnerability is to be weak. At least, that's what we're taught.

The problem is that people just don't work that way. We all have complex inner lives and a tangle of emotions - it's part of what makes us human, as well as inputs from a bunch of other factors such as race, religion, sexuality, community etc. For some reason though, men seem to really struggle with talking about how they're feeling and about issues that are causing them stress. A 2013 Australian Government report estimated that 72% of males don't seek help for mental health related issues. Unfortunately, bottling everything up and avoiding seeking help is not a great strategy and sadly the stats agree.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics in 2017, tragically the leading cause of death in Australians aged between 15-44 years was suicide, however the rate for men is shockingly three times higher than for women. In 2016, the ABS released data showing that 17% of Australian men over the age of 18 had some form of mental health condition, however according a 2018 report from Andrology Australia that figure increases to 23% (1 in 4) for young males aged between 16-24 years. Issues around sexuality and gender identity can complicate things even further, particularly in young people, with mental health conditions, self-harm and suicidal experiences for LGBTI Australians well above the national average according to the National LGBTI Health Alliance.

So why are we banging on about this? Well, we are currently part of a show being produced by DoMaur Productions incorporated called bare., which among other things deals with issues around sexuality, mental health and suicide in young people, particularly young men. There are 10 guys in the cast, band and crew - unfortunately every one of them has likely been affected in some way, directly or indirectly, by mental health issues or even suicide. If it's so prevalent, why don't we talk about it more? So, to help raise awareness around these issues we have decided to grow our beards.

Not gonna lie, part of this is just for fun and to see which lads have the makings of an epic beard and which ones will just rock the bum fluff like a champ, but there's a deeper meaning too. It also provides a chance to start a meaningful dialogue about the pressures affecting young men (and men in general) and ways that we can tackle lowering the rate of suicide and mental health issues in this age group.

Because bare. is set in a school, in a couple of months those hard-won chin gardens are going to have to be mown off again, but even in this simple act there is deeper meaning - the shave symbolises baring your hidden inner face to the world and letting people know how you're really travelling. If we're going to tackle these issues, then we need to address the stigma around speaking up about them.

If you want to chip in some coin to support this campaign all proceeds will go to Tasmanian youth suicide awareness charity Speak Up! Stay ChatTY, but even if you don't, the main thing is to have a think about how we can improve mental health outcomes and decrease suicide rates for men in Australia. Have a chat. See how your mate is going. Encourage people to seek help when they need it. The more we talk about this, the more chance we have of working out how to maybe solve some of these terrible issues.

Helplines and services
Lifeline: 13 11 44
Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467
Kids Helpline (for young people 5-25 years): 1800 55 1800
headspace.org.au

DoMaur Productions Incorporated is a community backspace theatre company based in North West Tasmania. Our mission is to:

- To give special performances of plays which have a literary and artistic, rather than a commercial value, for Tasmanian communities.

- To provide opportunities for personal development and theatrical experience to individuals who are aspiring actors or who wish to be involved in the performing arts in any role, at any age.

- Assist other organisations by investing in them with the proceeds of ticket sales. This is an important part of how we do business. We believe that when the community gives to you, you should give back.