June/July 2025 Edition This month’s spotlight features Oscar, who generously shares, in his own words, the story of how his healing journey began. From a defining moment in solitary confinement to years of reflection, growth, and hard-won self-awareness, Oscar’s path reminds us that change can start in the most unexpected places. His voice is a powerful reminder that mental health recovery is possible, even when the odds feel impossible. I’m honored to share his story with you. What Led Me to Begin My Healing Journey In the year 2000, I was before a panel of people, a lieutenant, a sergeant, a case counselor assigned to me, and a therapist. They were going through my file detailing why I was in segregation. In the California prison system, it’s also called the hole. I was sent to the hole for a violent fight I was in with another guy inside of prison. At the time I was serving a double life sentence, I fell under the title of Juvenile lifer, which in my case at the time, was a...

Summary Men are often expected to be: Emotionally stoic,  rarely expressing vulnerability or sadness Unfailingly strong,  seen as providers, protectors, and problem-solvers, even at the expense of their own well-being This post explores how the pressure to provide and protect can quietly erode men’s mental health, and why we need to talk about it. Unseen, Unsaid, Unwell: The Weight Men Carry I grew up hearing phrases like “real men provide” that weren’t said with cruelty; they were said with pride. With love, even. But under the surface, they carried an impossible weight. I’ve watched men I care about push through chronic stress, ignore warning signs, and put everyone’s needs before theirs, all because they believed being a good man meant being unshakable. They weren’t praised for resting. They were praised for pushing. Even when their bodies were breaking down. Even when they were suffering in silence. And maybe they didn’t know they were suffering; they just thought ...

Breaking Through the Armor of "I’m Fine" Summary: We often ask men to be strong, but not if they’re okay. In a culture that praises silence and stoicism, too many men are taught to suppress their pain and push through alone. But behind the “I’m fine” are real mental health struggles that go unseen and untreated. : depression anxiety trauma As we honor Men’s Mental Health Month , it’s time to challenge the silence, break the stigma, and create space for emotional honesty. Because these aren’t just statistics; they’re lived experiences. And healing begins when we start listening. Carrying the Silence I’ve known men who carried trauma, grief, anxiety, and depression like invisible weights, never naming it, never reaching out. Not because they didn’t feel it, but because they’d been taught that needing support wasn’t something men were “supposed” to do. I’ve seen how that kind of silence wears someone down: how it strains relationships chips away at self-worth turns daily ...