For more information, check out our article "Health center provides free depression screening"
Real men don't need help with their emotions.
This is exactly the kind of misconception that a national campaign is attempting to shatter.
On Wednesday evening, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln launched its "Real Men, Real Depression" program. Aaron Rochlen, an associate professor of counseling psychology at the University of Texas-Austin, gave the keynote address.
Real Men, Real Depression is a multimillion-dollar campaign started in 2003 by the National Institute of Mental Health.
"I'm sure there's people who suffer from depression, and this is a good opportunity for them to know how to deal with it," said Kosuke Niitsu, a senior biological science major.
About 25 people attended the presentation at UNL's Love Library Auditorium.
Cody Hobza, a doctoral student in counseling psychology, is the committee chairman for UNL's Real Men, Real Depression program.
Hobza said he became interested in addressing the unique concerns of depressed men when he was an undergraduate at UNL.
"As a committee, we see men as sort of a forgotten population," Hobza said.
Depression is the most common mental illness in the U.S., affecting 9 percent of the population, Rochlen said. Men who are in the most need of help are also the most reluctant to seek treatment, he said.
"I think one thing that this campaign does is directly taps into that group," he said.
Because of cultural reasons, men might express depression differently than women, Rochlen said. Men could become over-involved in work, abuse alcohol or use sports to mask their depression.
It is important to recognize these gender differences to allow men to seek help, Rochlen said.
Mary Swoboda, a mental health practitioner at the University Health Center, gave some striking statistics about depression at UNL.
Within the last year, Swoboda said, 33.8 percent of UNL students have been depressed enough that it has been difficult for them to function. She said 7.4 percent of students have seriously considered attempting suicide and 1.6 percent actually attempted suicide.
James Griesen, a professor of educational administration at UNL, said he wants to see more students seek professional help if they are depressed.
"I did notice, very vividly, an absence of getting help to men," he said.
Becca Koehn, a senior psychology major, said she is glad to see UNL hold the campaign.
"They're doing a really good job of bringing people in," she said.
Despite the small audience, Rochlen said he is optimistic for Real Men, Real Depression's success. If one person is helped from the program, it's worth it, he said.
