Toxic Masculinity & Loneliness: How 'Manhood' affects Men's Mental Health

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Is toxic masculinity fueling the male loneliness epidemic? In this episode of Fed Up, But Figuring It Out, host Priya Migneault unpacks the complex relationship between toxic masculinity, men’s mental health, and rising loneliness among men. While masculinity itself isn’t inherently harmful, rigid expectations around dominance, emotional suppression, and hyper-independence can leave many men isolated and struggling to connect. Priya explores how traditional gender norms, like “man up” culture, fear of vulnerability, and the pressure to appear strong, discourage emotional openness and prevent men from forming deep friendships or seeking help. The result? Higher rates of loneliness, depression, substance use, and suicide among men. If you care about gender equality, mental health, masculinity, and modern culture, this conversation is for you. Sources: Connor-Savarda, B.-N. (2023, March 30). Loneliness: One of the consequences of toxic masculinity. Emotion Intelligence Magazine. https://www.ei-magazine.com/post/loneliness-one-of-the-consequences-of-toxic-masculinity Engaging men in gender equality: End violence against women in Canada. Canadian Women’s Foundation. (2018, January 10). https://canadianwomen.org/blog/comes-toxic-masculinity-lose/ How Toxic Masculinity Harms Men and Boys. Survivors.org. (2025, January 21). https://survivors.org/how-toxic-masculinity-harms-men/ Jones, F., Verity, L., Panayiotou, M., & Qualter, P. (2023). A review of evidence on the link between masculinity, loneliness, and suicide as observed in social media discussions. Current Research in Behavioral Sciences, 5. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crbeha.2023.100129 Reeves, R. (2022, October 17). Toxic masculinity is a harmful myth. Society is in denial about the problems of boys and men. Big Think. https://bigthink.com/the-present/toxic-masculinity-myth/ Salter, M. (2019, February 27). The Problem With a Fight Against Toxic Masculinity. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2019/02/toxic-masculinity-history/583411/ Suicide in Canada: Key statistics (infographic). Government of Canada. (2023). https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/publications/healthy-living/suicide-canada-key-statistics-infographic.html Wade, D. (2023, March 31). Defining — and Addressing — Toxic Masculinity. Healthline. https://www.healthline.com/health/toxic-masculinity

Populism: Who Actually Speaks for "The People"?

Populism is one of the most talked-about ideas in modern politics, but what does it actually mean? In this episode of Fed Up, But Figuring It Out, we unpack the rise of populism, why politicians across the political spectrum claim to represent "the people," and how the term has evolved from a political movement into a powerful branding tool. We explore the relationship between populism and meritocracy, the tension between expertise and representation, and why so many self-proclaimed populist leaders come from the very elite institutions they claim to oppose. We examine what separates authentic representation from political performance. Most importantly, we ask a deeper question: Who gets included when politicians talk about "the people", and who gets left out? If you've ever wondered why every politician claims they're fighting for ordinary people, this episode is for you. Sources: BBC Ideas. (2019, February). Populism explained | A-Z of ISMs Episode 16 - BBC Ideas. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5U61HGQ-OQ [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5U61HGQ-OQ] Cole, T. A. (2025, November 13). To reform meritocracy, put character at the center. MIT Sloan Management Review. https://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/to-reform-meritocracy-put-character-at-the-center/ Cultural populism. ECPS. (n.d.). https://www.populismstudies.org/Vocabulary/cultural-populism/ [https://www.populismstudies.org/Vocabulary/cultural-populism/] Friedman, S., Ellersgaard, C., Reeves, A., & Larsen, A. G. (2023). The meaning of merit: Talent versus hard work legitimacy. Social Forces, 102(3), 861–879. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soad131 [https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/soad131] Kandpal, E. (2025, September). A Populism That’s Really of the People? Poverty, Protest, and Regime Collapse in South Asia. Center for Global Development. https://www.cgdev.org/blog/populism-thats-really-people-poverty-protest-and-regime-collapse-south-asia [https://www.cgdev.org/blog/populism-thats-really-people-poverty-protest-and-regime-collapse-south-asia] Laycock, D. (2019). Populism in Canada. The Canadian Encyclopedia. https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/populism [https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/populism] Molloy, D. (2018, March 6). What is populism, and what does the term actually mean?. BBC News. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43301423 [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-43301423] Sandel, M. J. (2021, January). The myth of meritocracy. Harvard Gazette. https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2021/01/the-myth-of-meritocracy-according-to-michael-sandel/ [https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2021/01/the-myth-of-meritocracy-according-to-michael-sandel/] York University. (2025, April 1). What is populism?. Observatory of Populism in Canada. https://www.yorku.ca/research/robarts/observatory-populism/what-is-populism/

8. juni 202639 min

Toxic Masculinity & Loneliness: How 'Manhood' affects Men's Mental Health

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