Health is Wealth programme 27 - 5nov2024

Movember is an annual event that raises awareness about men's health, particularly prostate cancer. It started 21 years ago in Australia as a campaign to grow mustaches and get people talking about men's health. It has now become a global organization in 19 countries. Movember aims to address the barriers men face in seeking help for their health, such as societal expectations of masculinity. They have partnered with the GAA to run mental health workshops for young people and provide resources for self-checking for testicular cancer. Movember also encourages physical activity and social connections as ways to improve men's well-being. The month of Movember provides a space for men to open up about their health and realize they are not alone in their struggles. The Health Sloth on Connemara Community Radio. A weekly program supported by funding from commissioning them on with the television license fee. Oh doctor, I'm in trouble. Well, goodness gracious me. For every time a certain man is standing next to me, a flush comes to my face and my pulse begins to race. It goes boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, boom, boom. Boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom, bodee, boom. Well, goodness gracious me. We're going to the phone lines. We have Sarah Ouellette, Country Manager with Movember. And of course Movember is the annual event during the month of November to raise awareness about men's health. Good morning, Sarah. Good morning. It's great to have you back. 21 years, that's a milestone, isn't it? It really is. And you know, it's amazing how Movember has evolved and changed in 21 years. So we started out as really a campaign to drive awareness, specifically around prostate cancer. Started in a pub in Australia 21 years ago. A bunch of guys thinking, what can we do? Let's grow some mustaches and get people talking about this. And that's where we are now. And we are a global organization in 19 countries around the world and really focusing on all aspects of men's health. So it's really great. And it's lovely to see big stars as well like rugby players and soccer players all getting on board. And when people see them wearing the mustache, straight away Movember will jump. It just happens. It does. You know, we're so linked with it now that it's just part of a worldwide phenomenon. It is. And we're so lucky to have such fantastic ambassadors with us this year. You know, Mac and Andrew from the Irish Rugby Squad are just incredible. And they've really been not just about the mustache but also just really openly talking about the things that are important to them around mental health, around physical health. And they're really, you know, they don't shy away from those conversations. That's really part of what our message is about Movember is that it is men, it's hard for men to focus on their own health and well-being. There's lots of reasons why. We know that there's, like, evidence to say that men think it's quite the manly thing to do, to not go to the GP, to not talk about the things they're feeling. But, in fact, we see from all of our research that men are actually suffering with all kinds of things. You know, they're lonely. They are not going to the GP when something's wrong and therefore have worse health outcomes. When they do think something might be wrong, they're really hesitant to talk to people about it. And so, really, when you have someone like, you know, Richie Sadlier or Philip Doyle, you know, they're out there saying this is important that we have these conversations. And Movember gives you a month to really open those things up in a very different way. Absolutely. And the loneliness is one thing. But, like, mental health, there's an awful lot of suffering and silence, as you say. And, you know, the way things have gone, you know, we've never been so connected. But I think the other side of that, I think we've never been so disconnected. OK, we're connected by phones and by this, that and the other. But there's a huge disconnect between people as well. Even rural Ireland is decimated, I think, myself. I know it's all to do with strange driving laws and smoking ban that came in. But, I mean, a lot of men of a generation certainly met and chatted in the pubs. But it's completely decimated. Absolutely. You know, one of the things that we're trying to focus on is how do we help men of all ages, certainly. But when we look at where can we make the biggest impact for things like for young men, for example, where we see that suicide is the biggest, the leading cause of death for young men in Ireland, where we see that there is a huge crisis of mental health. And so it's why we've invested in programs like a partnership we have with the GAA and the GPA, where it's called Movember Ahead of the Game. And we go into clubs all around Ireland in every single county, a lot of clubs across the West, where we run mental health and mental fitness workshops with under-14s, both boys and girls, their parents and coaches. And essentially what we're trying to do is to give the skills to these young people so that as they're growing up and as they get older and their lives change and all those types of things, they have the tools to be able to recognize when someone around them might be suffering with any type of kind of mental health challenge. They can recognize it in themselves as well. But they're able to have the tools to open up that conversation. So it might even be that they see someone, you know, at the club every now and again and they notice a difference in behavior or someone hasn't been for a few weeks. Being able to reach out to those people and say, you know, are you okay? What's happening for you? Here's some resources that I know are helpful. And being able to follow up with that person and doing it in a way where they're also looking after themselves. And so we teach these skills through this partnership. It's run by former and current players. They actually deliver that program for us. And we've reached over 5,000 people this year. We'll be doing this for years to come. And it's just one example of where we can see that there's practical outcomes that come out of this that are improving the mental health outcomes for young people. And we're avoiding those crises. You know, it's about early intervention. And it's a really ñ it's probably the thing that we're most proud of, I would say, November this year in Ireland. It's really great to see that kind of come to life. It's huge. I mean, an association like the GAA, it's a fantastic association. And it's countrywide, which is fantastic. But even so, even with men that are in groups like that or in clubs and teams, they still suffer. And it needs something to actually just bring it out of them. I mean, if they do start talking, they probably would never stop. But just that initial breakthrough to actually talk to somebody for mental health or your physical health as well. Physical health, I'd imagine, is probably easier to tackle, that they actually might think about going to the doctor if there was something wrong. But mental health is a big stumbling block, isn't it? Absolutely. And they're all interlinked. So I think for us, our research shows us that actually in the physical health side of things, it really takes ñ you know, it's something ñ our stats are sort of like, you know, three out of four men actually don't even go to the GP when something's wrong. So we know that there is a barrier there around even seeking help when they need it. And so I think what's interesting about Movember as a month is that it gives men the opportunity ñ it's sort of like it creates a space in the year for ñ and we do it in a way that's sort of less scary. You know, a lot of the way that we do Movember is about fun and humor and just getting together and, you know, whether that's going for a sea swim every day or growing a mustache and seeing someone with it. But it creates that moment to open that conversation and to just highlight that. And I think what we see is that we see lots of men who might throughout the year struggle with different things around mental or physical health, but actually it's in Movember that they start to realize, okay, you know, I can do something about this. Other people also suffer the way that I am. And I have the tools and resources available to me to be able to make a difference. And we see, for example, with things like testicular cancer, you know, it's the leading cancer in young men. And most men don't know how to check themselves for testicular cancer. So, you know, on Movember.com we have the step-by-step instructions. We have ñ it's all done in a way that's not, you know, it's not in ñ it's really clear language. It's really funny. But we see that men who do look at that stuff go and end up seeking help from their GP more often because they are checking themselves more regularly and they do notice when things are slightly off. So those are all just ñ it's opportunities within this month to kind of open that conversation. Yes, it's so important. And, I mean, even the figures, like a third of men say they're struggling with their mental health. Like I said, that's a lot of people. And close to half, you know, 44% believe their social health and habits are unhealthy. And, of course, one in three men aren't locking up enough physical activity, weekly physical activity. But there's great movements as well. Like Men on the Move is a thing that's been around here locally for a while as well where men get out and they just walk together at night. That's brilliant. It's a really great idea. Yes. And things like that. And even if there was one person in the group that would have the guts to come out and say, look at that, if there's anything bothering you, why not bring it out in the open, talk about it. And that's where the likes of those things would stem from. Absolutely. Absolutely. And we know that for men, it's actually those types of conversations, they happen more naturally when you're doing things like walking or doing some kind of activity together. It's not when you're sitting across the table, you know. It's more about how can we be doing something else and having those chats whilst we're doing something. I think that really works. What we do see is actually a lot of men and a lot of women as well will do for November, they don't grow mustaches. They actually do sort of just like some things throughout the month where it is a bit of a social and physical thing. So they might say, I'm going to go for a walk every night with a group of people and we're going to be a team for November and we're going to raise money this way and raise awareness. We have a bunch of people who do sea swims every day as a group and it's a way to kind of connect socially but also to get some kind of physical activity as well. So it's a really, it's not just about the mustaches, it's also about like just giving you 30 days to be able to recharge that social battery and also kind of get yourself out of that rut of maybe not getting enough physical activity. It doesn't have to be extreme. We have a really lovely lady who's doing two kilometre walks every day with her dad who's had a couple of hip replacements and it's like that is a really nice way for them to connect but it's also just getting a little bit of exercise as well and they're raising money that way. So there's all kinds of ways you can do November. And as you said, you know, it's a lot easier to talk to somebody if you're walking side by side rather than looking them in the eye across the table. It takes the pressure off. It does really and truly, doesn't it? It really does. So we'd encourage people to check out the website which is Movember.com, is it? Movember.com. So that's where you can find everything about Movember and what we do and the kind of programs we run. Lots of tips and lots of information for men and women really about men's health and how you can support men who are in need of help but also for men themselves to be able to get information. And it's exactly where you sign up to do Movember. We're only in the first week of Movember so loads of time to be able to sign up and to raise some money and raise awareness. Absolutely. And we keep saying to people here on the radio like just to make sure you go and get your bloods tested once a year. I mean it's not a big thing. It's done so rapid now that, you know, you're in, you're out in a couple of minutes and within 10 days, you have results back and the bloods will show up so much I know it won't show up in mental health but any kind of health condition, it will show up in the bloods and, you know, you're really and truly, at least you can breathe happy then for another year. Absolutely. That's great. And you're looking after yourself. I think that's the thing. We often say to men like actually one of the best things you can do, we know from the research that we do, that men really don't want to be a problem. They don't want to be seen as, you know, they want to look after other people is kind of the message we get. And it's sort of like this is the way you're looking after other people. When you look after yourself and you even go and get that annual checkup or you go and get those bloods done every year, that is you looking after the people you love because we know that you're healthy. And so that's really important. And, of course, on top of that then as well, I mean you're heading towards Christmas. Wouldn't it be nice to be in better physical shape and, you know, know that you're being checked over and you can enjoy Christmas because it's a huge time for overindulgence. But, yeah, a good time to check things out. Movember is definitely the standout time of the year. Of course, you'll see the moustaches, but I think people even recognise it now. As soon as November comes in, oh, yeah, this is Movember. This is it. This is it. And, look, we've got a big campaign this year. We've got lots of lovely people involved, as you said, some of those great ambassadors. We have amazing people around Ireland who support us. We're just incredibly lucky to have people who come back year on year and they do incredible stuff to support Movember. I'm sure all around Connemara there are people doing Movember challenges. And if you jump on movember.com, you can actually find teams if you want to join a team or you can donate to support a team who are raising funds. So, there's lots of things you can do. It doesn't have to be just growing moustaches is our big message this year. It's all kinds of ways you can do Movember. Fantastic. Listen, Sarah, thanks a million for taking time to chat to us this morning. Thank you. Have a great day. You too. The Health Floss on Connemara Community Radio. A weekly programme supported by funding from Commission Amon with the television licence fee. Oh, Doctor, I'm in trouble. Well, goodness gracious me. For every time a certain man is standing next to me A flash comes to my face and my pulse begins to race It goes boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom-boody-boom Well, goodness gracious me.