Signs of Depression in Men

According to the National Institute of Mental Health, more than 6 million men suffer from depression in the United States every year, but they manifest it in different ways than women. Thinking of depression as a problem for women is dangerous and incorrect. If you're a man who uses illegal substances, puts yourself in dangerous situations or gets angry on a regular basis, you might be suffering from depression.

Resistance

• One of the reasons that more women are treated for depression than men is that women are more likely to reach out for professional help. Some men who are depressed may deny their symptoms and lie to friends and family members who ask about it. This is one reason that depression in men often is not diagnosed or is misdiagnosed. If a man is worried about his ego and won't tell someone that he feels sad, lonely, angry and frustrated most of the time, he may go untreated for a long period of time.

Substance Use

• According to the Mayo Clinic, men are more likely than women to use substances to deal with their depression. For example, a man may drink 12 beers a day to forget about his problems instead of seeking treatment from a mental health professional. If you know a man who is abusing substances, he may be clinically depressed and need treatment.

  Men who are depressed also put themselves in dangerous situations when they've been using substances. They may drive drunk, get into bar fights or have unprotected sex with strangers. This leads to feelings of guilt and self-hatred and furthers the depression.

Anger

• In most situations, women express their depression with extreme sadness and feelings of worthlessness. Men have the same feelings of worthlessness when depressed but may express them through anger. A man who gets in arguments with loved ones, constantly loses his temper and gets into physical fights might be depressed.

  If you feel frustrated, angry and irritable on a regular basis, you're probably depressed. You don't have to be sad and crying every day to receive a diagnosis of depression.

Suicide

• Even though women are more likely to attempt suicide, men are more likely to be successful. Men are less likely to seek help when having thoughts of suicide and they use methods that will result in death in a shorter amount of time. For example, men are more likely to shoot themselves and women are more likely to take pills. In this case, the women have more time to be found and more time to call 911 to get help.

  If you're having thoughts of suicide, you should call 911 and go to your local emergency room. If someone you know is having thoughts of suicide, you should call 911 and request that the person be taken to the psychiatric emergency room.

Treatment

• When a man is suffering from depression, he needs professional treatment just like a woman. However, the treatment might be different. The therapist may suggest that the man make a list of reasonable goals and make steps to reach them, participate in physical activities such as sports or running, and figure out healthy methods of coping. For example, if a man is using substances to mask his depression, the therapist will help him find other ways of dealing with the depressive symptoms.