Canadian skateboarder Richie Bullbrook dedicated his pursuit of the Olympics to his dad and 'every man who is fighting something no one else can see.'Spencer Colby/The Canadian Press
Richie Bullbrook aspires to become an Olympic skateboarder, but when a concussion last year threatened to dash his dreams, he was forced to reevaluate his life and confront his mental-health struggles.
The 22-year-old from London, Ont., suffers from attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
He said that if he hadn’t actively protected his mental health, he would not be standing here today.
“There is an epidemic of men being afraid to say, ‘I’m not okay,’” Mr. Bullbrook said at a federal government event in Ottawa on Monday that launched consultations on a future men’s health strategy.
“I want other men to feel like they can say that as well. I lost both my uncle and my father to alcoholism. These were preventable deaths. Silence is what makes them fatal, and we need to normalize vulnerability in men.”
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Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel echoed the sentiment. She said the consultations between now and June will allow men and boys to share input on challenges they face.
Ottawa believes addressing these issues could yield economic benefits, providing an estimated $12.4-billion in increased productivity, according to a study released last year by the Movember Institute of Men’s Health.
The government also points to federal statistics to support its plan for a strategy, including how 28 per cent of men meet the criteria for a substance-use disorder in their lifetime.
It said that between July, 2024 and June, 2025, 72 per cent of all suspected opioid toxicity deaths were among males. Additionally, men are more likely to die from suicide than women in Canada and to develop problematic levels of gambling, the government said.
Health advocates are also increasingly concerned about growing levels of social isolation among men and boys and the impact of the “manosphere,” an umbrella term used to describe online content that critics call misogynistic.
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The UN Secretary-General’s report on violence against women and girls found that groups within the manosphere reject feminism and portray women as manipulative or dangerous.
When asked about the manosphere on Monday, Ms. Michel said studies show it is affecting men and boys, but she does not want to preempt what is found in the consultations.
“We need to hear from people,” she said.
Catherine Corriveau, the director of policy and advocacy at Movember Canada, a charity advocating for men’s health, said there is a need to understand the personal experiences behind the statistics.
“Too many men are dying too young, too many are struggling in silence and only reaching services when they’re already in crisis,” she said.
Men’s health is not a niche health issue, she added, emphasizing that it’s a national one affecting work-force participation, the economy, community stability and family well-being.
Mr. Bullbrook is all too aware of this. He’d love to know what his father would think today while he speaks publicly about mental health.
He’s dedicated his pursuit of the Olympics to his dad and “every man who is fighting something no one else can see.”
“I encourage all of us to learn more, to do more, to reach out when we need it, and to be a good friend when we see people struggling around us.”