'Man Therapy' billboards look to address suicide in Trumbull County men
Trumbull County recently ranked ninth in the state for the highest suicide rate. But it's a problem that's been ongoing for a while.
WARREN, Ohio - Trumbull County recently ranked ninth in the state for the highest suicide rate. But it's a problem that's been ongoing for a while.
In 2017, men accounted for 90 percent of all suicide deaths in Trumbull County. About 70 percent of those were middle-class men between the ages of 25 and 53-years-old.
Which is why the Trumbull County Suicide Prevention Coalition decided it was time to think outside the box.
Cindy Audia, the Chairman of the Suicide Prevention Coalition, said part of the problem is that men frequently won't seek the help they need.
"They don't talk about their problems. They don't talk about them with their friends. With their family. They sure as heck don't receive any mental health treatment for them," Audia said.
So the county turned to an initiative that first took off in Colorado; Man Therapy.
Audia says that the initiative started as an attempt to decrease one of the worst rates of male suicides in the nation. The state of Colorado partnered with an advertising company to create Dr. Rich Mahogany.
Dr. Mahogany, the face of the Man Therapy campaign, is a fictional doctor who uses humor as a gateway to get men thinking about their mental health.
Several of the Man Therapy billboards, complete with pithy slogans, have been placed around Trumbull County.
"The goal of Man Therapy is to provide men approaching crisis, and their loved ones, a place to go to find information about men's mental health," Audia explained. "It's ok for men to have mental health issues. Men should treat them the same way they would treat a broken leg. There is no difference."
Audia says Dr. Mahogany appealed to the coalition because of how humorous the campaign was.
"He's a combination of Dr. Phil meets Ron Burgundy's 'Anchorman,'" she said. "He's part drinking buddy. He's part football coach. He's part therapist. He's very no-nonsense. And he uses humor. Humor that men get."
With the billboards up, the hope is that men will then follow through. Each billboard features the website for the Man Therapy website.
"Men won't go to counseling. They won't seek mental health treatment. But they just might, when nobody is looking, go to a website and learn about it," Audia expressed.
ManTherapy.Org features more of the humorous statement such as, "Every man needs a pork shoulder to cry on," and more. But it also focuses on myths surrounding mental health, resources for those who might need help, and even a guide for family members of those who could be approaching a crisis.
There's also a 20-point head Inspection; a brief 20 question quiz designed to evaluate a man's mental health.
From there, Dr. Rich Mahogany assesses the results and offers and has a pre-prepared video about options available and how men "scored" on their inspection.
Depending on specific answers on the quiz, Dr. Mahogany interrupts and provides contact information for the National Suicide Prevention Crisis Hotline.
Audia said they have seen results so far.
"What we can do, is pull Google analytics from the Man Therapy website so we can see men are looking. People are looking from Trumbull County and the area, so we know they are working."
But the hope remains that with each click they're getting closer to eliminating the stigma around men's mental health.
"They don't want to talk about it; they've been conditioned by society to be strong and silent, well strong and silent our men are dying," Audia said.
