Male Menopause: Men and Depression

Left picture, Jed Diamond, author of the bestseller Male Menopause.

The most common problem associated with male menopause is depression which is closely related to impotence and problems with male sexuality. Approximately 40% of men in their 40s, 50s and 60s will experience some degree of difficulty in attaining and sustaining erections, lethargy, depression, increased irritability, and mood swings that characterize male menopause. The symptoms of depression in men are commonly not recognized for several reasons:

• The symptoms of male depression are different than the classic symptoms we think of as depression
• Men deny they have problems because they are supposed to "be strong"
• Men deny they have a problem with their sexuality and don't understand the relationship with depression
• The symptom cluster of male depression is not well known so family members, physicians, and mental health professionals fail to recognize it.

Male depression is a disease with devastating consequences. To paraphrase from Jed Diamond's book Male Menopause:

• 80% of all suicides in the US are men
• The male suicide rate at midlife is three times higher; for men over 65, seven times higher
• The history of depression makes the risk of suicide seventy-eight times greater (Sweden)
• 20 million American will experience depression sometimes in their lifetime
• 60-80% of depressed adults never get professional help
• It can take up to ten years and three health professionals to properly diagnose this disorder
• 80-90% of people seeking help get relief from their symptoms

Differences between Male and Female depression:

Men are more likely to act out their inner turmoil while women are more likely to turn their feelings inward. The following chart from Jed Diamond's book Male Menopause illustrates these differences.

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