Last night, Kid Cudi posted a letter on his Facebook. It made for a tough read. It detailed that he'd checked himself into rehab for depression, how his mental health problems had taken over his life and, how he'd started having suicidal thoughts.
First things first, props to Kid Cudi, real name Scott Mescudi, for going to get help. That's a huge part of the battle. Huge luck and love to him as he starts down the road to recovery.
One of the most heartbreaking things about the letter though is how many times he says he feels 'ashamed'. How he feels 'ashamed to be a leader and hero to so many while admitting I've been living a lie.' Of course, to those reading the letter it's easy to see that, just by posting it, he's become the hero and leader that so many of us do need.
Because, as many of us know, the mental health problem for young men isn't going away. Suicide is currently the leading cause of death for men under the age of 45 and, of men who've thought about ending their lives, 41% didn't talk to anyone.
Young women and their struggle with mental health is well-documented. Study after study is released, week and after week warning of the dangers of deteriorating mental health in female millennials, in generation z, and, as a result we are slowly, through debate and campaigns, albeit against a criminally overburdened mental health service, easing the stigma of talking about anxiety and depression.
But for many men, opening up can be even harder. Anyone who watched the first of the Grayson Perry documentary series All Man earlier this year can't fail to remember the shock the mother of a young man named Daniel who killed himself had when she called the coroner's office to find out that her son had been one of 14 young male suicides in the county that month alone. The memory that documentary left viewers with was Daniel's friends as they spoke about how hard it would be to bring up the fact they were feeling rubbish to even their best friends at the pub.
There are great things being done to combat the stigma of mental health issues in young men. CALM, the Campaign Against Living Miserably do consistently bold and agenda-setting work like their #ManDictionary campaign from 2014.
Also, over on The Lad Bible, they've launched U OK M8, a channel entirely devoted to getting men talking about mental health, reminding men that the phrase 'man up' doesn't have to mean suffering in silence.
The importance of Kid Cudi's letter cannot be understated. The comments
, many from young men, reveal relief, gratitude and heartfelt sorrow for what the rapper has been struggling through in silence. It seems that young men are ready to talk, they just needed a platform to do it on and Kid Cudi has gone some way to providing this.
As he says in his letter, 'I deserve peace'. As do you all.
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Masculinity, Mental Health And Mates: The Reality Of Being A Young Man At University
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.