Supporting men through addiction and recovery

Men's Health Week is recognised internationally in June, and while we often hear that Australian men face higher rates of suicide, heart disease, lung cancer and diabetes, driven in part by their lower uptake of preventative healthcare, higher rates of smoking, alcohol use, other drugs and even gambling are also part of the picture.

Len Marks, Health Education Officer at Springwood Community Health Centre, has spent decades supporting men affected by addiction and the health challenges that often accompany it.

"If people are still in the throes of addiction, going and checking on their health is not a priority. It's just not," says Len.

Len says these problems can aggravated by unhelpful messages about self-reliance that men often absorb from as early as childhood.

"That particular lie around being the tough loner is fed to us from a very young age,” says Len, who instead encourages men to rethink what strength really looks like.

"It's actually quite a radical move to start reaching out and looking after your health, and to challenge those messages that we've got to tough this out alone."

One message from early in Len’s career has stayed with him for more than 30 years, and it emphasises that non-judgemental care and support is available for men who seek it:

"If you want to use drugs, that's your business. If you want to stop, that's our business."

While Len's work centres on alcohol and other drugs, his message is one that sits at the heart of Men's Health Week: Don't wait until you're in crisis.

Reach out, have the conversation, and take that first step towards better health.