A recent article by the Australian Psychological Society identified that Australians are the fourth biggest smartphone users in the world. Aussies spend an average of 2.5 hours per day on their phone; this equates to 38 days per year. These figures are not surprising when you think about it. Consider last time you were on the bus or at the pub, how many people had their eyes glued to their screens? How is all this time in front of a screen impacting our health and wellbeing?

It’s become fashionable in some circles to lump stoicism in with other, less than desirable traits like aggression, when talking about male behaviour. There is even an ongoing argument in the American Psychological Association about how it was controversially included as a harmful trait in their guidelines. Harvard professor, Steven Pinker argued the APA was misguided, “Stoicism is a good quality, not, as the new guidelines say, harmful”. He’s on the money when he argues that the guidelines should encourage “the masculine virtues — dignity, responsibility, self-control, and self-reliance.” All of these are the qualities and virtues of manhood that we should be celebrating.

Nobody goes into a marriage thinking that it will end in separation or divorce, however many blokes find that when their marriages do end, that separation and divorce are among the toughest experiences they will ever have to face. Blokes go through a range of intense emotions during this time, including loneliness and sadness; shock, hurt and bewilderment; anger and frustration and sometimes relief that differences are finally out in the open. These responses to distress are all perfectly normal. Thankfully, most blokes can face these challenges and go on living fulfilling and happy lives, keeping in mind of course that this does take time.

The term mental health encompasses all aspects of our emotional, psychological and social wellbeing, it affects how we feel, think and interact with the world around us. It’s important to acknowledge that “dealing with life’s challenges and changes” can be difficult at times and place our mental health and wellbeing under pressure. The effects of this will be different for all of us, as we all have an innate but varying capacity to cope and deal with these pressures.