– It would have been much easier to open up to someone of the same sex. Someone who may have experienced the same things and who can more easily relate to us boys, says Chris Martin Tornvik-Pedersen. The 17-year-old is one of several boys from Hammerfest upper secondary school who are helping to organize a Boys’ Conference in the town. The conference is on 18 October and is organized by Utekontakten and the youth service in Hammerfest municipality. The purpose is to shine a spotlight on boys’ mental health and make the boys aware of the support services the municipality has. Chris Martin Tornvik-Pedersen believes boys hide how they really feel. Photo: Sunniva Hadland Bøthun / news It is needed, Tornvik-Pedersen believes. – Boys have exactly the same problems as girls, but it’s just not talked about. It’s a bit like that boys shouldn’t show emotions, but wipe the tears and be a man, he says. Girls get the most focus For decades we have heard that girls struggle the most psychologically. It appears in surveys and on statistics. It is girls who seek help most often and it is they who take the most medication for anxiety and depression. So what does this do to boys’ desire and ability to say that they too are having a hard time? – It may be that you feel a little forgotten. That mental health among boys is not taken so seriously. And that you feel that you do not get the same access to help, says Tornvik-Pedersen. The 17-year-old believes it is a paradox that men top the suicide statistics, while at the same time they are bad at asking for help when they are struggling mentally. – I think there is a connection, he says. Figures from Statistics Norway from 2021 show that 77.5 per cent of those working in health and social services in Norway are women. While a full 84 per cent of those with education in the field are women. Youth consultant Andrine Loraas Østmo and Utekontakt Ana Caroline Vikene in Hammerfest municipality shine a spotlight on boys’ mental health. Photo: Privat There is also a preponderance of women in the health and social services in Hammerfest, confirms Andrine Loraas Østmo in the Youth Service in Hammerfest municipality. She herself recently experienced that there are no shortage of men in the support system. – We have tried to get hold of a male psychologist to participate in our conference, but it has been difficult, says Østmo. – Not rigged for boys – It is quite obvious that the way we have rigged the health services today does not hit boys well enough, says president of the Association of Psychologists Håkon Kongsrud Skard. Håkon Kongsrud Skard, president of the Association of Psychologists, believes that the aid is not designed for boys. Photo: Norwegian Psychological Association He believes that much of the help that is given today is based on the young people making contact themselves. When they then get help, this often consists of a face-to-face conversation. Skard believes that it works better for boys to do an activity together with someone. And then the talk eventually comes. Sindre Strandum is a youth consultant in Hammerfest municipality. He confirms that talking about everyday things is a good way to enter into a dialogue with boys. – The boys and I can talk about everything from cars and motorbikes, scooters and outdoor life, to making videos, cameras, technology and gaming. We can also talk about drawing, cooking and girlfriends, says Strandum. Sindre Strandum works in the youth service in Hammerfest municipality. He can talk to boys about things they are interested in. Photo: Private He says that once he has made good contact, the boys open up more and more. – Getting a “connection” can take a long or a short time, but it makes it easier to talk about feelings, and how they really feel, says the youth consultant. 20 women, one man The health nurse service in Finnmark’s largest city, Alta, has 21 employees, one of whom is a man. Tor Inge Kristensen is a trained public health nurse and works with refugees. Previously, he has worked both in the school health service at the primary and secondary levels. He admits that some boys think that seeing a health nurse can be a girl thing. And when boys do not seek help themselves, it is important that the public health nurse makes himself visible. – Go to the workshop, use the teachers who have close contact with the students, present yourself in the classes, be available to the Russian. Such things, says Kristensen. Tor Inge Kristensen is a lonely rooster among the hens in Alta municipality. Only in the health nursing service is he a lonely man, among 20 women. Photo: Private – I think women are perfectly capable of talking to guys and vice versa. But for some it is important, and then it should be able to be accommodated, says Skard of the Association of Psychologists. A kick behind Regarding the conference in Hammerfest, Skard praises the initiative, which he hopes will spread to several cities. – I think it can do something with boys’ self-image and change the perception of how boys see themselves – and how society sees boys, says Skard. 17-year-old Jørgen Markussen Kristiansen in Hammerfest carries the same hope. – I hope the conference can lead to more boys feeling seen and that they can get the little kick in the back needed to go and ask for help, says Kristiansen. Jørgen Markussen Kristiansen hopes boys will be better at talking to each other after the conference. Photo: Sunniva Hadland Bøthun / news
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Boys think it’s easier to open up to a man, but almost only meet female helpers – news Troms and Finnmark
