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This is a thread about the lorries - and the men in them - stuck in Kent. It's really a thread about men's mental health.
Imagine how awful it must be to be stuck alone in a lorry, with no facilities, especially just before Christmas, with no idea when you'll be able to go home
Imagine how awful it must be to be stuck alone in a lorry, with no facilities, especially just before Christmas, with no idea when you'll be able to go home
The government is playing it down, and Grant Shapps called lorry drivers a 'hardy bunch' (quote) who will be fine (paraphrasing). This kind of language, which implies that it's good for men to be hardy and tough, puts an unfair pressure on men.
At 2.20: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000qjy6
At 2.20: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000qjy6
Men's mental health is a major concern (e.g. suicide is now the leading cause of death in men aged 20-50 years in the UK). If boys and men hear the message that tough is good, no wonder they are reluctant to talk about their feelings and anxieties. https://www.mentalhealth.org.uk/statistics/mental-health-statistics-suicide
There's an excellent chapter on male identity in the 21st century and societal causes of poor mental health in men, in @caitlinmoran's brilliant book, More Than a Woman. https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/9781529102758?gC=5a105e8b&gclid=CjwKCAiAz4b_BRBbEiwA5XlVVtGoa4GiU8esmZDlWIUDPn_Zi9M0hZ3GbPp6ksn1XZeQ0qKxZyfqXxoCLS4QAvD_BwE
