Men have been trained since childhood to not cry or show emotions. It is part of our toxic masculine culture that tells boys and men to “be a man.” When they are young boys cry when upset, scared, lost, etc. They then get the message that that is not OK, even from their family. Fathers who were themselves trained out of their feelings also join in telling their sons to, “suck it up!”

We men are not raised to pay attention to our relationships. This may be slowly changing but in general boys are raised to be achievers and are in training to be bread winners.

Men are raised to be self-sufficient and always reply with “fine” when asked how they are feeling. They will not risk being seen as weak or needy by asking for help. This behavior is enshrined in the old joke about men never stopping and asking for directions when the family gets lost on their outing.

In some way, Men carry shame simply for being male. Images abound for men to make them feel inadequate: Examples are everywhere for men to compare themselves to guys with ripped bodies, driving expensive cars and if they ever come home it is to big houses and loving wives and well-mannered kids. These men are always successful, happy and strong.

   Here are six tips on How to Be a Man that I think will be helpful in how to think about your masculinity.

At some point in the therapy process clients will ask me,” what is psychotherapy and how does it work?”They have been coming faithfully and are delving into the issues they want to address: grief, loss, marital issues, etc. They want to see the bigger picture.

     We live in a stressful, busy time where it is easy to put things off; important things that would make our life better, help our families to thrive and create a better world.

The series revolves around the head coach of the Dillon Panthers, Eric Taylor, and his wife Tami. It explores the intersecting lives and relationships of the Dillon High School students as they struggle toward adulthood.  

A paramount concern for someone entering psychotherapy is how to choose the right therapist. It is a daunting task and if you keep the following suggestions in mind they can help you on your journey to finding the right person for you.

First of all, let’s start with a definition of shame. Shame is the feeling that you can get that at your core you are bad. A bad person. It differs from guilt in that guilt is a feeling you get after you have done something you feel bad about. Shame is about you, your being, not your actions.

One of the most difficult and necessary things that we can do in our lives is to come to terms with the emotional and/or physical traumas from our childhood.

Are you feeling depleted? Tired or depressed? It could be that your stroke tank is getting low. What is a stroke tank? A stroke tank is a psychological theory called Transactional Analysis. As its name implies it is about the analysis of the transactions (conversations or interactions) that happen between people and their impact. It was created by Eric Berne, a psychiatrist in the nineteen-fifties.

The poet and men’s movement leader Robert Bly once said: “If you enter a room filled with women you will notice the liveness and range of expression and laughter that is present. Enter a room filled with men and you will notice how somber and the steady low register of the voices in that room. That is because men have so much unexpressed grief.”