Male Depression
I'm an alpha male.
I'm a real man.
For a man who has experienced a "blow” or a psychic injury – this may be a physical trauma, or some intense experience that in some ways alters his opinion of himself - depression can be a typical consequence.
ex. A physically strong man that has always defended himself well experiences humiliation in the workplace. "Why didn’t I leave the environment?" or “How did I allow that to happen?"
ex. A young male who has prevailed in his pursuits, finds himself physically attacked by a group of males. He begins to live with self-criticism and doubt, "What I thought about myself is not true."
ex. A male is physically injured while surfing/biking/working. Chronic pain ensues and his body becomes less reliable, less virile, possibly permanently disabled. Activities that he once enjoyed are gone and anxiety creeps into his social experiences. His image of himself is forever changed and he now sees himself as weak or limited.
Men and women both have feminine and masculine aspects; and while we may not embrace the John Wayne macho masculine representation, the tough-guy image is alive and well, as it should be. Healthy masculine energy, the parts of a man that identify with his personal sense of competency and ability to self-preserve, is a necessary and exciting element in a male’s life.
How does each man formulate his own sense of ideals? They are gathered from early childhood experiences, unique biology, God-given temperament, and social modeling. For a man who undergoes a trauma (accident, injury, death, loss) the process of re-formulating who and what he is can be treacherous.
In the story of the Fisher King a young and naive prince is mortally wounded by an impulsive act of bravado. It is his masculinity that is injured and he is left "too badly wounded to live, but unable to die." Unable to feel warmth or pleasure, his only solace is in solitary fishing.
Many men are wounded fisher kings now. This wound is to be seen on the face of almost any man who passes on the street; the ache of life, the anxiety, dread, loneliness, the corners of the mouth pointing down....It is the sense that life has lost its savor, or a fortune that one cannot enjoy, a marriage where there is an unbridgeable gulf between the partners, a fine body that no longer brings the runner's high that used to thrill one, the sound of applause that no longer affirms the performer.
Listen here to a terrific BBC airing on mythology and the Fisher King Wound